Pots And Allergy Shots

[lalalisa]

Hello!

I have really bad allergies and have been talking with my PCP about possilbe solutions. My allergies cause me to have frequent sinus infections and my ENT has recommended sinus surgery as a possible solution. I truly don't feel well enough to have this type of surgery so I'm looking at other options.

Do any of you get allergy shots? Is there any reason to be concerned about an odd reaction to the shots with a POTS patient?

Thanks for any input,

Lisa

[futurehope]

I get shots. I've received injections before and after my POTS diagnosis. I had asked my neuro if there was any reason to avoid allergy shots and he said no.

I do tend to feel more fatigued than normal on the day of the shot.

The only concern is that my allergy doc will not allow me to be on beta blockers , just in case they need to do a "rescue" injection of adrenaline should I experience a bad reaction to the allergy shot.

[lalalisa]

Futurehope - Thanks so much for your input. I didn't realize that I couldn't be on my beta blocker - hmmm.

(My sister in law did have one of those "rescue" situations after a shot...it was scary!)

I will definitely bring this up with my dr.

Thanks again,

Lisa

[Sunfish]

even though i no longer have the specific POTS diagnosis i figured i'd still chime in as someone with dysautonomia who had shots for some time.

i had allergy shots for some time without significant difficulty. i did have a reaction once but nothing that couldn't just as easily have happened to anyone else. it was managed in the allergist's office and was by no means a crisis. generally speaking it was only the normal localized irritation from the shots. none of my autonomic specialists saw any concern regarding my getting them; if anything it was the opposite as lesser constant allergies could do nothing but take an additional stressor off my body and thus could perhaps help my day-to-day symptoms. my allergist was also fairly familiar with dysautonomia which was an added bonus.

but....just as futurehope said, allergy shots with beta blockers are generally a no-no. in very rare cases they will proceed but it is not the general standard of practice. it's simply considered to risky. thus when i was started on a beta blocker we had to stop my shots. i had just started to benefit from them so it was a bit disappointing in that regard but the benefit did last for awhile after stopping them.

if i weren't on a beta blocker now i would consider restarting them aside from the fact that physically i cannot get out consistently, something that one has to be able to commit to for the shots to be effective.

hope this helps,

melissa

[lalalisa]

Melissa,

Thanks for your input. You guys are so helpful! Not being able to be on a BB is definitely a consideration. It will probably keep me from trying the shots....we'll see.

Thanks again!

Lisa

[OCsunshine]

Hi Lisa, this is a really good question. Allergies are tough. I get a lot of sinus problems, infections, and just general sinus headaches and 'clogging' that hurts pretty bad. Ick.

I asked my Hopkins doc for alternatives (I have tried lots of allergy meds and they make me feel drugged and dopey... I hate that...). He suggested a "neti-pot" which I did try, b/c I was desperate.

It's not a cure for allergies or anything, but it does help clear out my sinuses and keep some problems calmer than when I don't use the neti-pot.

Just an idea.