Colorado allergies ?? (Denver: living, floors, moving)

[k3llwood]

I recently moved to Denver from Nashville TN in November. My second week of moving here I got an awful sinus infection and was put on antibiotics. I went back to TN for thanksgiving and stayed 3 weeks, now I am back and have been here almost a month. Within the second week of being back here I got an awful cold, that is still hanging on. I don't believe it has turned into another sinus infection, but it is a long difficult cold to get rid of. I have a pretty decent immune system , I take all my essential vitamins and eat well. I also exercise regularly. I'm wondering if this cold may be allergies, or something else? Just wondering why my body is having such a hard time adjusting to this climate. Did anyone else experience this upon moving here ? I am waiting to see a doctor about this next month, but I'm suffering !!

[pikabike]

If you recently moved, your body is still stressed. That move involves change of time zones, decrease in humidity, seasonal shift toward spending more time indoors with even drier air, travel and holiday exposures to more people and pathogens, increased altitude, and possibly more.

The building you live in might be a "sick building," maybe filled with animal dander or other allergens. Is there wall-to-wall carpeting, excess dust, or other irritants?

When I moved from MA to CO a long time ago, I did not have any unusual symptoms. Later on, I found that cottonwood fluff caused severe stuffiness and itchy eyes, but that is a springtime phenomenon.

Drinking more water should help symptoms, as well as prevent future illness. I was slightly underhydrated for the first few years I lived there and did not realize it at first.

[Neditate]

Could be allergies. Could be due to the extreme dryness. You could have picked up a virus. Only your doctor can tell you what's going on.
One of the best tips I ever got was to use saline nasal spray in the morning and at night. I haven't had so much as a cold in years.
My husband is prone to sinus infections and he's been able to ward them off by using a neti pot to rinse his sinuses. Took me a few years to convince him to do it.
Good luck -- hope you feel better soon.

[Mr. Analyst]

I took me a couple years to overcome a lot of the allergies. This year has been exceptionally bad though. I've had two bouts with bad allergies in the last four months. I think it has a lot to do with the amount of rain we've been getting. When it was drier, I did not have nearly as bad allergies, if any at all.

[Katarina Witt]

When you move somewhere you're exposed to a lot of new allergens that weren't in the old locale. That may be the problem. Colds, OTOH, are caused by viruses. Travel exposes you to a lot of different viruses, so that could be it, too. I definitely agree with those who say to use the saline nasal spray. Also, long steamy showers help (a good excuse, too!). Do whatever you can to get some more humidity into your home, e.g. humidifiers, note I use the plural. The one in the bedroom won't help much if you're in the living room.

[rogers719]

Originally Posted by k3llwood

I recently moved to Denver from Nashville TN in November. My second week of moving here I got an awful sinus infection and was put on antibiotics. I went back to TN for thanksgiving and stayed 3 weeks, now I am back and have been here almost a month. Within the second week of being back here I got an awful cold, that is still hanging on. I don't believe it has turned into another sinus infection, but it is a long difficult cold to get rid of. I have a pretty decent immune system , I take all my essential vitamins and eat well. I also exercise regularly. I'm wondering if this cold may be allergies, or something else? Just wondering why my body is having such a hard time adjusting to this climate. Did anyone else experience this upon moving here ? I am waiting to see a doctor about this next month, but I'm suffering !!

We moved from Knoxville last year and it may just take you a while to get adjusted. Last winter was horrible but I don't notice it at all this year. If you don't have one already a good humidifier or two can make a huge difference when getting acclimated to the dry air here in Co.

It can also take a few months before you adjust to the lower oxygen levels. The altitude adjustment can make you fell lethargic, and screw with your digestive system. Accompanied by a cold can make it seem worse, at least from my experience.

[Wheatridger]

What can I add to the advice of an Olympian? Just that my move out of Nashville to Denver, back in '78, was the best thing that ever happened to my pollen-triggered allergies. Denver remains a haven for allergy sufferers, due to the shorter growing season and lower density of plant life (it's not the desert, but close). So the odds are low that you are reacting to pollens or molds.

In Denver, my personal allergy season is about one month long, when trees are pollenating. But that doesn't mean my nose is happy and healthy all the time. The constant dryness is an assault on my nasal passages. I keep humidifiers running on both floors of my home, but that barely brings the indoor humidity to 40%. Outdoors, in winter, 15% humidity is common. Today I'll try to remember to use that saline nasal spray, as my doc always recommends. I'll continue to dream of moving on to a more humid area (but not the South).

Welcome to the arid West, k3llwood. Come spring, you may start to see the allergy benefits of moving here, but right now, you're paying the cost.