Hazy Sky and the Sterimar Spray Review

The first haze I could recall clearly was in the 90s, when I was in school.  Thereafter, it seems to have turned into an annual affair.  The haze comprises unhealthy particles (pollutants) in the air, and is caused by open-burning of estates from a neighbouring country.

It's only 10 in the morning.  Today's air index is worse than yesterday's, and this is not the worst in the whole country.

As someone "sensitive", the coming of the haze naturally poses a red flag when it comes to the risk of getting unwell.  

Here are among the common measures to be taken, vs what's in reality:

1) Avoiding outdoor activities

Unfortunately, this means cutting down on outdoor moments for many of us here who are presently already outdoor-deprived.  The effect is more significant for children compared to adults.  Perhaps staying indoor on a short-term basis shouldn't be that bad...   Thus, indoor playgrounds are expected to have more visitors during this hazy season. 

2) Using a face mask when out

The N95 mask is better than ordinary surgical mask.

However, having said that, I have not resorted to any mask yet, unless the air is really, really bad.  Firstly, I feel strange going public with a mask, and secondly it's very uncomfortable to breathe in humid air from within the mask.

3) Drinking more water

4) The saline nasal spray

I would like to share that this is among the best methods to eradicate / soothe an allergic nose that's sensitive to the haze.

For years, I used to complain about allergic rhinitis, and sometimes, sinusitis.  Antihistamines used to come into picture a few times in a year.  However, none seems to work as effectively as the saline nasal spray.

Introduction

The Sterimar Baby nasal hygiene spray contains sterilised sea water that has been diluted to make it isotonic. And being sea water means the spray contains trace amount of minerals that may be mildly antiseptic or anti-inflammatory.

The word "Baby" means the spray is made for infants, but it worksfor adults too (it works for me).  There's also a Sterimar spray without the "baby" label, with same content, only the nozzle size differs a little and there seems to be more ml.  Sterimar is manufactured in France.

How did the Sterimar spray come into picture?

Alvin had a chest infection (pneumonia) between April to May last year and was admitted to Columbia Asia Cheras.   

 In ward,besides IV antibiotic, neb and oral medications, paediatrician Dr Hew had also prescribed the Sterimar baby nasal spray.  It can used whenever necessary to help clear nasal congestion.   

Out of curiosity, I took the leftover spray from last year and tried - huhuhu, I am compromising on hygiene by reusing something belonging to someone else from so long ago (but the one shown in the pictures above is newly-bought).

How to use the Sterimar nasal spray, and how does it feel? 
I find it best to use it when lying down.  Lie to the left, insert the nozzle into the left nostril and spray once, wait for excessive flow out, and wipe.  Then change side, and repeat.  Wash the nozzle after use and let it dry.

Nasal spraying can be unpleasant and causes a bit of shock (as in frightening), so expect a toddler to scream/cry when using it.  Even I feel like screaming too when I use it on myself.

By now, I have been using the Sterimar spray for a week.  And I am glad to share that for one week, I was able to sleep better and not awakened by violent sneezing or post-nasal drip in the middle of the night, and need not take any antihistamine. 

How it works
Upon using the Sterimar spray, I thought it would have been great if Sterimar or any other normal saline spray is prescribed too, on top of the routine antihistamines.  The benefit of Sterimar seems to go beyond nasal cleaning.  By helping to clear the nose and at the same time flush out whatever allergen that's inhaled earlier, sneezing/runny nose is significantly reduced, therefore helps prevent post-nasal drip.  It also significantly reduces my dependency on antihistamine.  However, its effectiveness may differ between individuals.

How often to use?
It depends on each person.  For me, I use once in the morning when I reach my workplace from walking 10 minutes through the haze, once in the evening when I arrive at home, and once before bed.  

Where to buy and how much
The Sterimar baby nasal hygiene spray is available at pharmacies.  At Guardian, it's sold for RM27.15.  One bottle has a net volume of 50ml, for 150 doses.

NB: This is only a personal review and NOT a paid write-up.  ;)

Ouch... again.

Speaking of allergy, for reasons unknown to me, I suddenly got into plenty of allergic reactions lately.  The best Malay proverb to describe the feeling now is "sudah jatuh ditimpa tangga".

Night cough please go away...
For more than 2 weeks, I was coughing like mad almost every dawn.  It's called post-nasal drip.  It results from allergic rhinitis.  Before I started coughing, I was sneezing quite badly.  But I knew it's not infection because apart from sneezing, my throat was perfectly fine (not sore, not red), there was no fever, and I felt okay when not coughing.

This reminds me of what took place back in 2007 when I was suffering from allergic rhinitis for about 2 months.  So bad, I even lost weight.  An episode of fever coupled with very tiny red rashes all over my arms, and my doctor ordered a full blood test, which confirmed that I was indeed suffering from an allergy.

I didn't, and still don't know exactly what I'm allergic to although I used to suspect it's cat's dander, dust mite, and perfumes. 

Fine, and I no longer suffered from anything as bad as that until very recently.  Since I'm no longer exposed to cats now, perhaps I may rule out cat's dander as an allergen.

Loratadine did quite a good job although not 100% perfect in alleviating my symptoms of allergic rhinitis, likewise dexchlorphenyramine although I don't quite fancy the slight drowsiness caused by the latter because that would mean missing on one milk expression session.  The ideal is of course not to go on any medication when breastfeeding.  But sometimes I just can't help not taking medication as long as they are generally safe (only very small amount passes into milk).

Later on, my doctor prescribed Clarinase (a combination of loratadine and pseudoephedrine), and budesonide spray.  The latter is steroidal, but after weighing the pros and cons, I have decided to use a little of the spray for a only few days. As for the use of Clarinase during breastfeeding, its pseudoephedrine content may reduce milk production a little, so I hardly take it for fear of losing milk like during Alvin's time.

Note: Fortunately, this occurred after I have donated my extra EBM, so my milk-children are not exposed.  Although these are safe for breastfeeding, I think most parents will be uncomfortable about it... so better not.

Complaint no. 2
Now that the symptoms of allergic rhinitis are beginning to disappear (fingers-crossed... touch wood), I am faced with a new sort of nuisance - urticaria!  Or simply known as hives.  Actually it's not all-new because I had slight hives during my sneezing and coughing days which I managed to suppress well due to the antihistamines I was consuming.  All-in-all, it's been on and off for more than 2 weeks by now.

 On my left hand

I remember complaining about hives once in this blog back in 2011.  Dishearteningly however, the hives now are much worse than that.

My complaint centers on two main reasons - looks and discomfort.

If I were to wear short sleeve and skirt, observant folks would have spotted the redness right away.  I'm not vain by fearing others seeing it, but I'm worried if people who do not know it think it's some sort of contagious skin disease and thus want to get away from me for fear of getting "infected".

The discomfort?  Needless to say, I spend a lot of time scratching despite knowing that scratching not only doesn't help, but is bad for the skin because I apply strong friction onto it.

Doctor after doctor...
Red spots above my lips.  Red spots around my throat.  And red-looking hives on my legs, still.

As it was public holiday for Aidilfitri, I could only see a doctor the next day to confirm what's on my throat.  I was worried about spots on the throat because other than a weird sensation when swallowing fluid, there wasn't any feeling of soreness.

I didn't visit the regular doctor whom I used to see because his clinic was closed for the week.  So I visited another doctor whose clinic is located in a neighboring block near my workplace in the morning.

Of course whenever I see different doctors (although I will try my best to avoid it) I will tell them my history... what happened earlier, when, what medication I took, etc.  

Then the doctor checked my throat and skin on my legs.  She told me it's a throat infection and that I need antibiotic.  She told me she'd prescribe amoxycillin, to which I replied 'ok'.  I've taken amoxycillin before and tolerated it well, no allergic reaction. 

Despite having consumed loratadine earlier, the itch didn't go away.  In fact, the swarm of hives only got larger and red.  And so I went to the doctor (again!) near my home in the evening.  My doctor-phobia Alvinvin would have screamed out loud doing that, and I happily went from doctor to doctor.  But of course I always reveal my full story each time I visit a doctor, be it the same doctor or another.

At the end of the troublesome punya consultation, I was give an additional prescription - levocetirizine.

So far I have only consumed levocetirizine once, this morning.  So far, I notice my itch had subsided very minimally, and the red patches are still there.

Conclusion
Allergy oh allergy.....   I have never really been comfortable so far.  If only i know what I'm allergic to, but I don't. 

I did not eat or use anything new. I was not on any medication prior to this.  The budesonide nasal spray may not be the culprit for I've used it before back in 2007.  Also, I'm not on any pill, injection or Implanon.  So what's the culprit?  Or is it due to any hormonal imbalance?

This year is by far the worst ~ in hospital for 2 months for bed rest, and now chronic allergic reaction, gosh!

Oh God, please let me complete at least 6 months of giving my baby exclusive BM this time (if not 1 year as I wish it to be).  I do not want Ken-ken to be allergy-stricken like me, although I could see a risk of him becoming the same as me, because I see he has sensitive skin around his face. 

Ouch...

A mysterious attack of hives suddenly struck early morning long before dawn at 2 am.

I did not eat anything out of the usual. I did not use any new detergent or toiletry. The last time I ever had hives was when I was in Primary 2, but a version much less severe than this.

The attack went on for about 2 hours before subsiding. My night sleep was gone.

12 hours later, another swarm of hives came attacking.

The itch was too much to bear while working. Having only Telfast 120 with me (which was earlier prescribed for other reason), I was forced to pop a tablet because the itch was unbearable. Telfast should help because it’s an antihistamine (but unfortunately, I have yet to see improvement even 2 hours after intake).

I said “forced” because it may be undesirable to consume such medication at this time. It's better if what I look for hasn't materialised yet or else I will be unforgivable. I’d rather wait than to play with risk.

In the meantime, I’m afraid of bedtime tonight for fear of having another attack of hives. Maybe I'll need to go to the doctor once to see what can be done to help alleviate it.

WTZ?

A Weekend of Allergic Rhinitis = A Weekend Wasted

It could have been a nice one, but for one thing. Allergic rhinitis is back. Again, I suspect it to be pet's dander when I had to drag my house dog into the car to the vet. I suffered once when one of the dogs shed flakes of skin due to a skin condition, and another severe one back in 2007 when there was a cat in my landlord's house. A body of glass when it comes to animal's dander, how am I to rear my own cat or dog despite being a pet-lover? Seems unlikely, doesn't it?

The formerly hostile-turned nice cat at my landlord's house, which has been given away. Call me cruel, but I felt relieved and overjoyed that my source of allergy is not there anymore when the cat was given away.




Farewell, "my" computer

No more working in my old workplace very soon, and thus, the laptop is coming towards the end of providing me with access to the Net at home. If I do not have other commitments, I wouldn't have hesitated buying my own computer together with my own broadband by now. With a few commitments, I need to be very careful and evaluative in my budgeting. The question is always "Do I really need one?" The perk of being independent after starting to work! :p

WTZ?
Zits... Why do they emerge now? I had a clean record of being free from zits when I was a teenager and was thus expected to have them back then. Surprisingly, I only get them now. To play the lame game will be to play the blame game.

Blame it on pollution in the city. Blame it on the not-very-clean water in PJ. Blame it on make-up products, which is pretty likely because it seemed to occur after I changed brand. Now, it's time to go to another brand and see if there'll be any improvement.

Not that I'm upset with zits, but instead, I think that a pimple or two may look cool because it creates a 'youthful' look. But to have a number of them may be scary since I have no prior record of such phenomena before this. In short, I want to get back to my previous state of skin with at most only one or two zits at a time.