In the last year I've become really allergic to cats. Anything I can do to help it?

Blow your nose. Should get some of the dander out of the system.

Avoid cats.

Make sure there is nothing in your house with cat hair. What about the clothes you were wearing. It could still be setting you off.

But seriously. In the future. Do not go near cats. Nowhere near them. Employ dogs if you have to!

It probably would be a good idea to carry allergy medicine with you, too. This seems like a pretty extreme reaction. Your allergy may be getting stronger.

Wash your hands immediately after touching the cat and before you touch your eyes, nose or mouth.

@wundayatta I really can’t avoid cats. My 2 best friends own quite a few cats, and so do alot of other people I know. I love the Employ dogs if you have to! :)

So much for the allergy medicine – we don’t have any in the house. (Actually, we had three packages. The had best-by dates ranging from ‘06 to ‘08. I didn’t take any.) So what now?

You really need to avoid cats.

I know the feeling, much as I love them i’m horribly allergic to cats. Try not to touch your eyes, especially once they’ve started to get itchy. Bathing them in cool water or eyewash can help. I’ve found that the Witchhazel based eyewashes work best for me. Also, I find having a hot shower or steaming my head tends to help alot with the runny nose.

Taking Antihistamines (the stuff in allergy meds) is usually the best bet, if you take them at least half an hour before you come into contact with the cats you’ll probably avoid the worst of the itchys. Some people (like me) need to let the antihistamine build up in their system by taking them everyday. It all depends how badly your allergy effects you.

Hope that was some kind of help :)

Some people use medication, such as Claritin®, but, like @Unexpected_Rain says, I think it depends on the severity of your allergy. If you need help immediately, I suggest a shower. The steam and water will help clear out any residual dander you have left.

The thing about getting some allergy medicine is that I have to convince my mom I really need it and that chiropractic won’t help it. Which is pretty hard, since she thinks MD’s and anything associated with them won’t work and will hurt more that will help (Direct quote from earlier today: MD’s don’t know what they’re doing. It’s a practice.)