Allergy Shots - Warren,MA

I had allergy shots as a kid and I can tell you from experience they are SOOOO worth it!!! I have asthma too and if I hadn't had the shots as a kid my life would probably be unbearable and I'd be getting the shots now as an adult. the shots are just a pinch and take 2 seconds. I definitely recommend them.

I had allergy shots myself as a child for 6 or 7 years until I was weaned off. I take nothing now -- even for seasonal stuff. Mine worked much better than my husband's -- he had them for the same time period but his dust mites, molds, and cats are still horrible -- his other ones are better. I would highly suggest them -- especially given the number of meds your poor little guy is taking! Good luck! Hope the allergist concurs!

I got allergy shots starting in high school and through college. It helped me immensely. Before the shots, I'd have major reactions with hives that would keep me out of school. After several years of shots, I'd only get a few sniffles during the worst season.

I don't know how old your child is, but could you give the netti pot (saline rinse) a try? I would do 2x/day. It's worked miracles for me. Should get relief within a week and amazing after a month. I use mine at least 1x a day during non-allergy season year round. It takes a bit to get used to, but it is really effective.

My experience, as a kid, I had 4 years of weekly shots, useless & waste of my parents $$. I had allergy testing a couple years ago, to see how it is now, & reacted to everything including the saline control they use :( BOOO, the allergist just wiped my burning arm & it was a mess. He said my body is too reactive. Makes me wonder how legitamite the testing is.

I have heard that chiropracters can have excellent results in treating allergies though, and would consider that.
The allergy shots didnt hurt, wasnt traumatic, just a waste (for me)
I see many moms on here say the shots work for their kids, so Im sure everyone is different.

I had bronchitis, ear infections and pnemonia on a regular basis starting at three years old - these infections were always triggered by allergies that clogged my sinuses, that then got infected. When I was 8yr old I started getting allergy shots and was on two prescriptions/day. I was still not able to hang around houses with cats, but we had a pet bird and a poodle that didn't bother me. I couldn't roll in the grass, but I played soccer without allergy flareups. My ear infections and sinus infections continued coming at least once a year, but no more bronchitis or pnemonia. At age 13yrs I had sinus surgery, they broke my nose to fix a deviated septum and scraped out my sinuses (which on a CT scan were shown to be about half the size of what should be normal). Guess what? No more sinus infections, well one here and there, but nothing more than the average person. Without the sinus infection, my ears stayed clear. Fast foward several years, when I was 23 I stopped taking my allergy meds and didn't have any problems. I continue to be medicine and allergy free - I can even pet and cuddle cats, or mow the lawn without even a sneeze! I'm sure the majority of my problems were eased by the sinus surgery, but until your son is old enough to look at this option, shots really should help!

My daughter has been taking allergy drops for over a year and it has helped her a lot. She started the allergy drops because she had several cases of bronchitis. Since starting the drops she has not had bronchitis or needed breathing treatments. The allergy drops are placed under her tongue once a day. The drops are absorbed better than the shots. I don't know if they offer allergy drops in your area, but it is worth researching.

I had allergy shots for several years - in high school and my mid-20's.
They helped somewhat, but never really eliminated my allergies. In my 30's I was sick of being a zombie to antihistamines (I had been on them since age 8). I changed my diet and eliminated artificial colors, flavors, nitrates, msg, chlorinated water and most other food additives. I buy meat from a local farm. I also recently gave up wheat and all dairy except greek yogurt. I changed my cleaning and personal care products. I use a neti pot. I've been antihistamine free for 3 years now.

So, while shots may help I don't believe they will address the underlying cause of your child's allergies. BTW, I had asthma in high school. Turns out I'm sensitive to chlorine and was a competitive swimmer. The asthma went away once I removed the cause....

They are helping our son, but he is still getting the shots so I can't speak to the end result yet. As for "putting him through" getting all the shots. He doesn't mind. He is 12, and the doctor's office is set up for the kids to not mind coming in. They have gaming chairs in the waiting area for the kids to sit and play video games (wall mounted TV screens with the game consoles attached in front of the video rockers). Our son gets 2 shots (one in each arm) b/c the reaction he has to several allergens is stronger for some than others, so the stronger ones they have in one concentration of serum, the less reactive ones are in a different serum. So they can increase the dosages at slower rates for the stronger reacting ones than the less reactive ones. But it means 2 shots each time. But he really doesn't mind.

You can try a Neti pot - you can use any brand as there is no difference in the principle of cleaning out the sinuses. It's a weird full feeling but if your child will do it a few times a day, it's worth it. He just has to blow his nose right afterwards to get the water and the junk out. Some doctors say to just use salt in the water, others say to add salt and baking soda. (just a pinch of each - then mix it up. A friend of mine used allergy shots for years with no real result, and the same allergist gave her 2 prescriptions and told her to add over the counter antihistamines too. She was a zombie most of the time, was still miserable, couldn't go to any homes where there were big gardens or pets, and she walked around with a box of Kleenex under her arm all the time. Her son was also miserable - lots of breathing treatments & nebulizer drugs, still sick 3 weeks out of 4, and he had those allergic shiners under his eyes. The allergist wanted to put him on shots and she refused at that point - they were spending a fortune for no real relief. They both started using nutritional supplementation (as recommended by the AMA) and now they have zero allergies, a cat, and have not had to take anything out of their diets. You might want to go that route - all liquid, all balanced, patented and safe. And way cheaper if you choose properly.

Have you tried local honey? I try to do more natural approaches to medical issues first, and then if it doesn't clear up, I move on to other medications. People recommend local honey as a way for you to be exposed to all the local allergens in your area. I just got some yesterday so I'll start taking a spoonful a day. It has to be local, though... nothing in your grocery store. You can find it at any farmers market, I'm sure.

It may not work but it certainly doesn't hurt!

Wow Rachel, my son takes the EXACT same medications as your child. My son took allergy shots at about the age of 6 or 7, and he is 14 now. We could not have made it without them, they were a godsend. He was having allergy attacks that turned into asthma attacks. In addition to the regular weekly shots, we added cat/dog shot too, just because we had them, and his friends did too, when he went over there. Don't forget when you go to the pet store, zoo, etc, he will need to have relief from that too. We were in the dr office all the time, and he now only very rarely, maybe once a year, has to use his machine for a breathing treatment, and an inhaler once in a while. He was in the hospital once with respitory failure, for 5 days, and that was while he was taking shots, but the weather just got the best of his allergies at the time. Just an FYI, I have another son who is allergic to everything outside, plus all nuts, and he is allergic to cold weather too (it is called Cold Urdicaria sp?) anyway we started him on shots, but he had too bad a reaction to them so we stopped them, but he does not have asthma or anthing like that. I would make my first son do it all over again, it is scary for them at first if they are small, but the worry you go through with their breathing is worth it. I'd say after a few rounds of shots, your child will pull up his armsleeve and take the shots with no problems. That is what I witnessed in the dr office with all the other small children getting them. Don't forget a flu shot for kids with asthma either. ps, forgot to say that our shot program was for 5 years and well worth the money, which can stress you out thinking of it. I see everyone saying to use the netti pot, we do that too

I have heard from people that allergy shots do help them ( kids too). But I would try the netti pot right away. Even my pediatrician recommended it. I believe the brand that fits kids' noses is Sinu-Cleanse. Also heard local honey is good too. My 8 year old refused to use the netti pot after 1 try so it has been quite frustrating for me. Good luck!