( Illustration by the talented Carolyn Gavin! )
Springtime is the season of colors, flowers, life and love… It heralds the beginning of summer… But for many of us it seems, spring is also the most dreadful and feared “Allergy Season”…
Allergies: Let’s Face it!
According to the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, up to 20 percent of Americans suffer from seasonal allergies… Although many over-the-counter remedies and prescription drugs are available, many sufferers keep filling their medicine cabinets with products that bring them little relief…
Seasonal allergies have become a part of our reality and we have learned to accept this reality with daily “Allergy Reports” on television ( which are mainly sponsored by producers of allergy medicine… ) and constantly running noses, stinging watery eyes, blocked sinuses, headaches and sore throats… Allergies of course don’t stop there…. I also meet people with many different types of allergies, including reactions to food, animals, people, situations and those with allergic reactions to just about everything! But what are these allergies really about?
In my experience, allergies, especially a runny nose, stinging eyes and blocked up sinuses, are almost always the body telling you, in an “in your face” way, “I am not OK, please give me some time, healing and attention”…
It is unfortunately easy to prolong this “allergic” situation without realizing it, simply because of the huge amount of medication available to “control” these allergies… This however merely postpones the time when you realize that you must look within yourself and dig deeper into your life and feelings…
To find the real issues that are behind your allergy problem, understand that it’s never too late to begin to see yourself as the individual that you are and to recognize your own wants, needs, opinions, dreams, aspirations… You can free yourself from allergies, no matter what they may be…
Here are my Top Ten Tips to freeing yourself from allergies:
- Believe in yourself… Accept that you don’t have to be the victim of allergies….
- Make time for yourself, even when you feel that there is none…. Put yourself first!
- Feed yourself a diet of positive news… Avoid watching or reading about horror, disasters, violence, crime, drama etc…
- Expect the best and accept that you deserve it…
- Express yourself! Talk to friends, family and others you trust… Write when you don’t have someone there to express yourself to…
- Write things down to get emotions of your chest… You may also find that this gives you a lot of new perspectives…
- Ask yourself: “Am I getting enough love?” If you are alone, keep working on loving you and the rest will follow…
- Start to recognize and fulfill your own needs today…
- Get into the habit of letting go of tension and built up emotions regularly…
- Deal with life one piece at a time… Take each day as it comes… Feel positive about the bigger picture and future outcomes… Know that everything is as it needs to be, no matter how it appears right now…
Remember, allergies are primarily a “wake up” call to yourself… It is important not to fool yourself and avoid dealing with “you” because of the belief that it’s “Allergy Season”… Do not believe and accept that you always get or will have allergies… Instead, it’s time and the “season” to give yourself the attention that you need and deserve… It’s time to dig deeper and to deal with your real issues…
