All in the head

by

undertheweather

Have you heard of being allergic to weather changes? 

Years ago, I visited an allergist after weeks of allergy symptoms.   After extensive testing, he said I was allergic to an obscure mold whose name I can’t remember. It’s sort of like being allergic to the top of Mt. Everest.  How many people are going to find themselves anywhere near it?

But the symptoms persisted.  I’d visit an office or a store, go outside, and the sneezing fits began.  

On a particularly hot day, I walked into the allergists office for a follow up visit.   The place was so cold it felt like Minnesota in late October.  It took only a minute for the sneezing and headache to begin.  

The allergist was going to tell me that he didn’t know why I’d be subjected to bouts of sneezing and other allergy symptoms, but when he witnessed the transformation in front of his eyes he knew why.  He said it was rare, but I was allergic to sudden  changes in the weather conditions.

It usually doesn’t happen that dramatically, but I do have sniffles when walking from humid hot air into an air conditioned environment.  If the difference between the A/C and the real world is extreme, it triggers a reaction.

Tropical Storm Hermine stopped by for a visit last night.  Before this unwelcome visitor appeared, the air was pleasant 94 degrees.  Then it was 81 with a drop in barometric pressure.  It produced the first sick-to-my-stomach migraine I’ve experienced in a very long time.

I suppose you could say it’s all in my head, but when the migraines strike my hubby likes to tell me, “We can always do a craniectomy.”  True, if my head is removed I’ll never have another headache again.  When you think about it, no matter how sick you are; without a mind, it doesn’t matter.

 

Category : health care
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