For some time now we have been concerned about Carter's wheezing, nighttime coughing (without having a cold), etc. It really seems to have gotten worse over the last six months or so. I have been giving him a prescription medicine for when it gets bad but it really is not a "fix", just a symptom reducer.
Anyhow, we decided to take him to the same allergy/asthma specialist that Audrey sees to hopefully find out some answers. So I took him today for that appointment. Part of the appointment involves allergy testing to see if something in the environment is causing a problem.
The good news is that Carter is only allergic to one thing. YAY!
The bad news .... that one thing he is allergic to is our cat. Uh-oh. :(
SO. I know, many would say "good-bye cat," find the cat a good home, and move on.
BUT, we just can't do that to our Diesel. I think Chad and Audrey would go into major depressive states. They both love Diesel. (Not that I don't love her too, I do, but I think for me it is different. I'm just not a big animal lover like they are.)
Thankfully the doctor said that we don't have to get rid of her. (Although of course they think that is preferable...) But it does mean that we need to spend a whole heck of a lot more time vacuuming and dusting our house. Can I just say, I really do NOT like either vacuuming OR dusting?? But maybe this will be a way to get my rear in gear with cleaning the house in a more regular fashion.
Or maybe not, knowing me.
Life just seems too short to spend lots of time cleaning things that just end up dirty 10 minutes later. Literally, 10 minutes later! Can I get a witness?
NOT cleaning also helps me to be less angry. Really, it does. When I spend a lot of time cleaning, then I just spend a lot of time frustrated with everyone for messing it all up. Have you ever looked under a table after 3 small children eat a meal? It looks like someone took 5 crackers, smashed them up, and threw them all around. It also looks like some kind of splatter painting under there, complete with ketchup and ranch dressing (condiments that take up special places on kid plates).
Right now summer weather has also descended around here (in a thick, humid air kind of way) and the kids are spending lots of time running in and out of our house with wet feet or shoes and leaving a trail of leaves, grass clippings, and dirt all the way through the house. {sigh}
Seriously, cleaning seems like such a huge waste of time. I figured I can have a neat and clean house once they grow up. Or at least once they get a little older.
But now. My children's health depends on it, so I guess I better get off this computer and start vacuuming or something... only the kids are napping, don't want to wake them up ... maybe I should just take a nap and vacuum later...
4 comments:
Oh Amy. Well, at least you know what you are dealing with. Congratulations on that step. I think you should do a major cleaning one time and see what comes of it. If Carter improves greatly than, ugh, guess it becomes a regular thing. Maybe Diesel isn't allowed in their bedroom to cut down on dander. But if the cleaning doesn't help then yeah for dusty houses:)
Cleaning is just wrong...not that we shouldn't be clean, just that you work on for hours that can be undone in seconds is just a head on a brick wall. I suppose we have Eve to thank for that, though;) Just don't ever get a 75 lb puppy who likes to dig!
Have you ever thought of getting an air purifier for Carter? If his allergies are especially bad at night, it seems like you could shut his room door (keep the cat out as much as possible during the day, too) and get a room-sized air purifier to catch whatever allergens are left. Worth a try! Is the cat indoor/outdoor or only indoor? Let her be outdoors more -- keeps the hair/allergens out of the house a little better:) That's what we do as I have some allergies to cats, too -- they're not overwhelming though most of the time. But when I was little, we had to get rid of at least one cat that I can remember. I kinda grew out of the worst of it by the time I was probably 8 or 9. So, there may be hope:) Evie actually had her tonsils/adenoids out in November because they were so swollen all the time -- allergies were so bad her voice was like an octave lower than it should have been. She sounded like a chipmunk to us when she came out of the operation -- but it was her real voice:)
oh no. Life just got a little more complicated in your house. :(
I'm allergic to cats but did once manage to live with one.
The complications: there were no carpets or soft furnishings in the apartment (seriously. No sofa). And the owner sat and brushed the cat every night, collecting all the loose hair and tossing it out.
Still, might be more fun than damp-washing your walls and cleaning all day (which my very considerate sister-in-law does for me when I go to stay).
I like the air-purifier and keeping-the-bedroom-door closed idea.
Can you banish Diesel to the basement, or does Carter spend a lot of time down there anyway?
Post a Comment