Allergy Season

The sheet is covering my nose, creating a warm, moist space in which I attempt to breathe.  One nostril is completely clogged up; the other feels swollen and there's a sticky snicking sensation every time I inhale.  I try breathing slowly, then quickly; both ways elicit that faintly panicky feeling that says you're not getting enough air.  I roll to the other side.  Perhaps the clogged nostril will drain?  No dice.  I breathe through my mouth, faint hissing replacing the mucousy snuffles. 

Now the medicine begins to kick in.  My sinuses feel curiously empty, dry air echoing in their cavities.  I seem to vibrate softly, every cell buzzing gently like a drowsy bee.  I teeter on the edge of an adrenaline rush, forestalling the incipient panic attack by thinking about breathing.  I turn over again, frustrated in the warm soft dark.  My nose is still clogged, my inhalations still thin and meager.  I return to breathing through my mouth.  It grows dry and tacky, my taste buds rasping against my dehydrated palate.  I summon up saliva, but it provides only a modicum of gummy relief.  My tongue and cheeks and lips grow arid again.

I stagger out of bed, neither awake nor asleep, in search of water.  I wobble and stumble past the cat, grope blindly for the cup and pitcher, and drink down water in great gulps, staring blearily at nothing.  I shuffle and weave back to bed, crawl back into our soft nest.  Before long I am hissing through my teeth again, wearily.

I repeat this several times.  The tinging of the alarm offers a meager blessing; I am upright, and the dawn air is cool and fresh, even if I am not.

Comments

[New Kid on the Hallway]

Oh, ugh, I've been going through EXACTLY the same thing lately! My sympathies!

[Rana]

What's particularly ghastly is that it's not really seasonal - I'm a "mold-dust mite" person, so it's more that I'm spending more time inside and there's more ambient mold as the weather gets damper.

The worst was yesterday, when I went to the public library and found myself sneezing in the stacks - the idea that I may be allergic to books is terrifying! - but I think it's just their books, as I'm okay in the stores and in the school library.

I'm reassuring myself with the idea that my immune system is so revved up that I won't catch the flu that's taking out my students.

[gus]

sorry 'bout the bandwidth - my oversight... please forgive.

[Rana]

No worries! We've all made beginner mistakes at some point. :)