A visit to your physician is important, because if you have chronic and/or serious allergies you do need to work with allopathic medicines to keep your body from going completely out of balance. For those with less endogenous allergy problems, an OTC spray that coats the nasal passages, and a good allergy eye drop may do the trick.  Other readily available products may need to be taken as well. In addition to these, however, alternative practices can provide noticeable improvement in quality of life.   Diet is also a crucial element in all this, but I am not addressing that in this particular blog.

Energetic bodywork treatments, such as Jin Shin Jyutsu®, as well as acupuncture, to clear the head and support the liver are incredibly helpful in getting your nose and eyes cleared and restoring proper functioning.   The liver needs extra support during allergy seasons as it is not only a major cleaner of the body, but also a source of histamines and bodily responses to allergens.  Herbal support for the liver is thus helpful as it is working overtime in these situations.  Things like milk thistle and mushrooms, as well as herbs such as ashwaganda are helpful at any time of year.  Other herbal products are available OTC as well, such as bromelain, which among other things addresses inflammation.  Often, however, if you are taking prescription medication, fruit juices such as grapefruit and pineapple (which contain bromelain) interact to block the medication, so something else needs to be tried.  Spray applications of appropriate flower essences and essential oils can be very helpful ; once you are indoors and still symptomatic, application of a spray can really help reduce the problems in short order.  Keeping the mucus and watery eyes under control can also help you avoid sinus congestion which leads to headaches and interferes with sleeping.  I make customized allergy sprays, which you can order by going to my website and placing a Special Order.

Sinus congestion can be very effectively dealt with using Jin Shin Jyutsu®.  It can take about a half hour of application, but the head and sinuses will clear, and you will then able to proceed comfortably with whatever it is you are trying to do.  Try this:  Place your left hand on the back of your neck so the fingers are covering the area from the indent at the base of your skull down to the bottom of your neck on the right side.  Then, place your right fingers on the top of your skull at the right side front, above the eye and below the hairline.  This really does work.  Other Jin Shin Jyutsu® flows can maintain this clearing effect and help you remain in optimum balance.  There are also many self help things you can do using Jin Shin Jyutsu® to  keep yourself feeling good: If you practice these in between sessions from a practitioner you will be amazed at how well you feel.  I offer sessions in the Oakland-San Francisco bay area; if you live elsewhere this website will help you find a practitioner.