Allergies/Asthma in work place??

[sizzla350]

I have been diagnosed with asthma/allergies when I was 8 years old. I don’t have medical insurance so speaking with or seeing a doctor in a short time period is not feasible.  I work out almost every day in an inside gym. I also run track outside when it is warm out. I have not had to take a puff of asthma medicine or any allergies pills in quite some time. I stay away from cutting grass and perfumes etc because they aggravate my allergies and asthma.

My question is, I was given a job in an administrative building in a computer lab. (The lab is in the basement of the building) fairly cool but not freezing. I started on a Monday. I worked about 5 hours and when I got home I felt a bit week and my chest felt a bit tight. I didn’t think much of it. The next day I went in and worked another 6 hours. I sit mostly at work. This time when I left work my symptoms were a lot worse. My chest was even tighter and my sniffles were worse. I hadn’t started to weeze but I definitely felt considerably weaker and stuffy. I’m a high energy person and most people can tell when I’m not feeling well. I know everyone would say to avoid the basement who knows what’s down there. Finding a job is hard especially one that I had been trying to get. What if any medicines could I take and would this be something a doctor would advise against because I would be in the aggravating environment so many hours a week?

[sizzla350]

Thanks. I will follow through with it.

[evewisewoman]

Hi Sizzla350,

I do have the same issues as you and I definitely understand. The more
I think about it, I would be willing to bet that the air ducts and vents are
dirty and not being cleaned on a regular basis in your work place.
I'm glad you are considering my suggestion in the message I wrote you
yesterday. I really think this may work. I wish you the very best of luck. Eve

[sizzla350]

Eve thanks so much. Yes it may be dust or a combination of things. Bad air circulation etc. You have the same issues as me so you understand. For people who may not who read this a good example would be I would say when I go to a thrift store I get a similar reaction. I know that those stores are usually very dusty and or old. They are at ground level so most likely it is poor maintenance issues dirty vents and not mopping.

Anyway I will take your advice, I didn't really want to notify management because if I tell them the situation they may feel like I am I liability, which would I guess be true. My chest is still irritated and now every fragrance is more bothersome. When I say I can smell perfume or a permanent marker from 15 feet away is true. My senses are very sensitive. On the bright side while this is a job I really wanted it is not my career and its a good lesson for the future if I indeed have to quit. I will know how picky ill have to be about my environment.

An air filter would be great but like I said I don't have much say so because I just started but I understand how and why its important.

As far as allergy shots, that's disappointing to here they didn't work for you and they are so very expensive. If my insurance doesn't pay for it I guess I may not have to much faith in it either. My insurance May kick in soon...I hope. I hope you do not mind both I wrote you a message.

[evewisewoman]

Hi Sizzla350,
Yes, we definitely have similar allergies. My worst allergy according to
my allergy test which I had probably more than 20 years ago now,
was June grass pollen. Anyway, back to your issue. I would be willing
to be based on your comments, that there is something in the basement
where you work that is an allergy trigger which is triggering your asthma.
My best guess based on what you have shared is dust. I would venture
to guess that it may be dusty air vents in the basement. I think you said
you feel better when you've been off work for 3 days and then when you
go back to work, you say you feel stuffy and weak and you feel like
you're going to develop a cough. When I hear your comment about
feeling like you going to develop a cough, I'm really suspecting dust.
Is it dusty in the computer lab ?  You also mentioned possible getting
allergy shots. I went that route myself and I didn't notice that the allergy
shots helped at all and my serum was expensive and I had to pay for
it out of pocket. My insurance at work wouldn't cover allergy shots.
As the allergy serum wasn't helping anyway, I just told my doctor I
wasn't interested in getting allergy shots anymore. In my opinion, it's
a waste of money.  You asked me what did I do to feel better .
Well, I was and am taking asthma medication, but besides that I
bought myself a hepa air purifier. This one is made by Honeywell.
It helped tremendously in my classroom. I know the air vents in my
classroom were dirty and not properly cleaned. Budget cuts maybe ?
Anyway, I bought the air purifier into my classroom and I had it running
all day. I would shut if off at night and put it on when I arrived at school
and before my students arrived. I still have the air purifier and it's in our
living room and it helps a lot. We also have a humidifier in the bedroom
which I find really helps with my asthma. I cough a lot less at night.
We also keep the bedroom dust free as much as possible, especially
night tables and anything that close to the bed where we sleep.
I used to take Claritin for years to manage my allergies especially in
the early spring when the pollen on the trees is an issue for me.
My asthma has improved quite a lot because I no longer have to teach
in a dusty classroom or be exposed in various allergens during yard
duty. Don't get me wrong. I loved teaching, but I always suspected that
once I retired, my asthma would improve and I was right.
I would try and ask the other employees how  they feel about the working
conditions in the basement. If a number of you do not feel well, perhaps
you could approach management and see if management can purchase
an air purifier for the computer lab. Since you don't have windows, I
think this is a reasonable request. Just as a word of caution. Do not
jeopardize your health. You also say your mucus has been yellowish
in the morning. Yellow or green mucus mean something, I can't remember off the top of head what exactly, but anything other than clear mucus
means something is not right. If you can possibly go into a walk in clinic,
I would try and do that. I wish you well.    Eve

[sizzla350]

Thanks so much. We definitely sound like we have very similar conditions. I had an allergy test and dust, pollen, ragweed, mold, pet dander etc came up as been allergy triggers.  I just started working a new job. And that’s the thing. I work in a computer lab in the basement, no windows either as I stated. Before I started working I had 0 problems, except every blue moon in warm months. I have no clue what is the exact problem asthma or allergies. I would say my problem is almost strictly based on environment triggers. My mucus has been yellowish the last few days in the morning.
I just feel stuffy and kind of weak, which I have felt before around certain sprays when I use to wash cars. The feeling of course gets worse and worse every day. If I’m off 3 days I'll start to feel better. But when I go back it’ll slowly come back. It feels like I’m going to start to develop a cough.

What did you do to feel better? I don’t want to have to take pills everyday just a work a job. (In my opinion pills just block the symptoms and when the pills were off, it’s like it’s just waiting to come out), I was thinking about allergy shots but I have no resources to get that service. I guess if I had a job from home or maybe a job, say at gym a wide open ventilated area I would probably not need not a pill or asthma pump on a regular basis. That also bothers me that I have been fine for so long.

[evewisewoman]

You're very welcome Sizzla350. That's the thing about inhalers. Unfortunately eventually the inhalers expires and you don't want to be
using expired asthma medication. Do you have a family doctor?
I would suggest that you make an appointment with your family doctor
to discuss your asthma.  I remember you saying in your original post
that you've had asthma since you were 8 years old. You also said that
your allergies were diagnosed when you were 8 years old. What were
your allergies then if you don't mind me asking. It's just my curious nature.
I am concerned by your mentioning that you have tightness in your chest.
and that you have already experienced wheezing. I'm glad to hear that
you will definitely look hopefully replacing your old inhalers with new
inhalers. I myself that two kinds of inhalers to control my asthma.
I take Pulmicort ( 2 x a day) and Bricanyl as needed. Apparently I have
mild to moderate asthma.  Some of my asthma triggers are house
dust, cigarette smoke and very cold air like one breathes in the winter time.
I'm also allergic to chalk dust which was a real issue when I was still teaching and as I mentioned to you, dirty air vents sometimes  caused me to cough in the classroom while I was teaching the children, reading them
a story etc.  This improved when I got the hepa air purifier which I purchased with my own money. I also wondered sometimes if this dry,
basically dirty air in from the air vents in my classroom was affecting my
students. I cleaned my own chalkboards and got rid of any chalk dust
that the regular cleaners sometimes left behind. Anyway, I don't mean to
go on about that. I guess I'm sharing this with you because I want you
to see how easily a working environment can become an unwelcoming
place for an asthmatic.  I wish you well.   Eve  

[sizzla350]

Thanks so much Eve. I had been reading lately on how to tell the difference between asthma and allergies because they can go hand In hand. The best explanation I got was that if you have runny nose , itchy/red eyes , ichy skin, nose running it's prob more allergy related. I haven't experienced any of those so I'm leaning toward my asthma being the main culprit.  Just tightness in my chest and wheezing seems to be not to fat behind . Thanks I def will look into my inhalers they are getting old .

[evewisewoman]

Hello Sizzia350,

You said you've only been working there in the computer room for 2 days
and yet you've already experienced what sounds like allergy symptoms.
If you're experiencing these symptoms, there is a good chance that the
other six people have been experiencing similar symptoms.
Hopefully you have a break at some point. If you do, perhaps you could
take that opportunity to bring up the subject of allergies.  Working there
only 2 days you no doubt don't know these other employees very well.
However, I would nonchalantly bring up the subject of allergies and
see what the other employees say. It's worth a try. You say you have
inhalers. That's good, but would they still be effective if you needed them or have they expired ? It's important to check. I just discovered recently
that one of my asthma meds had expired and I had to discard it and
buy another one. Anyway, I wish you luck.  Eve

[sizzla350]

Thanks so much for your response. Yes there are about 6 other people who work with me in the room. It could very well be affecting them as well. I have only worked there 2 days and it affected me quite a bit. I can only imagine working there3-4 days in a row, which I will sometimes have to do.


It is a larger room connected to a another room. I do have albuterol inhalers but Like I've stated, I  hadn't had any flare-ups in quite sometime. I go outside regularly exercise etc but had no reason to take it. That's how I know fairly quickly when my environment or specific things trigger my allergies. It could be dirty air vents, mold or just the chilly air, maybe a mixture of all three things. The basement is fairly deep with no windows.
Once again thanks for your reply.

[evewisewoman]

Hello Sizzla350,

Just finished reading your comments. As someone who also has asthma/allergies, I know only too well about asthma triggers. There seems
to be something in the basement where you are working which your body
is reacting to. At least that is what it seems like to me. As it is a basement,
mold could be an issue, but I am also wondering about the air vents in
the basement. I'm actually a retired primary teacher. I know when I was
still teaching, my asthma was affected by the air vents in my classroom
which were only periodically cleaned. I happened to be there one day
when the air vents were being cleaned and I when I saw the pitch black
filter being removed from the air vent I was quick frankly horrified.
In my case, I talked about the problem with my sister. She suggested that
I buy a standing air filter which I did.  The air purifier I purchased is made by
Honeywell . I brought it home when I retired and it is in our living room.
It helps a lot. I believe it has a heap filter which can easily be removed
and cleaned and replaced. Are there other people working with you in
this lab in the basement ?   Perhaps they are feeling similar symptoms.
If they are, perhaps you could all approach administration and ask that
they purchase an air purifier for all of you. If possible, I would also try
and get some medical insurance. Don't fool around with asthma.
Your symptoms such as weezing, tight chest, sniffles indicate an allergy
trigger which is obviously affecting your asthma. Are you on asthma
medication right now ?  If your 're not, I would strongly suggest that you
get medical insurance and make an appointment with a doctor asap.
I hope you find my suggestions helpful.  Take good care.  Eve