Keeping Our Family's Allergies Under Control with the Help of #MyAllerGenius, Allegra, and CVS

I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias® and ALLEGRA® #cbias #SocialFabric #MyAllerGenius.  All opinions expressed are my own.

My husband and I both suffer from allergies year-round, but the symptoms are especially severe during the Spring and Summer months due to the high pollen count.  Unfortunately, our 6 year old daughter and her 9 year old big brother also suffer from allergies.  My husband and our son usually display the typical hay fever symptoms, such as sneezing and sinus pressure.  Our daughter and I, however, will develop a chronic cough that will last for weeks.  I think it has to do with our throats constricting combined with post-nasal drip.  It is such a miserable experience to constantly be coughing, having other people wondering silently if you have something that's contagious, being kept awake at night due to violent coughing, and just having our normal everyday activities (indoor or out) be brought to a complete halt because we start coughing uncontrollably.

I know how these allergy-induced coughs have affected my daily life and I am starting to see how it is affecting our daughters.  Although she does not have asthma-like symptoms like I do yet, I want her to be able to enjoy everyday activities without the inconvenience and discomfort of a cough.  Some activities, such as studying taekwondo, require a lot of focus and this is extremely difficult while coughing.  Also, coughing continually for weeks really takes a toll on our bodies, making us feel tired and run-down.  That is why I wanted to try the Allegra products for children on her, since she is now old enough to use the disintegrating tablets.

In addition to trying Allegra, I signed up for pollen reports on www.myallergenius.com.  You can actually go to this site anytime to check your area's pollen count, but having the report emailed or texted to you automatically is much more convenient if you're a busy parent like me.  With these reports, I can plan ahead in regards to spending time outside or even opening the windows.  We all love the fresh air, but the allergens that come in with it are just too much sometimes.

This is what the pollen report sent via email looks like . . .

If you are considering trying Allegra for yourself or for your family members, the month of May is the time to do it.  CVS is running an exclusive sale on Allegra products for adults and for children through May 31st.  They are offering $6 off the 45ct Allegra and both the liquid and tablet form of Children's Allegra are on promotion for just $9.99 each with your CVS Extra Care Card.  In addition to this, you can print coupons to save an extra $4 off Allegra (30ct or larger) and $2 off the Children's Allegra at CVS by visiting www.myallergenius.com.

We took advantage of these extra savings and printed our coupon before we shopped at CVS.  You should be able to find the Allegra products on a prominent end cap near the pharmacy and also in the cold and allergy relief aisle.  We noticed that the Children's Allegra tablets were short in supply at our store, so I'm glad they still had a few boxes left.

We will be testing out the Children's Allegra on two of our children.  With the help of the pollen reports, we may be able to stop their symptoms before they get too severe by giving them a dose of Allegra on the mornings when the pollen count is especially high.

Learn more about Allegra products by joining in on the Twitter Party on Tuesday, May 14th at 1pm EST.  You can RSVP here.  Also visit www.myallergenius.com for tips on managing your allergies, as well as beauty tips for those suffering from allergies.

Review: Xlear Saline Nasal Spray with Xylitol

My husband, my 6yr old son, and I are people who suffer from allergies all year round. Spring is the time of year when we all have the most severe symptoms and it seems as if every year our springtime allergies are worse than the year prior. Out of the 3 of us, I am the only one who develops asthma-like symptoms as a result of my allergies. My husband's allergies trigger migraine headaches and our son's nose is constantly stuffy and he is prone to nosebleeds.

We have used regular saline drops for our son since he was an infant, but we never did start using them for ourselves. My husband is able to use a neti pot-style irrigation wash, but it is just too uncomfortable for me. I was much more willing to try the Xlear Nasal Mist. Starting off with just one pump in each nostril was not too traumatizing. It did feel like I got a little water up my nose from swimming, so there was that mildly uncomfortable feeling.

Although this product did moisturize my nasal passages and stopped that "strep" nose feeling, it did make me feel like I had constant postnasal drip for quite some time, which irritates my throat and causes an asthma-like cough. My husband, who does not having this issue with coughing, was able to use the mist without any problems. It did not even bother his sensitive gag reflex.

We also used the Kid's Xlear on our son, which is safe for children as young as infants. It is difficult to tell how well it worked. I can only say that it worked at least as well as the plain saline drops we have always used on him. This product was effective at washing out his nasal passages, helping any dried debris come out, and preventing nosebleeds.

The Xlear nasal products are all natural and only contain purified water, saline, grapefruit seed extract, and their unique ingredient Xylitol. This ingredient, in conjunction with the saline, helps nasal passages remain moisturized for a longer period of time than saline alone.

You can purchase these products right on Xlear.com or in stores, such as Whole Foods and the Vitamin Shoppe.

Thank you to Xlear for sending us product samples free of charge to base this review upon.