This time of year is beautiful with flowers blooming and grass turning green, but for those with allergies and asthma Spring serves as a time to take more precautions. Sarah Fredman is all too familiar with this.
Sarah is one of the more than 60 million Americans overall who has allergies and asthma. It’s something she’s dealt with all her life. “I’ve been getting allergy shots since I started working here ten years ago. It makes my symptoms much more bearable. All growing up I’ve dealt with allergies, and have learned to cope with them over that time,” she shared.
Sarah explains that there are two categories of people when it comes to allergies. The first category is those people who take allergy shots for 3 to 5 years and become immune. The second category, which she falls into, is those who won’t develop immunity to those allergies and take allergy shots for the long-term.
Sarah is allergic to most trees and grasses, cats and dogs, mold, dust, and even cockroaches. Along with allergies, Sarah has asthma as well. She carries a rescue inhaler with her and an epi-pen. Her asthma is induced by both allergies and exercise.
She doesn’t let her conditions get in the way of living life to the fullest; she just takes some extra steps. “I do think ahead about what I’m going to be doing each day and think – ‘Do I need to take my Benadryl with me? Do I need to take my inhaler?’ But, I think I’m so in tune to it because I’ve done it all my life, it’s a part of my every day.”
Learning to cope with the symptoms so she can enjoy the things that bring her joy is important. She’s run two marathons and still like to enjoy the outdoors.
With May being National Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month, Sarah says it’s a great time for everyone to be informed even if they aren’t one of the millions who is impacted. “Especially with asthma, it’s important to educate those around you. It’s easy to think it’s okay, I’ll be fine, but it can quickly escalate. It’s important to for those around you be to be aware, so they can help.”
Also, awareness of an epi-pen and when to call for help is important, she says. “Awareness of an epi-pen is helpful. You could be at a park with other children or families, and being able to notice an allergic reaction and when to call 911 could save someone’s life.”