The trees are starting to bloom and the pollen count is going up. Thousands in the area can tell you - it's going to get worse before it gets better.
One of them is Daniel Bontempo, a freshman at DeSales University. Lately his allergies are getting in the way of his studies.
Daniel told Action News, "I always have pressure under my eyes and then I always get sinus headaches to the back of my head and then post-nasal drip."
Bontempo suffers from allergies year-round, but is especially sensitive to tree pollen, a spring-time misery-maker.
And from the looks of things outside... allergist Dr. Steven Smith says pollen and outside mold will be the main triggers over the next few weeks.
Dr. Steven Smith, of Allergy and Asthma Care, a practice with several locations, says, "This year we think may actually have high levels of the pollen and mold because we've had such a warm and wet winter and now it looks like it's going to be a wet spring as well."
Dr. Smith says the number one thing to prevent symptoms is to reduce your exposure.
Close the windows in your home and car.
Change your clothes and shower after a day outside.
If that doesn't help, try 24-hour over-the-counter medications.
If they make you drowsy... take them at night.
Dr. Smith says, "The sedation effect usually wears off by the morning but the effect in relieving symptoms lasts all day."
Bontempo sees a specialist to get allergy shots.
He says they help, but really he's hoping the spring bloom will hurry up and pass.
If you try over-the-counter medications, and you're not getting any relief- that's the sign you should see a doctor.
