[vc_row][vc_column width="1/1"][container][text_output]When I was a kid I went the process of testing for allergies where they prick your forearms in long rows with various allergens and measure the swelling to determine how allergic you are to the different substances. I had to do it three or four times because I was so allergic to some of the things that the swelling of some of the points obscured all the ones around them. The doctor's quip was that it looked like I was allergic to everything under the sun, including the sun. I've been on allergy medication since then, that is, for at least twenty years. And it's not just the seasonal allergies that many get when plants bloom in the spring. I'm allergic to dogs, cats, fuzzy animals generally, cigarette smoke, pollen of all kinds, and worst of all, dust. Not being able to breathe through my nose is normal. I can't spend more than 15 minutes at the house of anyone who has a pet. Cleaning (particularly dusting and vacuuming) knock me out for the rest of the day. Except that I spent Easter with someone who has a cat. All afternoon. For hours. In a house with a cat. And was completely fine. And extraordinarily, over the past two months, this has become the new normal. I stopped taking my allergy medication sometime in February, and I still can breathe. I've become a better singer, because I have more space in my sinuses. I can be around people who have pets without crying, itchy eyes and a stuffy nose. I was not the most obedient or systematic Whole-30-er, but I have been relatively consistent and when I go off plan, I feel it in my head. A lot of people have stories involving drastic weight loss or increased performance or muscle gain - none of that really changed drastically for me. The difference hasn't been how my body looks from the outside, but how it functions on the inside. And not having to have emergency benedryl on hand at all times is a pretty big game-changer. At least for me.[/text_output][/container][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width="1/1"][share title="Share this Post" facebook="true" twitter="true" email="true"][/vc_column][/vc_row]