Why Your Allergies Are Worse This Year (And What to Actually Do About It)
May is Allergy Awareness Month — and if you're sneezing your way through spring, this one's for you.
Allergies are one of those things I see constantly in practice — and I mean constantly. Whether we're talking about seasonal sniffles, reactions to pet dander, food sensitivities, or the way your skin crawls every time you walk past a Yankee Candle display — allergic responses are incredibly common, and they're often more connected than people realize.
This month I want to talk about why allergies happen, why they seem to get worse over time, and what you can actually do about them — including a little bonus recipe at the end for a homemade laundry detergent that will change your life (or at least your laundry room).
First, Let Me Tell You About the Bucket
One of my favorite frameworks for explaining why symptoms happen — including allergies — is what I call the Bucket Theory.
Here's the idea: every single one of us is born with a bucket. Some of us have big buckets. Some of us have smaller ones (thanks, genetics). The size of your bucket represents your body's overall tolerance threshold — how much it can handle before it starts reacting.
Throughout your life, things get poured into that bucket. Things like:
Genetics — Are you predisposed to narrow nasal passages, polyps, or a more reactive immune system?
Diet — Are you eating a lot of pro-inflammatory foods, histamine-rich foods, or foods your body doesn't actually like?
Environment — What's your air quality like? Your water quality? How much mold, dust, or chemical exposure are you dealing with?
Stress — Yes, stress goes in the bucket too. It's a big one.
Sleep, toxin exposure, gut health — all of it, in the bucket.
Now here's the thing: your bucket also has outlet valves. These are your body's detox and elimination pathways — your liver, your kidneys, your skin (sweating!), your tears, your lymphatic system, and for menstruating folks, your cycle. When these pathways are working well, they help drain the bucket so it doesn't overflow.
Your symptoms start when the bucket overflows.
This is why you might have sailed through spring without so much as a sniffle for years — and then suddenly in your 30s you're miserable every May. It's not that you developed allergies out of nowhere. It's that your bucket finally filled up.
Seasonal allergies are a perfect example of this. Pollen season adds a sudden surge to your bucket right at a time when it might already be pretty full from winter stress, inflammatory eating, indoor air quality, or whatever else has been accumulating. The pollen was never the whole story — it was just the thing that pushed you over the edge.
How to Lower Your Bucket Load
Once you understand the bucket, the goal becomes clear: lower what's going in, and support what's draining out.
Here's how I approach this with my clients:
Support Your Detox Pathways
Your elimination pathways are your bucket's drain. Supporting them is one of the most underrated tools for allergy relief.
Sweat regularly — Even a 20-minute walk or sauna session helps your skin do its job as a detox organ
Stay hydrated — Your kidneys and lymph need water to move things out
Support your liver — Bitter greens, dandelion, milk thistle, and reducing alcohol all help
For menstruating folks — your cycle is actually a detox pathway. Supporting a healthy, regular cycle matters more than most people realize
Lower Your Environmental Load
This is the low-hanging fruit that people often overlook.
Wash your face when you come in from outside — seriously, just getting pollen off your skin and out of your eyes makes a difference
Rinse your nasal passages — a neti pot or saline sinus rinse is old-school and incredibly effective
Get an air purifier for your bedroom — you spend 7-9 hours there breathing. Make it count.
Filter your water — a shower filter or whole-house filter reduces chlorine and other irritants your skin and lungs are absorbing daily
Ditch the synthetic fragrances — this one is big, and I'm coming back to it below
Lower Your Histamine Load
Allergies trigger histamine release in the body, but did you know that certain foods also contain or trigger histamine on their own? If your bucket is already full of dietary histamine, your seasonal allergies will feel even worse.
Foods that tend to raise histamine or inflammation:
Dairy (this one especially contributes to excess mucus and phlegm — if you're already congested, try cutting it for a few weeks)
Aged cheeses, fermented foods, wine, and vinegar
Processed and packaged foods
Natural antihistamines I love:
Nettles 🌿 — This one is close to my heart because nettles grow locally right here in Nebraska. It's a humble little weed that is genuinely one of nature's best antihistamines. Freeze-dried nettles in capsule form or as a tea are well-studied for allergy support.
Quercetin — A flavonoid found in onions, apples, and capers, also available as a supplement. Works synergistically with bromelain (an enzyme from pineapple) to lower histamine response.
High-dose Vitamin C — Acts as a natural antihistamine and supports immune balance
Bromelain — Often paired with quercetin; helps with sinus inflammation specifically
The Local Honey Trick
This one sounds too simple to be real, but there's solid reasoning behind it. Raw, local honey — and I mean local local, not just "from your state," but from your county or town if possible — contains trace amounts of local pollen.
By consuming a small amount regularly (a teaspoon a day works well), you slowly introduce your immune system to the pollen in your environment so it stops overreacting when you walk outside. It's a gentle, food-based desensitization — and it tastes great.
Let's Talk About Fragrances
This deserves its own section because it's one of the most common hidden allergy triggers I see, and most people have no idea.
Synthetic fragrances — in air fresheners, candles, fabric softener, dryer sheets, perfumes, and scented body products — are a cocktail of chemical compounds that your immune system may read as a threat. For people with reactive immune systems (which, if you have allergies, you do), these can tip the bucket fast.
The biggest offenders:
Febreze and plug-in air fresheners
Scented candles (especially paraffin-based ones)
Fabric softener and dryer sheets — these leave a residue on your clothes that you then wear against your skin all day
Scented laundry detergent
I know giving up your laundry detergent sounds dramatic. But I promise you the switch is easier than you think — and cheaper. Which brings me to my favorite thing to share this time of year:
DIY Laundry Detergent (Powder + Liquid Recipes)
These recipes are simple, effective, fragrance-free (until you add the fragrance you actually want), and cost a fraction of what you're spending at the store. My personal favorites for essential oils are eucalyptus (antimicrobial, clean scent) and lavender (calming and universally loved).
Powder Laundry Detergent
Ingredients:
Equal parts powdered Borax, washing soda, and baking soda
1 bar of plain, unscented bar soap (finely grated)
10–20 drops essential oils of your choice (optional)
Instructions:
Grate the bar soap finely — a cheese grater works great, or you can pulse it in a food processor
Combine equal parts Borax, washing soda, and baking soda in a large container
Add grated soap and mix well
Add essential oils if using and stir to distribute
Store in a sealed container
Use: 1 tablespoon per load
Liquid Laundry Detergent
Ingredients:
2 cups Borax
2 cups washing soda
2 cups (approx 1 bar) plain bar soap, grated
4 cups water (for dissolving soap)
¼ cup blue Dawn dish soap (optional — adds cleaning boost and helps with consistency)
10–20 drops essential oils of your choice
Additional water to make 2 gallons total
Instructions:
Bring 4 cups of water to a boil and dissolve the grated bar soap, stirring until smooth
Remove from heat and add Borax and washing soda, stirring until dissolved
Pour mixture into a 2-gallon container
Add Dawn and essential oils if using
Fill with warm water to reach 2 gallons and stir to combine
Allow to cool — it will thicken as it sets. You can keep it more liquid or let it set to a paste, both work great
Use: ¼ cup per load
A note on fabric softener: please just throw it out. It coats your clothes in a waxy chemical residue that irritates skin, reduces the absorbency of towels, and is genuinely one of the worst things for reactive folks. If you want soft clothes, add a splash of white vinegar to your rinse cycle instead. Your immune system will thank you.
Wrapping It Up
Seasonal allergies aren't something you just have to white-knuckle through every spring. When you understand the bucket — and start working on lowering your total load rather than just masking symptoms — you can often dramatically reduce how miserable allergy season feels.
Start with one thing. Maybe it's swapping your laundry detergent. Maybe it's a neti pot. Maybe it's cutting dairy for two weeks and noticing what happens. Small shifts compound.
And if you feel like your bucket is perpetually overflowing no matter what you try, that's a sign it's worth sitting down with someone to really look at the whole picture — what's going in, what's draining, and where your body needs the most support. That's exactly what I do in practice, and I'd love to help.
Have questions? Want to dig deeper? Reach out or book a consult at fullscalewellness.com.
And try that laundry detergent. Seriously.
