# Is it normal for persistent allergic reactions to stop during sleep? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 7, 2011, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606 "2011-04-07T23:55:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/1 "2011-04-07T23:55:07Z")
I have an allergy to something I haven’t identified yet that makes my throat swell up persistently. It’s very noticible and it can last all day. It’s also the only symptom I get. It can last all day regardless of whether I’m doing something or just sitting here - but whenever I wake up, even after sleeping for only an hour or two, the swelling is always gone, or at least minimal. Within an hour of waking up it may be back up to being fully swollen even if all I’m doing is sitting around in the same room under the same conditions, but sleep fixes it temporarily. Is this normal for allergic reactions? If so, why? ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/2 "2011-04-08T02:29:49Z")
Um… I’ve had allergies all my life and I’ve never experienced quite that. Perhaps you should consult a doctor? It sounds odd to me. ---
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/3 "2011-04-08T02:45:10Z")
Certain types of parasites may behave this way. This sounds like throat possum. Possums are nocturnal of course, so when you wake up, it’s probably just been out rooting through your trash all night. Just take away the food source and it should leave for more fruitful pasture of it’s own accord. Of course you may want to consult a specialist like a MD. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/4 "2011-04-08T06:16:36Z")
I am seeing a doctor about it, which is how I know it’s (most likely) an allergy. I had some other stuff ruled out like structural problems and an enlarged thyroid. It responds to steroids and anti-histamines, hence likely an allergy. But I have no insurance and I’m trying to make my way with cash medical treatments so it isn’t easy, so I haven’t been able to see an allergist yet to do the full workup to figure out exactly what the trigger is. The sleep thing I forgot to bring up with my MD, so that’s why I figured I’d ask here. I was having a really bad day - fully swollen for hours - and I took a nap, woke up an hour later, and the swelling was minimal. Within a half hour it was back to being pretty bad. Which made me wonder if this was typical, and if so, why allergic reactions would be things that only happened to an awake body. ---
**Author:** ![sandra\_nz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@sandra\_nz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sandra_nz)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/5 "2011-04-08T08:01:29Z")
Am I the only one who finds the idea of a throat possum rather adorable? Hope you get your allergy sorted soon, OP. ---
**Author:** ![GilaB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@GilaB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GilaB)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/6 "2011-04-08T18:51:18Z")
Is it possible that you’re doing something (perhaps unconsciously) that would cause your throat to swell up? During my seasonal allergies, I know that I will sometimes attempt to scratch my itchy throat by kind of pulling on the muscles inside it (hard to explain), which provides momentary relief. Perhaps you do something similar, but only while awake? My eye allergies stop while I’m asleep, but that’s easy to understand - when my eyes are closed, the allergens don’t get in them. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/7 "2011-04-08T19:22:00Z")
Do you smoke cigarettes? That’s honestly the only thing I can think of that you would do while awake and forgo while asleep. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/8 "2011-04-08T19:42:23Z")
Nothing unusual at all while I’m awake as far as I can tell and no I don’t smoke. Is this abnormal then? I mean - if, for example, someone gets a runny nose from allergies - would their nose not run in their sleep even if they were breathing in the same air? ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/9 "2011-04-08T20:42:38Z")
Oh maybe it’s positional. Have you tried lying down in the position you wake up from every night (without sleeping, just watch tv or something ) for an hour or two and seeing if it gets better? Sinuses are affected by gravity. It may not be so much that the allergy “goes away at night,” but your sinus fluids are drawn toward a particular area of the head. Try it! ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/10 "2011-04-08T20:51:08Z")
That’s actually what made me make this thread. Two nights ago I was laying down to sleep but I was having a particularly bad day with my throat - it was so uncomfortable that it kept me from sleeping for about two hours. So I just laid there, motionless, trying to sleep for that long. But it didn’t seem to help, the symptoms were just as bad. But eventually I fell asleep. About an hour later, a noise woke me up - and the swelling was minimal or gone. But I couldn’t get back to sleep right away and within a half hour or so it was back to being uncomfortably swollen. So far as I know, the only difference was that I was asleep. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/11 "2011-04-08T20:52:54Z")
> [@sandra\_nz](#): > > Am I the only one who finds the idea of a throat possum rather adorable? > > Hope you get your allergy sorted soon, OP. I assume that you’re a Kiwi, from your user name. Possum is NOT the same animal in America. Not at all. ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2011, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/12 "2011-04-09T11:15:51Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Nothing unusual at all while I’m awake as far as I can tell and no I don’t smoke. > > Is this abnormal then? I mean - if, for example, someone gets a runny nose from allergies - would their nose not run in their sleep even if they were breathing in the same air? Yes this is abnormal. If anything, my allergies get _worse_ when I lay down. Although, now that I think of it, there have been a few times where I’ve woken up and felt like I have clear sinuses, but then after being awake a few minutes they’ll start to run and swell up again. So it’s a mystery. I would definitely ask your doctor. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2011, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/13 "2011-04-09T11:25:58Z")
Infected sinuses could be able to drain when you lay down and not when sit and stand thus changing how badly you body reacts to the infection. Have it checked out. ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2012, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-persistent-allergic-reactions-to-stop-during-sleep/577606/14 "2012-05-28T16:40:38Z")
This happens to me during seasonal allergies. I can feel just fine for about 10 minutes after waking up. Then allergies kick in full force with sneezing, snot, etc. My positioning has no impact on it. It’s like some kind of allergy immunity while asleep.