Christmas Trees, Headaches, Wreathes, and My Ears

I love real Christmas trees and have fond memories of laying beneath our tree as a child to see the sparkling ornaments and breathe deep the wonderful pine aroma.  How can something that smells so wonderful create such awful allergies?

This is the FIRST Christmas in 26 years that I didn't have a nagging headache throughout the season.  We always had a live tree.  Every year we looked at fake trees, but never bought one.  Lo and behold, there was a Christmas gift of a brand new unopened artificial tree in the attic of our new Jacksonville home.  The weekend after Thanksgiving we set the new tree up.  Oh how pretty!  Oh how easy!  I am happy to say that I did not have a headache throughout the season!  I am allergic to the mold that grows on Christmas trees.

Feeling bad about not having the pine scent in the house, Mark surprised me with a beautiful huge, live wreath from Costco.  We hung it over the fireplace and it looked so pretty.  This is about the same time that my right ear clogged up.  I have heard my voice echo in my ear, every heartbeat, every breath - in my right ear for two months.  I went to the doctor and took medicine.  I took Zyrtec by day and Benedryl at night.  I had daydreams of poking a needle into my eardrum, but I'd never do it. Mark took the wreath down yesterday and my ear cleared.  Today it's a little bit clogged, but not nearly as bad as it has been. Today I only hear the echo of my voice, but am free from the heartbeat and breathing sounds.  I will continue to take allergy pills until the pine allergies clear out of my system.