In 2022, feeling sick in Texas likely means one of three things: allergies, COVID-19 or the flu. Unfortunately, many of the symptoms overlap—making it difficult to differentiate whether one is simply suffering from pollen in the air or spreading a virus.

“Allergy season in Texas is pretty much every season,” said Charlotte Francis, one of the lead Advanced Practice Providers at Texas Health Breeze Urgent Care. “Here, we don’t tend to get a break from allergy pollens in the air.”

For most Texans, allergies present with symptoms such as itchy or watery eyes, a runny nose, sneezing, an itchy throat and post nasal drainage. Though it can be difficult to tell the difference between allergies and the many viruses that are circulating, Francis said there are a couple of distinguishing factors—one being the onset of systemic symptoms.

“Typically with seasonal allergies, [symptoms are] itchy eyes, nose and scratchy throat. When we move to thinking of a virus, we might see systemic symptoms [like] fever, chills and body aches,” Francis said.

With a highly trained staff of medical providers, Texas Health Breeze offers relief to patients with extreme allergies through testing and providing treatment options.

“Medications in the clinic might be things like—when we’re talking extremes—some injectable antihistamines. On occasion, we may have to think about using some strong anti-inflammatories to reduce inflammation for patients whose allergies are getting out of control,” Francis said.

For the flu, systemic symptoms include body aches, muscle aches, fever and chills. Francis said respiratory symptoms such as a cough, runny nose and sore throat can also be indicators of the flu if they are quick onset symptoms.

“One of the things that we hear the most with flu symptoms is that they hit really hard, fast, kind of all at once. A lot of times we’ll hear people say, ‘I feel like I got hit by a Mack truck,” Francis said. “They might have felt fine one minute and then the next minute are feeling awful.”

With flu season ramping up and the number of cases rising, Francis said those who want to minimize their risk of getting sick this winter should visit their local Texas Health Breeze location to get a flu shot as soon as possible.

“The best treatment is prevention. [Get your] flu shots early. We’re really approaching the deadline for those to be the most effective through the flu season,” Francis said.

Likewise, staying up to date on the latest COVID-19 vaccines and boosters is key to protecting oneself and others against new variants. Francis said COVID-19 patients continue to have myriad complaints: headaches, body aches, cough, runny nose and loss of taste and smell.

“The vaccines and boosters for COVID are very effective, especially with some of the new sub variants that are coming. There’s a couple of those that are of particular concern but the omicron-specific COVID vaccines have been shown to be effective against that,” Francis said.

Among COVID-19 patients, Francis said the most common symptom is generalized fatigue, with the bulk of individuals complaining it is hard to even get out of bed. Though Texas Health Breeze does see cases of COVID-19 regularly, Francis said patients typically do not have significant illness warranting hospitalization anymore.

“One of the interesting things that we have seen with COVID that is newer than some of the previous variants is an initial symptom that presents with a sore throat,” Francis said. “With the original COVID strains that was not always the case. We’re also seeing a rise in cases of strep throat too, so that’s been particularly important for us to differentiate through testing.”

At the onset of any symptom, seeing an expert at Texas Health Breeze is the best way to feel better quicker and minimize the chances of spreading a disease to friends and family. Because many Texans experience allergies, some patients may think they have allergy symptoms when it is actually COVID-19 or the flu.

“It can be really difficult with COVID too, because as we’ve learned, symptoms can present in so many ways. We have asymptomatic COVID patients all the way to hospitalized patients,” Francis said. “For people who suffer with seasonal allergies, we do hear quite often, ‘My allergies are getting out of control.’ We’ll test them and, lo and behold, they are positive for COVID. Being able to quickly differentiate [symptoms] and making sure we’re not spreading that throughout the community [is important].”

Francis said washing hands, using hand sanitizer and avoiding higher risk situations like crowds are key prevention measures to prevent the spread of illnesses in the coming months. Building a strong immune system through movement and nutrition is also important.

“With COVID and the flu, these are highly transmissible viruses easily spread by cough and contact with respiratory droplets,” Francis said. “Knowing what we’re dealing with is a big part of the battle and making sure that we’re getting patients appropriately quarantined and treated if we are dealing with something like the flu or COVID.”

Open 365 days a year from 8 a.m.-8 p.m., Texas Health Breeze Urgent Care offers a new kind of urgent care experience centered around high-quality patient care and convenience. Whether it be allergies, the flu, COVID-19 or a minor injury, a Texas Health Breeze location is open nearby to help.

“We’re just trying to make sure that our communities know they have a reliable place to land where they will be well cared for when they step through our doors,” Francis said.

Walk-ins are always welcome, but patients are encouraged to make a reservation online that fits their schedule. Learn more about Texas Health Breeze Urgent Care, including locations near you, pricing and insurance information, as well as conditions they treat at breezeurgentcare.texashealth.org.

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