CHAMPAIGN, ILL. (WAND) - The sun is out, the flowers are starting to bloom and allergies are officially here.
OSF Nurse Practitioner, Marcia Zukosky says it's an odd time for allergies to kick in while dealing with COVID-19.
"It's confusing. We're in Illinois and the weather changes," she says.
She says people have been calling in with allergy symptoms and going into the office to get check out. She says some things to look out for are itchy eyes, sore throat, congestion, ear pressure and sometimes you can even get a cough.
"So you can have a cough, usually it's drainage through the back of your throat. That can trigger through the day, especially if you're not taking any medications to clear the nasal congestion," she says.
One of the symptoms with COVID-19 is that cough, but she says don't be alarmed. First, you should ask yourself if you've traveled and if you have a fever.
"You'd want to be aware of that and then further seek out opportunities for COVID testing," she says.
If you're still unsure, OSF is asking you to call or check their online site.
"They can call the virtual resource through OSF or call the COVID HOTLINE, 883OSFNO," she says.
Also, she asks that you continue to follow the CDC guidelines throughout this pandemic.
