Aggression symptoms and conditions

My son became soo aggressive 3 days after starting Singulair, that he was almost banned from soccer for life because of attacking another player on the field. It resembled what I had heard of 'roid rage'. When I questioned the doctor immediately, was told there was no connection. After months of the aggression, then came depression and self mutilation. My 15 yr old was secretly burning himself to 'punish' himself for things he done wrong or "disappointing" those around him. He now has permanent scars all over his arms from these burns. The depression took to drug abuse and my A student fell to an F student in 6 weeks. He completely lost his will to live and thrive. After 4 months of hell, the dr informed us that the FDA just warned physicians of this side effect. Im furious now that I read through the court documents and find that the drug company knew this all along. I know I am a luckier parent than some whose children committed suicide, but still wish that the FDA would get off their BUTTS and do something to take this drug off the market. I was told by a rep at the FDA that Merck will not take it off the shelf until they're made to because even if they had to pay parents millions for their child's suicide, they would still be pocketing more profit than our children's lives are worth in the court system. Not sure WHY we even HAVE an FDA, they won't do anything to protect us from these money hungry drug companies. A YEAR to do an 'INVESTIGATION" are you kidding me? If the CEO of Merck had to bury his child, it would come off the shelf THAT DAY.

Have been experiencing the same serious behavioral issues (screaming, launching every toy he has out of his room, knocking over his night stand, hitting, kicking and just being hateful) with my 4 year old who has been on Singulair for 2 years as I'm noticing many of you have here. My wife and I have a wonderful relationship and happy home and tons of love and support from other family that's close buy so the kid has a very nice environment. We have taken him off the medication as of yesterday. I have consulted his doctor but I'm anxious to hear what methods of treatment for the asthma all of have chosen in replacement of Singulair or did you just maintain with an inhaled maintenance program with something like Pulmicort? Also, how long was after taking your child off of Singulair did take to for the outburst to subside and the behavior to become more mellow and normal (what is normal for a 4 year old?). Any info would be greatly appreciated.

I have been taking YAZ for a little over one month and I am having numbness and tingling in my fingers and feet. I have noticed my face and lips sometimes feel numb as well. Lately I have had chest pain that I assumed was persistent heartburn, now I am not sure. I have gained 10lbs that I thought was contributing to the shortness of breath. I continue to have mood swings and thoughts of aggression. I have also recently started generic Wellbutrin to help with the mood swings, but only for two weeks. Now I am not sure which one is the cause. I want to stop both, but do not want to be a pregnant maniac.

My son has been taking Singular as well as Advair and Zyrtec and Nasonix for the past 6 months. He is doing so well. He has not had to go to emergency, he has not been sick, and he has not had mood swings. If you look at the prescription information that comes with Singular, you can see what the side effects can be. My recommendation is to take your child off of them if they have a side effect. I contacted my Dr. and Merck is studying only 1 case with a child that had side effects, but they did not say if this child was on other Psych medicine at the same time. The 2 psych meds that have shown a bad interaction with Singular are Phenobarbital and Rifanpin (spelling may be wrong). With all the posts I have read, very few people indicate if they are taking other medications at the same time as Singular. My suggestion is that you consult your Dr. and then send your case to Merck for more studies. If all you are doing is posting on the web, you are not solving this issue with the makers of the medication.

My experience with Yasmin was decreased aggression, mood stability and increased breast size. when I stopped taking the drug, I had an increase in aggression, less fatigue and no weight loss.

My T-3 levels are fine. My blood work is fine. Not many headaches. My mood became more depressed when I stopped taking Yasmin.

Not sure if I am suited to take the drug. So, I am starting Yasmin again to see if I notice side-effects. My estrogen levels were low prior to starting Yasmin the first time. So, I am wondering if my testosterone is a bit too high, and if Yasmin levels me out so to speak.

I think those with normal estrogen levels, prior to taking Yasmin, are badly affected by Yasmin. I wonder if those of us, with lower natural estrogen levels are as badly affected by Yasmin.

Will let this site know in a few months.

ALSO get this pill from Canada - ******
It costs $22 and it is the exact same packaging, etc.

Hope this helps

This testimony should help strengthen our case for warnings for Singulair.

Neurologist Sought Warning for Pfizer Drug
By JEREMY SINGER-VINE
June 20, 2008; Page B10

A British neurologist who analyzed effects of the drug Neurontin told a court hearing Thursday that he advised its maker -- now a unit of Pfizer Inc. -- to include a warning on the drug's label for potential side effects of depression and aggression, but his advice wasn't followed.

The University of London neurologist, Michael R. Trimble, was testifying at a hearing to decide whether civil cases brought against Pfizer alleging suicides linked to Neurontin can proceed. The hearing was jointly held by judges for U.S. District Court in Boston and a New York state court who are hearing similar cases. In various lawsuits consolidated in the federal court, plaintiffs allege more than 100 suicides were connected to Neurontin usage.

Dr. Trimble described what he said was a "plausible biological pathway" that could lead from the compound gabapentin -- the chemical name for Neurontin -- to suicidal behavior, hostility, and aggression. Dr. Trimble said that in 1995 and 1996, he was hired to write two confidential reports for Parke-Davis -- now a unit of Pfizer -- because the company "was concerned about psychosis in relation to their drug." Dr. Trimble said he was unable to find a link to psychosis, but noted effects of depression and aggression.

Lawyers for Pfizer argued at the hearing that the evidence linking the drug to suicidal side effects wasn't scientifically sound. Under cross-examination, they challenged his description of a pathway as a patchwork of studies that didn't prove a biological connection. Neurontin and generic forms of gabapentin are approved for treating epileptic convulsions, but have also been prescribed widely "off label" for other conditions.

In five of nine patient cases he analyzed in 1996, Dr. Trimble said he saw depression and aggression in patients who had no previous symptoms of the side effects, so he said he recommended to the company that the drug "should carry some kind of warning" for susceptible patients.

Thursday's proceedings were the initial phase of a hearing requested by Pfizer to challenge the opinions of the plaintiffs' experts. Under cross-examination and a subsequent examination by the plaintiffs' attorney, Dr. Trimble said the biological pathway between Pfizer's Neurontin and suicidal events were plausible and supported by a series of peer-reviewed neurology research.

I am so glad to have found this - I am having my mirena removed in a week. Have had it now for nearly 2 years with increasing problems
joint pain
bloating
deteriorating digestion
weight gain
aggression and edginess
zero sex drive
fatigue

i would never have got it but I didn't want another child soon (my girls are 14 months apart) and my GP really pushed the mirena so I agreed to it. I reckon I have suffered enough!
peace
Atalanta

In September of 2007 my then 13 year old daughter was put on Singular for mild asthma. At the time she was a straight A student, vice president of our school and a popular girl who's guidance counselor described as "the glue of her grade" because she was so well liked. In November she told me that she was struggling with advanced Latin and Science. She asked to drop down to on grade Latin so we did. In December her science teacher notified us that she had a C average. She told me that she thought she had ADD/ADHD and she couldn't keep up. At the same time she was having a lot of problems with friends at school and we just attributed it to being 14. 3 weeks ago we discovered that she is significantly behind in English and it was then that she told me that she is been having horrific night mares. She said that they usually involve someone killing her or her killing herself. She said that they were so graphic that she couldn't repeat it out loud. She also said that she would feel waves of anxiety that would come over her at school and she would act "witchy" to the kids in her class for no real reason. She said that sometimes when she is trying to do her homework she will read the same passage for 2 hours and still have no idea what it's about. She also said that the suicidal thoughts from her sleep happened during they day and that she had thoughts of her harming herself. Fortunately her pulminologist told us that this may be caused by singular and we immediately took her off of it which was 2 weeks ago. She has only had 1 "bad dream" not even a nightmare since. She had one anxiety attack 3 days after she was off it and she describes her moods as the "cloud lifting....slowly". Now, we have to pick up the pieces. Her grades have suffered, her friendships have suffered and most of all her self esteem is very low. I'm grateful that we found out the cause but I feel as if my daughter lost a year of her life and I worry that because Merck won't admit there are side effects we can't find out how long it remains in their system. Is anyone else concerned about the long term affect and has anyone pursued a class action suit to try to get this drug tested properly?

This is a follow-up. I have posted about our experience before, but to summarize: 6 year old boy on Singulair for over three years for Asthma. Drug worked wonders, but side effects developed so slowly that we thought those were "phases" that would go away. Side effects were just as everyone else reported: nightmares, fears, depression/sadness (we even went to a child psychologist since we thought this behavior was all due to father's deployment), aggressiveness, crying at the drop off a hat (like a 2 year old, not age appropriate), attention deficit, school performance dropped, and also, at the very end, obsessive compulsive behavior.
We stopped Singulair as soon as we heard about the FDA investigation (on NPR, about 6 to 7 weeks ago). Asthma has not worsened, thank goodness, so we make due with the Flovent for now. Most of the side effects were less prominent after some time, however the obsessive compulsive behavior stopped only a few days ago. We have better days, we have worse days, but slowly the better days outnumber the bad, aggressive, and negative ways.
What I read again and again in the postings is that we all assumed our children entered a bad "phase." A phase that just got worse and never ended!
Reading about the very same side effects in our children, over and over again, alarmed me. Taking my son off the Singulair and seeing the improvements, some faster some slower, totally convinced me. I will never ever have Singulair in my house again.

My son is almost 6 yrs old. He has been taking Singular for approx 3 years, in addition to Claritin and Nasonex. This is all for his allergy to mold. His doctor started him on these meds after a 6 month episode with sinus infections leading to asthma-like symptoms. We have not noticed anything unusual about his behavior until approx 3 months ago. He started waking up every night (2-3 hours after going to bed) with bad dreams. At first he would not fully awaken and fall back asleep immediately. After a month or so of this happening most nights, he had two nights in a row where he woke up screaming and was inconsolable for about 30 minutes. We initially thought it was night terrors, but he was not scared or fearful, he was just upset/angry. He would hit the bed repeatedly and yell. He didn't know what he was upset about but would talk about how he thought we hated him, he was dumb, etc. After about 30 min he would 'snap out of it' and return to his normal self and go back to sleep easily.
At first we thought these were night terror brought on by a recent fever, but he had another episode last night. He has also been falling apart at the littlest things and getting quite violent (for a 6 yr old). He was sent to his room yesterday evening because he was complaining about the dinner his mom made (lots of complaining these days..). He had a total melt down an started throwing things and hitting the door so hard he put a hole in it.
Some of this behavior I would chalk up to normal kid stuff, new baby brother, etc. But I am suspicious about the negative thoughts, bad dreams, and instant melt downs... I stopped giving him Singular today and we will see what happens. God bless you all as we figure these things out...

Both my sons have bad allergies. Both were recently prescribed Singulair after other drugs were not very effective. My oldest, 12, started feeling "strange" and asked to be taken off Singulair. He was not himself on the soccer field or at school. Since we stopped the medication, he has returned to normal. My 8 year old had a much worse reaction. He has bad mood swings and tonight became suicidal. He was searching the kitchen for knives to stab himself. He had fits on the carpet beating himself and the floor until I got him a pillow to take his aggression. My wife notified our doctor and school counselor. We're stopping his Singulair immediately.

I have two sons on Singulair, my three old was suspended today from pre-school for bad behavior. Screaming, biting, scratching, and hitting have been going on for the last few months. But worse the past two weeks. He has always been active and played like a boy, but he has been getting violent. We have tried positive reinforcement, praising good behavior both verbally and with rewards, I have tried time-out, being grounded, not being able to participate in activities, no t.v. and old fashioned butt spanking. All of this with no positive results. I am not looking for an excuse for my child's behavior, but could Singulair really be the cause of his aggression?

My 4 year old daughter has been on Singulair daily for approximately 2 months. We started noticing some minor changes in her behavior early on (shyness, separation anxiety, anger, moodiness) but chalked it up to starting a new pre-school and arguing with her older sister. Then about two weeks ago, she started having an obsessive-compulsive type behavior about wiping herself. My first inclination was that she had some type of infection (yeast, UTI, bladder, etc) but all of the tests came back negative. My doctor told us to stop the Singulair, so we have been off for about a week now, but the OCD symptoms haven't lessened. I would say that some of the other behaviors are improving somewhat, but I am not seeing a "whole new kid" effect after being off for one week. Has anyone had a similar experience with OCD type behaviors? I am beside myself with concern! Thanks for any help.

After reading more posts and comments to others re: SINGULAIR and discussion of side effects of steroids - I am really scared as you could all imagine! Do I need to look for any side effects from the flovent and albuterol? What should Iook for? I am so not the paranoid type but am quickly becoming more now b/c I don't want my son to suffer anymore. I know predisone long term but what about the flovent which is a steroid? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Update: I have spent hours searching scientific data bases for articles on Singulair. So far this is the most direct reference to adverse drug reactions and Singular.

For anyone who wanted to print the article from the Swedish researchers that stated that their study suggested that montelukast (singulair) should be investigated for adverse psychiatric drug reactions, I was able to find a link with open access to the public. So far, this is the only article that I have found. I am still searching through databases. This link should work if you cut and past. I am sure that all doctors would appreciate the opportunity to read it for themselves to see what they think.

http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6904/8/1

Individual case safety reports in children in commonly used drug groups – signal detection Gertrud Brunlöf , Carina Tukukino and Susanna M Wallerstedt Department of Clinical Pharmacology and Regional Pharmacovigilance Centre, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, SE-413 45 Göteborg, Sweden author email corresponding author email BMC Clinical Pharmacology 2008, 8:1doi:10.1186/1472-6904-8-1 Conclusion In conclusion, the present study indicates that ADRs are reported for commonly used drugs in children. The number of ICSRs varies in different groups of drugs. A possible signal for montelukast and psychiatric adverse drug reactions was found, which should be further explored.

Please don't forget to print the Tables which open on a separate page. Table 2 lists the specific side effects that they found which include anxiety, aggression, night mares, pain, and several others.

My 8 year old son began experiencing depression, aggression and suicidal behavior in the past two months (on Singulair since age 4). I immediately took him off of Singulair 4 days ago and I see a change already. He is smiling, laughing and singing again. He's had meltdowns (crying, tantrums, etc) since age 4, but I never suspected the drugs. I HAVEN'T SEEN ANY CRYING OR TANTRUMS IN 4 DAYS! We'll see if the change in behavior "sticks." After reading everything on this site, I have a feeling it will.

My 5yo son is one week removed from Singulair, and we are starting to see a gradual improvement. When I first started reading these posts, I just sat and cried. My son started the meds last fall for allergy induced asthma and his behavoir has gotten progressively worse this January and February, so much so that I contacted the pediatrician to start the process of having him see a counselor. He was fine before last August. I blamed his problems in the fall to his adjustment to kindergarten, then my grandmother got sick and passed away February, so I thought this time his obsession with death and bad behavior at school was related to her. I never once even thought it was the Singulair. Looking back I realized the behavoir coincided with his Singulair use (I took him off it in December because there was nothing in the air to cause him to cough and he was fine). In January we started back up full steam ahead and the doctor increased dose...Hello!! He was so angry sometimes and had a multitude of the symptoms listed on this site. He would constantly say he hated school. He chewed his shirts repeatedly, actually chewing holes in the neck and sleeves, he would blink his eyes weirdly which I have equate to the "tick" other people described. He would say he was stupid, that no one loved him, that no kids wanted to play with him and that he was an idiot. He said he wished he was in heaven and wanted to leave this world. My mom found him wrapped in blankets over spring break and when she asked what he was doing he said he was trying to suffocate himself. His crying wasn't even a normal cry, it was in a word: soulful. It would make me cry just hearing it because it was such a mournful sound. At his aftercare program he would try and leave and say he wanted to get hit by a car, they actually had to restrain him. He had instances of aggression with other kids in school, which resulted in phone calls from the teacher and principal. Again I thought it was related to the death in the family and him having no other way of expressing his anger. I even blamed the other parent thinking they were overreacting - embarrassed about that now to say the least. I started getting names of dr's to get grief counseling to determine if it was the loss or if he was in the throes of depression. Then I see the news about Singulair and looked it up on the web since he was on it. Talk about taking your breath away. Then his stomach cramps made sense too. I would have to massage his stomach to make it feel better, thinking it was the milk causing it. People can say we are all making this up, or the posts are fake...even his allergist said they feel the benefits outweight the risks, but until you live it you really just don't get it. I took him off it that night. Each day is getting better. Today was a great day and I am cautiously optimistic for tomorrow. He was happy. Even his sister remarked about what a good mood he was in and that he wasn't whining or crying. Putting him to bed tonight he told me he loved me more than tomato pie...and in his world that's at the top of everything The sad thing is that the medicine works for the asthma and controlled his coughing. The cough is now back in force so it is a double edged sword. It's amazing how similiar the symptoms are with other kids. I guess hindsight truly is 20/20 huh?

I cannot believe I am seeing this. I thought my son develops ADHD.... My son (6) took Singulair since he was 2 1/2 (asthma). The drug worked great, until about one year ago: anxiety, severe mood swings (yes, crying at the drop of a hat), fears of being alone in a room, any room (even when I was in his view), aggression, loss of concentration. I thought it was because my husband was deployed and took my son to the psychologist. Over the last month, my son developed new symptoms: itching, and therefore, rubbing first over his face, by now from the feet up over his whole front body. We took him off Singulair two days ago and investigate other asthma meds (he still is on Flovent). Hopefully, we will see improvement soon.

Praise the Lord! It is about time. When I read this in the paper yesterday I could believe it. I have been waiting for this to happen for two years now when i decided to take my daughter off this junk. I have told every single person i know what this stuff did to my sweet little baby whom is now 9. She too experienced nightmares, mood swings, anxiety, night sweats, stomach aches, headaches, constipation, urinary problems, leg pains, aggression. She has always been a normal kid for her age. She had always been in dance classes since she was 3 and loved it. Never ever had she been into trouble at school or dance but when she got on this stuff her teacher was calling me at least once a week about her being rude and very forgetful about everything. Her dance teacher told me she looked like she was spaced out all the time. And not listening. I noticed she was having panic attacks in the stores when we would be shopping. She cried and told me"MOMMY I DO NOT KNOW WHY I AM ACTING SO MEAN? I HATE MYSELF. I DO NOT WANT TO BE ME." i cried too and we started praying about it. I posted on this site 2 yrs. ago when i decided to take her off against her ped. advice. She actually got mad at me when she tried to put my younger daughter on it when she was 3. I told her no i was not going to give it to her nor was i giving it to my older daughter any more. She looked at me like i was crazy. And said my girls needed it. I told her i did not like what it did to my older daughter. We do not go to her any longer. It took a couple weeks and my daughter started acting like her old self. I do think it messed her mind up though. Singular is evil and should be off the market. It makes me sick to think back on what it did to my daughter. It was a complete nightmare!

My 17 year old daughter started taking Yaz, and before she finished the first pack she was going crazy. Severe anxiety, overwhelming feelings, depression, aggression, and finally crying jags, the last of which lasted 2 hours with anxiety, when we finally put 2 and 2 together! What a nightmare week, as things escalated. She also was not thinking rationally, I think because of the anxiety. Of course NONE of this is mentioned on any Yaz list of side effects or any WebMD type pages on the internet!! Damn Big Pharma. They can say anything in the TV adds, the FDA does not regulate them. Luckily, it wore off in 24 hours.

I have an 8 year daughter who has been on singular since the age of 4. I began to notice behavior changes, but contributed it to me being a single mom, and her aneixty about school. She became very germ a phobic and these behaviors became worse when she began displaying aggression towards me and her grandmother, not wanting to go to school, inability to focus and very "worried" about getting sick and dying. She is now in the 3rd grade and was diagnosed w/ aneixty disorder and ADHD and is taking two different meds for this. It does take much to get her upset and she often describes herself as a horrible person, and she "hates" her life. This was a very happy infant, and easy going child. Now it is a struggle everyday to keep everything "under control" and her stable. I wonder. Many of the stories that i have just read are so similar to mind and I know how difficult it is. I did not give my daughter her singular as she has mild allergy induced asthma and I will be consulting my Pediatrician ASAP, to find other options.

Okay so I'm reading all of your postings and I about to totally flip out. My 6 yr old was diagnosed with a very mild case of asthma (an occasional cough that got worse with colds) when he was around 3. The doctor prescribed him Singular and I'm almost positive they started him at 5mg and now I'm reading that it's not recommend at that dose until 6yrs. He is very prone to severe mood swings....one minute screaming "I hate you!" and making commits like "I'll get a knife and kill myself!" to acting like there is nothing wrong and the previous outburst had never occurred. As a rule he is an extremely lovable kid but has these sudden outbursts. Having said this he has been off the medication since October with out any noticeable change. My concern is that if this medication has these types of side effects could it have long term or permanent effects on such young and still developing children. Has anyone else out there had their child off the meds for more than 6 months and not seen improvement in their behavior?

I have a 19 month old baby and she was prescribed Singulair when she was 15 months old after a bad bout of pneumonia. So she has been on it for 4 months and I haven't seen any severe side effects. To be honest, I am one of those people that follows whatever her pediatrician recommends and I trust that after 25 years as a doctor, he knows what he is doing. But all of these reports are now terrifying me. I haven't noticed any change in her behavior or moods, and she has always been a very rambunctious baby so if there has been any change (like increased aggression or anxiety) it is hard to tell in such a small child. Has anyone had any experience giving Singulair to a child this young (under 2)?

My 9 year old daughter has been on sigulair since she was 5. She just recently started having trouble with concentration and behavior. She is always sad and cries alot .She is an honor/gt student but just recently has been having trouble with her school work.She has also begun to hurt her brother and talks about how she wishes she was dead.We are really concerned and she began counseling. Her nuerologists says it could be depression but im thinking i should take her off singulair.She has had headaches,stomach pain,depression ,mood swings and weight gain.

Hi again. I posted January, 25th, 2008, and am posting again to update anyone concerned.

MY EXPERIENCE SUMMARISED:
MY DAUGHTER TOOK 3 DAYS TO WITHDRAW FROM SINGULAIR AND AFTER THAT IS BACK TO NORMAL.

I took my 6 yo daughter off Singulair, and she experienced severe withdrawal symptoms for 3 days. Her anger and mood swings were worse than ever, although they did occur less often than when on the medication.

I was concerned that there may be long term effects, but on day 4 she awoke singing (something she hasn't done for ages). She came through to our room and her whole energy was different...we had our little angel back!

She gave me a cuddle and she sounded a little wheezy (for the first time in ages also). I never thought I'd be glad to hear her wheezy! I gave her an antihistamine (polaramine...this is the only one that doesn't affect her mood) and this cleared her "asthma" which is actually a symptom of allergy for her.

She instantly stopped shouting, screaming and growling. Her concentration is back to normal. She is happy and says she knows who she is again. Her star chart incentive system is working again. She has more energy, no complaints of tummy pain, no complaints of numbness and she is responsive and reasonable as she always was.

I am SO angry with the manufacturers of this drug, and I believe anger is often the driving force behind positive action.

IF ANYONE IS INTERESTED IN PURSUING A CLASS ACTION AGAINST THE MANUFACTURERS OF SINGULAIR, PLEASE EMAIL ME PRIVATELY.

I'm surprised to be doing this because I'm very against litigation generally. However, on this occasion, I not only feel strongly that it's necessary, I feel morally compelled to take action.

These people MUST be stopped. This medication must be either black-listed OR have it's potential side effects BOLDLY DISPLAYED on the packaging (just like cigarettes) because this medication can be a threat to people's lives (as we know if we read the testimonials on this site).

No more children should die, or suffer a severe and possibly permanent identity crisis in the name of MONEY. Not one more family should drown in misery at the hands of this medication without knowing why.

Imagine all the people who have put their poor children on psychiatric medication to counteract the side-effects of this drug unknowingly! If there are so many of us telling the same story on this site, imagine how many more are living the nightmare without a clue.

IF THERE ARE ENOUGH OF US INTERESTED IN MAKING A DIFFERENCE, I WILL TAKE THE ACTION NECESSARY TO RESEARCH A CLASS ACTION.