Asthma medicine symptoms and conditions

I was on Singulair while pregnant because my asthma got worse while pregnant. Postpartum I noticed my 2 month old breastfed baby was still sleeping way too much and very colicky. I tried cutting out dairy and other allergens but nothing made a difference. When I forgot to take my Singulair a couple days in a row, I noticed my mood was much improved and the anger/irritability went away. Finally, after noticing I was having vivid, bad dreams, I began to realize it might be all from the Singulair. I also had developed a stiff, tight neck and vision loss, which I now realize was also from being on Singulair.
I went off of it and must say, that was the worst week of my life. I never felt so horrible or out of control. Although I noticed the first few days, I was happy and feeling again (it made me emotionally numb) by the fourth day, I began having heart palpitations and bad headaches. I quickly got my thyroid levels checked and those were fine. Then I suddenly had severe panic attacks! I thought I was going crazy! This was mistakenly misdiagnosed as PPD, although I was never even depressed. I was given a script for Zoloft and took Ativan but that didn't take away the panic and the Zoloft seemed to make the panic worse!
I began researching and realized all of my symptoms were from Singulair withdrawals! Even my family noticed I became a mean and hateful person with this last pregnancy. This drug is an awful poison! I am slowly recovering and feeling better everyday. I'm using my fast acting inhaler for the time being. Instead of the therapy I thought I needed for PPD (mis dx'd obviously) I'm also using herbs to treat this homeopathically with a natural doctor since conventional ones still want to pass it off as something it is not due to ignorance that an asthma medicine can wreck this kind of havoc on a person! They just want to use more drugs to treat the side effects of another drug!
I am so angry I took this while pregnant and breastfeeding being told it was okay. It was not okay and I hope and pray there are no long term side effects to my child from this drug!

i posted on April 27th, on April 23rd, i stopped taking singulair, so i am here to UPDATE. after i stopped taking this death trap of a medicine, i already am seeing changes. i actually am breathing better then i have the whole time i was taking singulair, i can sleep through the night, and no HORRIBLE nightmares. jsut some normal ones, if any. but i feel like all the problems it has cause on my mental stability are still there, im guessing its going to get worse before it gets better with that. its really hard. now, me and my mom are starting to wonder if i ever had asthma in the first place, or if my dr. some how diagnosed me while i had a slight case of pneumonia. because the first time i was tested i was only breathing 60% of air, and even the nurses said i should be dead, or in an emergency room and she never not once, checked to see how my asthma was for 2 years. i honestly feel like i have been robbed of my life. its so hard to know something so little and simple, can have such a evil effect on you. because if i didn't have asthma i have been taking singulair for 2 years without needing it at all. imagine what that could have done. now im just so scared to sleep, because im scared i wont wake up. everything in my life is suffering and i don't feel like i have the strength to keep living the way ive been, im so scared every second, i am constantly checking my pulse, and now its even worse because i stopped the singulair. i already sent something to the FDA, and all that, but i doubt they'll listen. someone asked me a couple days ago "aren't you glad you at least found out your not alone" and i said "no, no one should ever have to go through what im going through, especially little kids". i feel like no one understands truly how hard this is, because its just an asthma medicine. this killed my mind, my spirit. and i don't know if ill ever be the same care-free person i once was. im constantly scared of everything, i always feel like no one wants to be around me, i just don't know. but not he positive side, im also not as weak, or tired during the day. i can actually bend down or reach up without feeling like a 98 year old women. my body is doing a lot better. its just my mind i really want back. i repost in a couple days, and hopefully everything will be a little better. PLEASE DO NOT TAKE SINGULAIR. i honestly think that, if it doesn't effect you at first it will in the long run. even if its 10 years later, you will start to slowly see something happening. just don't take it. i don't want anyone to feel, the way i do.

J.

My daughter is no longer on advair, but when she was I thought she was a hypochondriac. She had asthma since age 3 and by the time she was in 4th grade she was put on advair. She gained weight in her face and stomach. She would have trouble concentrating on her school work, stayed moody. She would lash out for little or no reason. She always had some ache or pain. Almost every day either her head hurt or her stomach hurt. It was would last under an hour each time

She started having muscle pains. had to be in a walking cast twice for soft tissue damage to her ankle. She would have no idea how it got hurt. If she crawled on her knees playing she would get fluid on her knees. She would have knee pain off and on for a weeks at a time. All the time we were at one doctor or another. Every one of them said her asthma medicine would not cause this. The last straw was when in 6th grade her shoulders would pop out of place if she tried to do push ups in gym. She had to have physical therapy three times a week for three months. Even though the doctors told me not to she has been off of advair for 4 years now. All of the side effects went away with the except for the problems with her shoulders. She has to do exercises a few time a week to keep the muscle's strong to hold them in place.

This is just amazing to me. My son was prescribed singulair for asthma when he was 8, he is 19 now. I only kept my son on this medication for about 4 weeks. I noticed a HUGE change in his personality, defiant and very fired up. I took him off, because there was just no talking to him. It made a difference, he was back to normal. I said something to his doctor, and he didn't know what to think, he said that the drug shouldn't alter his personality, it's an asthma medicine. I'm glad i listened to my gut instinct and took him off. My doctor just prescribed singulair to me for severe allergies and i wanted to see what the side effects where. I had NO idea i would see the side effect, that i knew my son was having 10 years ago, when this medicine first came out. I am speechless...

Here's a way out theory about my unique and to me mystifying medical situation....

I recently read where Singulair, an asthma medicine, is suspected of causing suicides, obviously an effect on the brain function. The FDA notes that over the past year, Merck has updated Singulair's prescribing information and patient information to include the following post marketing adverse events: TREMOR (March 2007), (April 2007), suicidally (October 2007), and anxiousness (February 2008). (the tremor highlight is mine since this is a major symptom of Parkinson's )

Well, I took Singulair from 1998 to 2004 and I wonder if maybe, just maybe Singulair could be a contributing factor to my strange Parkinson's but not Parkinson's problems that is
gait,
balance,
freezing of gait problems

Any thoughts or ideas on how I might follow up on my hypothesis?

I have been Singulair-free for 11 days now. I do not entertain any more suicidal thoughts, I feel MUCH happier just generally. I have cried, but haven't felt really low, just sad, normal-sad. I do have more difficulty breathing and tightness in my chest, but I am looking into adopting an anti-inflammatory diet. I have exercised more since stopping the Singulair, so I hope that will help long term with my lung function. I would definitely say I would rather feel some tightness in my chest or breathlessness going up stairs than intense sadness and irrational suicidal ideations. This life is much better than the one I had two weeks ago, and I know it's the same life, nothing has changed, just my perspective. I wonder if taking drugs off the market is going to be like putting up stop signs or traffic lights - we have to wait for a significant number of accidents before that move would be warranted. I really can't believe that all those years I thought it was me. I am a whole new person psychologically and it is because of an asthma medicine that is approved for KIDS! Amazing.

I have been on Lisinopril for several months and my blood pressure was 170/104 . It is now 104/77, but I do have side effects that my dr. says it isn't from this drug. 1 is asthma and a cough and headaIches. Lightheaded and fatigue. I am now on asthma medicine an inhaler. I was taking 10mg but it was increased to 20mg and with hydrchorothiazide 12.5mg. I was depressed on the first 10mg I don't feel that now. I am also now taking zocor. I don't sleep as well. I am 57 year old woman, I other wise had been active enjoying life.

So after reading enough of these replies I've come to a few conclusions:

1) Apparently Singulair should not be prescribed to children.

2) We have some extremely over-reactive parents.

3) It sounds like many of you describing side-effects from your young children also mention that they are on other medication(s). Don't be so quick to blame Singulair for everything. Many medications share the same possible side effects. Unless Singulair is the only medication your child takes, hold your tongue until more definitive studies and investigations are done.

About me -- I'm a 30 year old man who developed asthma when I was 11, and has fairly nasty seasonal allergies (I live in Austin, TX). I started taking Singulair several years ago as I had literally tried every other prescription allergy medicine on the market available for my seasonal allergies. OH MY GOD! I CAN BREATHE AGAIN!

Not only could I breathe through my nose, but the Singulair helped me fight off seasonal allergens (namely mountain cedar tree pollen and Texas oak tree pollen) so much that I was no longer waking up having asthma attacks from my sinuses draining. No longer was I missing days and days of work from "cedar fever" and "oak fever." At long last I finally found an allergy/asthma medicine that works for me.

Now, I also take use Advair (250/50) every day as well. Without a doubt, my life is 100 fold better now than it was before I used the combination of Singulair and Advair on a daily basis. If I miss a day or two of my Singulair, which I have done before, my allergies are noticeably worse and magically get better when I get back on Singulair.

I can honestly say that I have never experienced any depression or suicidal thoughts/tendencies since I have been on Singulair. Undoubtedly there are many others like myself who thank God every day for this medicine. I honestly feel very bad for those of you who have issues with Singulair because it has been a life-saver for me.

My almost ten year old daughter has been on Singulair for a few years now. Since the age of two, she was hospitalized every year due to her asthma. The doctor has her on Flovent but switched her to Singulair because she was concerned that the Flovent might be stunting her growth (my daughter has only been in the 25th percentile for height since she was very young) and the Flovent did not seem to be completely helping with the asthma. Since taking Singulair, my daughter has not been hospitalized for any asthma complications in the last two years. But, when I saw the news about Singulair, I nearly fell out of my chair. My daughter gets mood swings like you would not believe and has temper tantrums like a 4 year old. She NEVER ever used to be this way. It just started within the last two years. She is our oldest, so we thought maybe it was her hormonal changes starting. But, she is always the one who says nobody loves her and storms off in a range. I believe she knows this is completely untrue, but isn't it ironic that all of us have such similar stories to share?! Could all these problems be there for all of us because of a drug we were given to HELP our child?! And, if that is the case, what now?! Do I go back to the Flovent and keep stunting her growth?! Do I pull her off all her current asthma medicine, only to be prescribed another one with something else negative we will find out about years down the line? From day one, I have felt all these medicines for her asthma were not a good thing. But, I have asthma too and the last thing I want is to see her suffer, not being able to breathe. What is the answer?! I am completely horrified and distraught over all the people, especially young children, affected by this drug!! And, to top it all off, I was just at the allergist, myself, this past week and she suggested I take Singulair for my allergies since she didn't want me taking Allegra D because of the decongestant thinning your blood! AAAAHHHH!

My 20 yr. old daughter was on Loestrin 24 Fe for almost a year with seemingly few side effects (except larger breasts). When her Rx ran out, the doc would not prescribe more until she had an exam. She ended up going off the pill for a couple of months, which was okay because there was no boyfriend or sexual contact during that time. She then got a prescription refill and went back on it. Within about 3 weeks she started experiencing random panic attacks including, headaches, nausea, rapid heart beat, sweaty hands and dizziness. At first she wrote it off as stress, but now they are happening ALL the time and are interfering with her life. She is a college student and is becoming paralyzed by the anxiety and the fear of a panic attack. She can't go to class, can't drive and is worried all the time. This is soooo unlike my happy-go-lucky daughter. She feels like she is going crazy. I talked to the GYN and she thought that the pill could definitely be enhancing these symptoms, but didn't feel they were the main cause. I now have a completely different opinion from her since reading all the posts on here describing the exact same symptoms while on this pill. My daughter has now stopped taking them (it's been about a week) and the doctor said it could take a couple of cycles for the drug to be completely out of her system. I'm praying that these symptoms go away after the hormones are flushed out....anyone have any experience with the anxiety going away after going off the pill??????

Hi! I am so happy that I found this website. I was on Advair 500 for over a year and had almost every side effect listed here. After reading the postings, I went to the doctor and demanded that he put me on another asthma medicine. He put me on Asmanex and I've been feeling absolutely wonderful for the past 3 months. Coming off the Advair was scary for me. I had tingling lips, fingers, and skin on my back for almost a week. I also had to use my albuterol every 4 hours during the same week. But other than that my list of symptoms quickly disappeared. Since then, I've only had to use my albuterol a handful of times, mainly on a humid day or when working in my basement or brushing my dogs. I had experienced so many side effects while on Advair that I started to feel depressed. When I asked my doctor's about the side effects, they told me that they weren't from my medications. Advair had caused me to have a constant cough, numerous episodes of bronchitis, hoarseness almost one week every month, severe asthma attacks, constant thrush and other throat infections. I also had my blood pressure up 20-30 points on average, which caused me to constantly feel anxious. I was extremely moody and snapped at my kids and husband very easily. I had trouble sleeping and night sweats. Since I couldn't sleep I was constantly tired. One of the worse effects was joint pain and muscle cramps. My hands and feet would cramp up like I had severe arthritis. Sometimes I cramped so bad that couldn't hold a fork or toothbrush. My legs would cramp so badly it would make me cry. My back ached and I got severe stomach cramps. I had horrible menstrual cycles which lasted for over a week. My elbows hurt so bad that I couldn't carry a bag through the mall. I also lost all interest in sexual relations. I also had jitters. My hands would tremble even when I wasn't holding anything. I also lost my appetite. Food didn't taste or smell the same so it didn't appeal to me. I had to force myself to eat. To say the least, I felt like I was falling apart. Within a few days of going off of the Advair I felt like a new person. I was pleasant to be around and had hope for the future. I am feeling great. My husband and kids are so happy to have the real me back. I strongly encourage everyone to try Asmanex and go off Advair. It's really made a difference in my life.

I have been on Advair for almost 2 months. The first month I was on lowest dose and the second month on 500/50. I am prone to severe coughing mainly as a part of a cold or flu. I do cough ALOT with extreme emotions, when I get overheated and when I lie down. I went to the doctor and she stongly suspected Asthma. Even though I do smoke, my history of coughing as a child and my severe GERD is what made her lean towards Asthma. While in the process of getting referrals, x-rays, bloodwork she put me on Advair. With constant follows-ups,(every 2 wks) nothing was working and to make things worse I came down with some kind of flu. On the smallest dose of Advair the only thing that happened was a dry throat. After my flu was almost gone she increased my Advair.Amost immediatly I got the worst sore throat! My throat was on fire,my tastebuds on the back of my toungue were HUGE. My throat was so dry, I thought I was gonna choke on my own tongue. Then, within a day after that I was so hoarse I could hardly talk and the area where my voice box is, hurt and I was about to cough up a lung. At the same time I had a few small white dot's in the back of my mouth.....by the uvula. So I went back to my doctor. She tested me for strep and yeast both were negative! I left the office more puzzled and fustrated than ever. I continued for several days and then it came to me...."Could my asthma medicine be causing my problem?" The very next morning I quit all asthma medicine. It wasn't working anyway! Within 24 hrs I was 75% better! My voice box was still sore and my voice wasn't back all the way but loads better. By day three my voice was about 90% back and I could actually talk on the phone and yell at my five kids! LOLOL I think in my case Advair is not the answer and caused way more problems. I am do to visit the doc soon to see where I go from here. Has anyone had the same experience?

I have been taking prednisone for severe chronic urticaria (hives) for 14 years. The good outwieghs the bad here because I would be dead by now if I was not on it. I would have killed myself. Before I was on it, my face would swell up so that I could not see, barely breathe and definitely not talk. On top of this I had hives on every inch of me, my hands so badly swollen that I could not close them, my feet so swollen even standing hurt and walking was like treading on knives. If that was not bad enough I had extreme nausea and could not keep even water down. Sleeping was completely out of the question and trying to do anything at all but sit and scratch was also out of the question. The only side effects I have had are extreme weight gain (60 the first year and in the additional years it has become a grand total of 150 lbs) I have doubled my weight since I started the medication. By the way I excercised like a hamster on crack and it did not help. I have pitting edema, an ulcer and I now bruise very easily. Over the years I have taken every antihistimine ever conceived as well as tried many other remedies. I have been on anti rejection medications, asthma medicine and even arthritis medication. At one point I was on Zantac and Proventil to see if that might do it. Unfortunately prednisone is the only thing that has worked for me. I have even tried some herbal remedies. I would wrap myself in aluminum foil if it would make my hives disappear, unfortunately it ended up being fat and pitting edema in which I have been wrapped. I can handle it. Getting fat is not the end of the world, not living my life is the end of everything! So take the vitamins and the detoxifiers and suck it up!