Advair HFA and insomnia

I've been on this med for 6 years. It was not until I started reading this site that I figured out that my problems might be related to Advair use. I've had sore joints/muscles for years. Terrible insomnia, in fact my doctor has me on prescription sleeping pills, but I still can't sleep. I've gained 50 lbs in five years. My eyes bother me continuously. I feel depressed for no good reason. The bottoms of my feel are so sore in the morning that I can hardly walk. I can't exercise - just too tired. (and I used to all the time).

I've recently quit taking advair - cold turkey, but I'm not sure if that's wise. It's been two weeks and today is the first day that I haven't felt very well. I'm wondering how long the body stores this stuff and if I should have weaned off more slowly.

Thanks for all your comments and for this site. What a blessing!

This is unbelievable. I was checking on another drug and stumbled in here. Have been on advair for several years. I've had chest pain, short of breath foggy head, joint aches, numb hands and feet,upset stomach all the time every test known to man and they find nothing. ALL the symtoms mentioned here are wrecking my life. No energy, insomnia. I used to be hard working , hard sleeping. Got caught up with ambien for sleep. I sleep, but still feel terrible. My dentist gets mad just looking at my teeth, which used to be great. I have gained 40 lbs in 4 years.No matter what I do it won't come off. Time to cut back or something.no more ambien, even if I die awake. Bad combination of meds, all legal. enough already.

My 14 year-old son was diagnosed with asthma after he was given a breathing treatment. He was prescribed Advair and it has been terrible since then. Advair caused him a severe insomnia. He cannot stay in school because he is so sleepy but cannot sleep at all. I am getting ready to sue the company and the doctors who prescribe this knowingly. Someone needs to do something before these drug companies and doctors kill more people on their way to being richer!

my brother is taking advair for COPD. he is also on blood pressure medicine
and a medicine to stop smoking. he has been having terrible insomnia for many months now. also. several times when he's driving, he's suddenly become so tired, he has to pull over. it happened again recently in the middle of the afternoon and he had an accident. he says just before the wave of fatigue comes over him, he seems to have some severe allergic reaction with sinus drainage. has anyone else ever had any of these experiences? this seems incredibly scary.

I had been taking Advair 500/50 for several years, however, most of that time I only took it once a day (not the recommended 2X). My diagnosis is near fatal asthma/COPD. About a year and a half ago I began taking Spiriva in addition. I am stable, but with a low pulmonary function for the past year (peak flow remains around 200). I see an acupuncturist/herbalist and an currently trying Wei Labs products: Soup A and LC Balancer, that are supposed to reverse lung damage. I recently visited a new, conventional, pulmonary specialist who wanted me to retry Advair at its recommended dosage, which I did. I noticed a nagging headache (at my forehead), a tendency to be agitated very easily, and a diminished peak flow. His response was to continue and add another medication (Singulair, which I have tried years ago with no good result). I stopped the Advair (though I am continuing on the Spiriva, until I see more results from the herbs). Also, I am a thin person who exercises all the time, and I had noticed that my weight was about 10 lbs more than I would like it to be (this had been the case for a couple of years). I have yet to see if that will drop, I have only been off for a couple of days. Additionally, I have had the experience with conventional steroid sinus meds over the years; the meds would stop working after a month or two and I would end up with worse congestion. I ultimately had a surgery to clear polyps and extra tissue, and have been breathing well through my nose since 2004 without meds. I feel I need to get off the conventional meds for the asthma too, on them I appear to be in a slow decline.

Thanks to everyone for sharing with the Advair thread. I too have had the heart palpitations, *severe* muscle cramps, join pain, back pain and insomnia since I started Advair. I talked to my doctor and he told me that their were no side effects for Advair and intimated that it was "just in my head."

Thanks to everyone for posting their symptoms and experiences. It really helps to know that it's not, in fact, "in my head."

I am a 44 yr. old female. I have been taking Advair for about a month. I have to say that it is wonderful that I can finally breathe but the leg cramps and constant heartburn that I have never experienced before is unreal. The weight gain is becoming an embarrassment as everyone I come in contact with comments or asks if I am pregnant. After experiencing breast secreations, I checked and that was a negitive. My 8 year old loves it that most of the time I am too hoarse to give orders. That is when I can finally pull myself out of a much needed doze or nap. The sweet me has disappeared and the wicked witch has taken over as I am always moody, depressed and tired. I too have experienced flu like symptoms, ringing in my ears and insomnia. Advair along with the Singuliar has made life on the breathing end very good, but on the health end the pits.

I am a 45 year old woman. I have been on advair (it is called serevent in Australia) for about 2 1/2 years. I have noticed the following symptoms:
insomnia, headaches, weight gain, severe mood swings, chesty cough, sore chest, aches and pains all over and many more. Every time I would try to go off of it my asthma would seem to get worse so out of fear I would resume using it. I have now been off of it for 3 days and already I can feel the chesty cough starting to dry up. The irony is that I never had severe asthma, I was given advair because I got a very nasty flu and my asthma got worse. In hindsight I think it would have proably cleared up on its own. I would urge anyone to be very careful with this drug it is very, very dangerous!!!!

I have what's known as cough equivalent asthma--on set as an adult. this is my first attack in about 3 years. I'm very unhappy with the Advair--the heart beating so quickly, the nausea and to top it all off IT'S NOT WORKING and neither is the albuterol. Today is my last day for the Advair. It's not even controlling my cough for minutes let alone hours or days. I'm losing my voice and will lose my part-time job because I don't have a voice. I can't hold a conversation without coughing it's making me dizzy and I'm tired because I can't sleep.

I am a 47 yr. old female. I have been taking Advair 250 for several months and have been sick for about 2 of the them. I get a flu-like feeling once a week. I cannot move. I also have trouble sleeping, sore throat, headaches, ear pain, weight gain, all of which I was not experiencing prior to this medicine. It took me a while to figure out what was bothering me. I am going to the doctor this week to change this medication.

I also am having trouble sleeping. It takes xanax or melatonin or both, to help me to unwind. Yikes.

I will be taking Advair for 4 years this March. The Dr. warned me that thrush and suppressed immune system were side effects. Are others not being told this? I rinse or brush my teeth after each dose. This is very important. I do have muscle cramping from time to time, so I eat potassium rich foods. Lately I have been having chest pain so I am concerned. Checking this out. This may be due to adding Singulair recently. Prior to Advair I could not get my asthma under control. Recently I went off of the Advair and the asthma was much worse. So..the side effects are not good but the asthma w/no Advair is bad also. Not sure what the answer is.

5 years ago my left vocal cord was paralyzed. Doctor felt this was caused by virus. I had surgury to fix then. In November 2006 my allergy doctor changed my allergy medicine to Advair. Soon after my voice starting giving way and I started choking, coughing and had severe phlegm. I passed this off as a bad cold and did not catch the connection. My wife noticed my voice was getting worse through the holidays. By January this year I starting gagging and choking for no reason. My center of my chest felt as if it was severly bruised. I had the gurgling, trouble sleeping at night and I could not breath. It felt like my throat was blocking after coughing and I could not get air in. Constant nasal drip. I made an appointment with my specialist thinking something with my vocal cords was going on. They did not see any major issue with my vocal cords but could tell my voice was in bad shape. I go for more testing end of February 2007. I have a constant metalic taste in my mouth. We saw the post made here after I could not breath. My wife was almost ready to call the ambulance. This stuff is REALLY SCARY. I went off Advair immediately. We called the specialist to tell him. I feel better now but know that something is wrong here. I'm still choking some but not like I was.

I've been taking the Advair 500/50 for a couple weeks now, and the side-effects i'm experiencing are hoarsness when speaking, insomnia, and chestpain. I do rinse my mouth and brush my teeth afterwards but still sometimes have the hoarsness voice. This medication is not suppose to cause weight gain even though it's a steriod because it only goes to the lungs not the bloodstream, i asked my pulmonary specialist. Not sure what's going on w/ people's expanding mid-sections on this website????

I've been takig Advair 250x2 for about a year now and until I found this website I thought I was losing my mind. Side effects include thrush (and I rinse with half peroxide and half water, brush teeth, and then rinse with Listerine after i use the advair), leg cramps, dizziness, "lung pain", weight gain, post nasal drip, sleeplessness.....I have an apointment with my Doctor tomorrow, I think I'll suggest that he take me off advair and put me on something else!

My husband had an allergic reaction to some dust he inhaled and had minor tightness in the chest. His allergist and pulmonogist put him on Advair and he went straight downhill from there. He complained about side effects and expressed his desire to live drug free and the Drs insisted Advair was safe and get used to it because you will be taking it for the rest of your life. After 4 pulmonogists and worsening asthma he finally read REversing Asthma by Firshein and got off the ADvair. He is drug free for 4 months and his breathing tests were better today than 4 months ago when he was on ADvair.
Going off advair saved his life and our marriage. His side-effects included:

Shortness of breath
Lethargy - he stopped working out regularly
Insomnia
Anger - rages - he would burst into rages
Body aches
Forget fullness - he was once driving and couldnt remember the way home!!
And once he said he said he was sleeping and he thought the house exploded and he awoke to realize it was a "popping sound" in his head when he was asleep. He was glad to be alive but he never took Advair again after this one.

I've been on it for about 4 months. It does seem to help but I've had problems with steriods (prednisone) taken as a result of colitis.
In the case of Advair I get the hoarse voice and sleeplessness.
I'm also concerned about the long term use of this drug on my lungs. It is a steroid. I have diffuctly in breathing, especially taking a deep breath.
Does anyone know of any studies on how safe Advair is for your lungs or the rest of your body.We have had very bad experiences with Steroids.

my 17 year old son needed a hip replacement as a result of steroids (not Advair) this summer.
BEWARE OF STEROIDS.
lets find out about Advair.
Does it have any adverse steroid Affects??
please let me know.

Thank you

Peter W
******

I'm 24 year old female, and I've been using Advair for about 3 weeks now, and have used it for a month at a time previously in the past. I remember that it always seems to help at first, give me more energy, and making my running better (I was a competitive runner in college and developed asthma as an adult), but after about a two week period, the medication actually seems to stop helping, and instead I start getting chest tightness, severe acid reflux, naseau, headaches and muscle fatigue. I've also had incredible sleeplessness, excitability and restlessness, and rather significant weight loss, which at first I attributed to running more (and I'm sure its a combination), but I think the restlessness is to blame for a lot of it.

Additionally, despite rinsing, my voice is hoarse, my mouth always tastes bad, and I have to swallow or drink liquids all the time. My ezxema has gotten much worse, and I've developed acne on the sides of my face, which hasn't happened in years.

I thought maybe I was losing my mind, but this site has made my fears seem quite reasonable.

My doctor prescribed Advair last week and I am supposed to take one puff twice a day. I have done it for the past 3 days. Now I am afraid to continue because of the side effects you all mention. How long until you began to notice the weight gain/sleeplessness, etc.? I just lost 40lbs and it took a lot of hard work. I will not let this drug ruin that for me. (I don't
have chronic asthma, I am just having trouble getting over a bout of bronchitis.) Thanks for any information you can offer.

I have been on Advair for three months now after the Albuterol inhaler didn't seem to be working. Since then, I have noticed I am gaining weight. I have an active job and my diet is healthy (vegetarian). In six years my weight has hardly fluctuated. Aside from weight gain, the most disturbing side effect has by insomnia. I am simply not tired and when I do sleep, not matter for how long, I always feel tired. I did a search when it dawned on me that the only thing I have changed in the last three months has been the Advair.

Rapid heart rate and nervousness. Insomnia after taking a dose before bedtime.

Wondering why I can't get into any of my jeans, I decided to Google "Advair and Weight Gain". WOW !! Not only do I now attribute my 20 lb. weight gain to Advair (100/500), I also know why I have leg cramps, insomnia, mood swings, and no improvement of my asthma symptoms.
Trashing my Advair !!

I have suffered with aAsthma all my life. My brothers we all were premature and have bronchial issues. I have had allergies and shot along with acute asthma attacks that sent me to the hospital. One of my siblings almost died from his bronchial spasms. My mother was a smoker and she continued smoking while she was pregnant. We are living proof that smoking is devastating to your unborn child. Well, moving on foward I have taken Advair for about approxiamately three years. I was reluctant at first but my constant bronchial infections and asthma led my doctor to send me to an asthma specialist. I had taken steroid injections and steriod pills in the past when needed. Now this time it was different I had to follow the "program" according to my physcian.Now every day I would inhale into the purple disk my dosage was 500mg. and so started the drug induced trip of a lifetime ! The side effects for me were small at first but gradually they grew and even gained momentum! There was the hoarseness, weight gain, nervouseness, heart palpitations, depression, extreme bruising, asthma attacks, growths, complex endometrial cysts on my ovaries ( I attribute to the steriods my periods became irregular and light when I was taking the disk) . I also, developed sebacious cysts on my back and face. Three yars and it took a trip to Vegas over the summer to make me realize the connection!! I was leaving through photographs from the trip. I did not recognize my self. My face was round, my legs swollen and bruised. I am a health nut and even with the astma continued a regular routine to this day of runniong and weight training. I was irritable all the time, I had boughts of insomnia and woke up sometimes in a cold sweats. The steriod inhanced the hormonal changes. I am in my forties and expected some degree of flucuations but not to this degree. NONE of the woman in my family had ever experinced this before. I truley beleive the steriods interuppted my monthly cycle which effected the hormonal balance to a far higher degree than what should of happened to me. I stopped taking Advair approxiamtely 3 1/2 months ago. Since then my periods are back to normal ( I have not missed one yet ). Since, I stopped in August by October no more bruising, normal menstural flow, my face has go down, no more nervouseness..ect. I am currently taking Spivera with very few side affects..sometimes I develop a rash on face... big deal ( I will be closely watching side effects from now on) It still beats the harmful side effects of Advair. I will never take the purple disk again !!!

Insomnia,depression,weight gain,sore mouth & throat, nightmares, leg pain which Iam now going through testing to see what the problem is, but I think I just found out from reading the letters on this site. I had no idea it could do all of this to a person. I am going to wean myself off of it.
Thanks Jonas Seese age 62

I originally posted comments in July, 2005. Since then, I still have most of the side effects I listed. Advair IS NOT helping!!! Trouble sleeping, extreme fatigue, pain in both legs (from thigh to foot), eczema on both hands, can't concentrate, depression/mood swings (I am currently taking 0.5 of clonazepam for anxiety, 1/2 in am 1/2 in PM). So I really don't need the added stress/anxiety of these side effects. The list goes on, but you all know these too well! The only positive I can say is that I haven't gained any weight - it's just the opposite - I don't have an appetite at all! I've only been on the Advair since June and the doctor prescribed 100/50 2x a day. Since I don't have health insurance nor prescrition coverage (and the fact that this crap is not working for me), I only use it 1x every other day. I will be making another appointment to see the doctor soon, because I can't stand this stuff. I have to be very selective on the doctors I see and for what ails me (because of the no health inusrance issue). I was on Flovent and Albuterol for over a year until he switched me. My PCP thinks it's all in my head, nice guy, but terrible bed-side manner. (He's the one that prescribed the clonazepam - been on it for 2 years); went to the ER a few years ago before finally being diagnosed with asthma. I even went to see a psychiatrist! I truly believe I had the astham then, but it went unnoticed. Now I have all these weird side effects - some are new since taking Advair and it doesn't quite register at first, then I blame it on the Advair. I read some comments that it has worked for some people and that's great. But I am not one of the lucky ones. I will go from doctor to doctor, new meds to new meds, etc. until I feel like my old self again. It can't always be like this. Does anyone know of any natural remedies out there? My email is ******. Thanks!

I am seventy years old, and have been on advair 250/50 for about a year. I have a bad cough since starting Advair, thick phlem, thrush in my throat. insomnia, terrible bone pain in both legs, cramps in my feet at any time of the day,chest pain, and just recently a compression fracture. I am taking Fosamax to help build bone, but the insert for Advair says,"may cause bone loss" I'm fighting a losing battle. Am now on 100/50 once a day. Hope to get off of Advair soon!!

I have been using Azmacort (Corticosteriod) for the treatment of my Asthma for over 8 years with great success. With the new laws elimating the use of CFC propellents by the end of 2005, I decided to go to my Allergist to discuss possible alternatives. She immediately prescribed Advair telling me that it contained both a Corticosteriod and a long acting bronchodilator (Serevent).

I started using the 250/50 Advair diskus and within a week was experiencing all of the symptoms describe by other users:

Stomach Bloating
Anxiety
Constant throat clearing
Hoarseness
Sleeplessness/Night sweats
Chest tightness
Worsening Asthma

I immediately went back to my Allergist the very next week and told her of the problems I was having. After a complete check-up, including a breathing test, I was told everything appeared normal and that there was no explanation for the problems I was experiencing. She reluctantly told me that I could go back to using the Azmacort, which I did, and all of the symptoms eventually disappeared within a couple of weeks.

I have been researching Azmacort articles and found that KOS pharmaceutical has acquired a 10 yr agreement to produce Azmacort, along with testing of non CFC propellents.

From my personal assumption, it appears that the Servent additive of Advair may have been the cause of my problems.

Also I have been wondering whether the diskus (powder) was effective in reaching my lungs, or was it just hitting the back of my throat and being ingested into my stomach causing both the throat and stomach problems I experienced.

One thing for sure, I will NEVER use Advair again.

Since June 2004, I took Advair after a very bad asthma attack when I was hospitalized.
Last month, I stopped taking Advair during a week vacation when I inadvertently forgot it at home. Since my asthma didn't return, I decided to try living without it. That's when I started having stomach cramps. I made the connection to Advair last night when I realized that my problems started after I stopped taking Advair. Thanks to this website, I realized that the side-effects, which I thought was just life, was coming from Advair:
- weight gain despite working out 5 days a week. Even though I did my regular leg stretches, my joints felt very tight. Sometimes after working out, I felt dizzy or close to vomiting. I thought this was due to excessive training so I cut down the days and switched my workout. But it didn't matter, I am now unable to workout regularly because of the daily stomach cramps.
- severe leg cramps after biking and kayaking
- if I sat down too long, my feet got bloated like I had been riding an airplane
- Insomnia
- heart palpitations
- dry and flaky skin
- an open wound from a slight burn that is taking a long time to heal
- joint pains at night that are only relieved by lying in a hot tub for half the night
I'm hoping that these side effects will go away eventually as the Advair drug gets out of my system.

I have been using Advair 100/50 for about 2 months. I was diagnosed with adult asthma over a year ago. Was on Flovent/Albuterol combo. I have been reading all the comments of Advair side effects. Personally, I don't think it's working for me - I seem much worse! I have some of the side effects already mentioned such as: increased anxiety (I'm already taking Clonazepam - over a year); trouble sleeping; can't concentrate; headaches (more than usual); moodiness; bad eczema on my hands; difficulty breathing at times' hardly any appetite and other minor things. I told my doctor (saw him last month) about what I have been reading and he said "don't believe all that you read on the internet". I like to be informed, although the doctors don't tell you everything and I do believe most of what I've been reading here.

I am 23 years old and was diagnosed with asthma when I was 2 years old. I beleive I have taken every medication out there. I was on and off steroids since I was 6. I take my albuterol inhaler when needed and advair diskus 250/50. I began taking advair about 3 or 4 years ago and have seen an increase in weight gain over the past 2 years. I work out obsessively and still no weight loss. I joined weight watchers and eat under the points I am suppose to and still no results. I tired taking singular and broke out with lumps all over my body, so I had to immediatley get off of that. After reading everyone else's reactions to advair, i feel that I am not alone in the asthma world. I as well have really bad mood swings, headaches, trouble sleeping. After reading this website, i am going to get off Advair immediatley.

Wow... stumbling on this site is a breath of relief so far. I've only been on Advair a little less than a month but my anxiety and mood swings seem to have shot through the roof and I've been waking up from less and less sleep every day with no explanation for my sudden bout with insomnia. I'm a 29 year old smoker that quit and started taking 100/50 Advair for an allergy asthma compounded with chronic bronchitis but I think this morning's dose will have been my last. Too bad I relapsed on the cigs before I found this site :/

my name is danielle. i am 29 and have had asthma all of my life, properly diagnosed by age two. i have been on many medications, and advair seems to be the only one that works for me. i use 100/50 once a day, because it does keep me up at night, and i already have troble getting to sleep. however, i do have side effects that until now i have disregarded, but upon reading this website, i feel that i am no longer alone, and that some of these side effects are not a part of life, but a part of the advair.
metal side effects:
irritabilty
aggresion
mood swings
depression
hard to concentrate
short fuse
stress
and the above mentioned insomnia

over the years i have been on many different steroids for my asthma, and the docs always said that that amount wouldn't
have side effects, and sent me to shrinks to be medicated. currently i have no insurance and am not taking anything besides advair and albuterol as needed.

physical side effects:
sore/scratchy throat
always have to clear throat before talking
hoarseness
sores on tounge
dry throat, mouth and nose
deeper voice
dental problems
a lot of these may be my fault because i never rinse my mouth after wards.

more side effects:
abdominal weight gain-no matter what i do
gas a lot!
constipation
blurry vision-i now need glasses
floaters
acne on face only ( i'm 29) and not only at that time of the month
dizzy spells on ocaasion (just last night in fact)
muscle cramps in upper back, shoulders and neck
chest pain/lung cramps-sometimes i think i am gonna have a heart attack, but then the pain goes away
i do notice an increased heart rate after taking advair. i had to give up caffeine so as not to make it worse.

i don't know if these side effects are due to the steriod or the serevent, which i read here is now being investigated. i am not sure what to do at this point. without medcation, i am sure to end up in the hospital emergency room. i have been on advair for going on three years. i am ready for a change. i tried not taking it today and my chest became tight. i had to give in. i know i should not wean myself off it anyway. i will make an appt. with a doc once i gather some research. what have other people done?? i am willing to try anything at this point. my email is ****** thanks for listening. i feel better already.

I have been on Advair 100/50 for over 2-1/2 years and it's the best thing I've ever taken. It increased my lung capacity 33.5% and I do not wake up at night with asthma attacks. I don't have to depend on my Albuterol for rescue all the time either. I took Azmacourt 4 times a day prior and constantly had shortness of breath and asthma issues. I've been very fortunate on Advair! I have not had insomnia, difficulty sleeping, no musle weakness, no heartburn, and no rashes. I have had slight weight gain, and managed to get it off. I have constant allergies and allergic rhinitis so I do get occasional headaches. I can actually take a deep breath and not cough my head off. I can actually run and workout now! I do get dry mouth but that's easy enough to deal overcome. I may be an exception but it's a blessing for me! I take Allegra too and it is the best thing I've taken too. Seldane is better but they took it off the market. So I guess it works for some! Thanks.

I've been using Advair for 3 months, after a week or so major headaches and insomnia started. After one month I had constant upper respiratory problems, rhinitis, post nasal drip, then I got really sick supposedly from a common virus doctors insisted had nothing to do with Advair, I was in bed for 2 weeks, had a 104 fever for 4 days, major ear infection, muscle pains that made me feel like I was being beaten, stomach pains that come in waves and still persist on and off with no apparant cause, I am very itchy, my face is patchy and very dry, my ankles and feet often get very sore, this is all very unusual for me. Normal tasks make my feet feel like I've run a marathon. I've now stopped the Advair as of today after having gone yet again to the doctor with a sinus infection and my ear is hurting again! I'm sick of being sick! My back and breasts seem swollen and very tender. Doctors insist it can be something else but never the advair. I am going back to my turbo inhalers and herbal teas. I now have to take Mometasone furoate monohydrate (Nasonex) to help my nose and ears drain. I have been experiencing some blurred vision and almost every side effect listed on this web site. I do find "Respirease" herbal liquid formula helps but it gets a little expensive, I think its better than poisoning myself with Advair!

I have had asthma for over 20 years. I am now 25 and have been on Advair for over 2and 1/2 yrs. Advair definitely has helped, I can breath enough to run again, no wheezing or struggling for breath no hospital visits since I started the med....BUT I have also gained over 40 pounds (and still gaining), get chronic migraines, and have definite Cushing's like symptoms. Plus I get thrush in my mouth every couple of months. And don't forget the insomnia, jittery feelings, tremor and rapid heartbeat. All of these symptoms started since I began taking Advair and continue to worsen. And to top it off, my Pulomonlogist insists the Advair cannot be causing all of these problems. I thought I was losing my mind until I found this forum. Advair is no miracle drug and should be taken with extreme caution.

hello
i am 37 and have had severe chronic asthma all my life. as a child,teen, and young adult i was in the emrgency room at least twice a year for cold related asthma problems. i started taking theophylline at the age of 16, used over the counter inhalers til my mid-twenties when was given albuterol, and have gone on prednisone treatments numerous times. about 2 years ago my condition started deterioating, none of my previous medications were working well. by this time last year i was so bad that i went through an albuterol inhaler every two weeks, and i was constantly sick with lung infections. thats when my pulmonary dr (same one for almost 20 yrs) put me on advair and singulair. i noticed a MAJOR, near miraculous change for the positive almost right away, i could breathe again! i haven't been this clear for years. a few months after i started treatment i gained 10 lbs in less than a month. i thought it was because i changed birth control pills but changing back didn;t seem to help. i have started having attacks of diarrhea at least once a week, gas, bloating, swelling (of feet, hands, middle). lately i've been feeling nauseous, my lifleong insomnia has gotten MUCH worse, i've had blurry vision and the feeling like my head is going to explode. not to mention dizzines, lightheadedness, pressure in my head, dry mouth, hoarseness, back & feet pain, severe anxiety, tremors, rapid heartbeat- what seem to be all the classic symptoms! i had no idea it was the medication. i was so ill the other day i almost had my boyfriend take me to the emrgency room. i had been hearing on the news about serevent being unsafe so i started looking up the side effects and realized that's what it was (i now also see singulair can have similar effects) i stopped taking the advair for 2 days but my severe asthma started returning almost imeediately so i had to use it this morning- and i feel like CRAP right now. i know i need to see my dr ASAP but i am worried about controlling my asthma- i can't deal with these side effects but i also can't return to the state i was in last year- i could NOT BREATHE and was using my albuterol so much it was causing it's own problems (jittery, rapid heartbeat). PLEASE email me (******)if anyone has had any luck with alternatives! (does flovent cause the same long term problems?)

Lost my voice in August 2004, currently seeing ENT and next to a speech pathologist. Also have trouble sleeping, joint problems, blurry vision, weight gain. Advair works great to help me breathe, but there has to be something else out there that doesn't have all the side effects. I can't do my job without my voice!

I have been on Advair for 12 days. I haven't used my Albuterol AT ALL since then. However, tonight, I started to cry. And I kept crying, for no reason. It is the middle of my cycle and it's not the time for such nonsense; it just
doesn't make sense on this day. Additionally, I have gained 2 pounds in 12 days, and have joint aches, insomnia, headaches, and hoarseness. Most of the side effects I can handle, but the depression is debilitating. Thanks to this
site, I can see that this will only get worse...I start the wean tomorrow.

I was prescribed advair last week for a breathing problem that my dr could not diagnose. At first i was thrilled to be feeling better but now notice a horrible shaking in my hands and legs as well as nervousness and a general feeling of anxiety.

I also have experienced sleeplessness and leg pain and am going to immediately stop taking this drug.

I'm in London, Ky taking Advair on & off for almost 12 months..(I'm reluctant to take anything) Recently though I started taking it twice a day for the last few weeks because doctor says it's so great & I should follow prescription, I've noticed 5-10lb weight gain, and itching all over, sleeplessness, and a small rash on my left arm. I was also recently trying to figure out why I was gaining weight especially in stomach area, I'm 35 & never ever had a weight gain since high school, & have not changed diet. After reading this site, it goes in the trash. And things are adding up. I had no idea Advair had only been approved since 2000 by the FDA, and it's my understanding it's not approved by them for children under 12. I also have a friend who has a 6 year old child who had tonsuls removed, after surgery he went from a very skinny child to chubby.. parents said it was the surgery that gave him the bigger appetite.. after reading this site.. I'm thinking Advair is the culprit and will be showing them what I've found here so they can take their child off this drug immediately.

i ALSO HAVE MUSCLE CRAMPING ALONG WITH HEADACHES AND FORGETFULLNESS. NOTICING AS OF THIS YEAR, GROWTHS IN THE BACK OF MY HANDS AND WRIST.. VERY PAINFUL TO TOUCH. INSOMNIA, DEPRESSION.

I couldn't figure out much of anything, including why I was so moody, anxious, and depressed. I was having trouble sleeping. The emotions I dealt with made me feel like I was just barely holding it together. Then I stopped taking Advair 250/50. The change was almost immediate. With in 2 days I was more relaxed and thinking much more clearly.

I am a 38 year old male that has never reacted negatively to any medication in the past. This is probably why I was so agreeable to taking such a strong drug for very mild asthma. I acquired the drug from my general MD; she gave me some free samples. Needless to say, I am changing my general MD.

I was taking the Advair 250/50 once a day for about 40 days. This time period very closely coincides with the before mentioned emotions.

There are some very good prescription drugs out there. Sadly, Advair is NOT one of them! It's my heart felt belief that this stuff is poison!

I have been on Advair for about a year now. I am a very happy, polite, well mannered person at heart. Yet now, after taking Advair, I have been very moody. I feel like I am Bi-Polar!! My mood swings are very dramatic. Sometimes I have a very short fuse and I tend to lash out in angry fits. I have become very impatient and my heart feels like it is going a mile a minute. I told my doctor this, and he lowered my dosage to 100mg and I only take it once a day. I am still suffering the same symptoms. I am scared to go off of Advair for fear of being worse off then I was in the first place! I am having trouble sleeping every night and I have become extremely depressed. I feel like Advair is ruining my life. I have decided to get off of this stuff starting today. I just hope its not to late..

Even though it works amazingly to control my asthma I have suffered from insomnia, exhaustion, acne, mood swings,and a significant weight gain. I work out like a crazy person and live on lettuce and am still gaining. I was never told by my Dr of these side effects. I am at least relieved to know that I am not alone. I have been off Advair for only a couple days now and already feel a shift for the better in my health.

I have experienced the following with 500/50 for about a year now.
Weight Gain
Cramping in calf (left leg only)
Sleeplessness
But the control is incredible. Is there any drug WITHOUT side effects?