Singulair and mom

My nine year old started taking this horrible drug less than a month ago. Since then, he has has horrible mood swings, screaming fits, told us he hates us, emotional breakdowns and even threatened to kill himself. He is a bright, intelligent, active and usually a normal nine year old. Over the past month he has been in a physical fight at school where he punched a kid for telling him he was annoying. He has also been in a ton of trouble at school which is not like him. I was so worried until today. My Mom recommended that I check the side effects of his asthma medication. I am astounded and angry at what I am reading. His doctor is supposed to have his best interest in mind and we trusted her. She was the attending physician at a hospital where we live. My nine year old was hospitalized with asthma. Although his asthma needs to be controlled, not at his emotional expense. There has to be a better way...

My son was on singulair for most of his infancy (11 mos- 22 mos old) we took him off of it when I started staying home with him. He was in daycare and was having breathing issues. We would give him the singulair and Zyrtec every morning. He became a very despondent baby. He would spend the ENTIRE day in the rocking chair at the daycare. After months and months of the teachers telling me this we decided it was best I stay home with him. He came off of the singulair and things got so much better for a while, he began to interact with us and others, not fearful anymore, and slept through the night. However other things have grown to be worse, as he has been developing...every day he seems more difficult to deal with. Now, 5, he is angry, fits of tantrums and rage, can't cope with his emotions, he actually kicked me today during one of these fits. He has been peeing in his room when he is sent there because he has been punished for one of these outbursts. What are the long term after effects of Singlair? Has anyone had this experience? Could the singulair have been given to him too early and now caused some sort of permanent nero or psychiatric condition? PLEASE ADVISE!!!! This Mom is really frightened.

We put our 3 year old son on Singulair 2 weeks ago for allergies. It seemed to be helping him. He is a very mild mannered kid that has never been an aggressive child and never bites or hits. In the last 4 days his mood has changed, and he has bitten 2 kids at school, hit one kid, bit and hit his grandpa, has been waking up with nightmares and has been very clingy to me (his mom). After reading the side effects of Singulair last night we contacted the pharmacist and told him what has happened and he told us to take him off the Singulair immediately and contact our Pediatrician. I am waiting for a phone call back now. I am saddened that a medication for Allergies can cause such a personality change.

My eight year old son was diagnosed with mild asthma by our GP and was taking Ventolin for a persistent cough. When this didn't relieve the cough the doctor prescribed Singulair. He started the Singulair in March 2009 and within 2 months we realized that his personality had dramatically changed. It has taken us a while to figure out what was going on because eight year old boys are starting to assert themselves more and I think the side effects have been escalating over the last month. He was angry most of the time, very hateful towards his siblings, saying very dark, nasty, hurtful things. He argued every time we asked him to do something and would snap into a screaming inconsolable emotional wreck at the drop of a hat many times a day over trivial or imagined problems. He was having nightmares and bursts of hyperactivity that were overwhelming. He told us he felt frustrated all the time and hated everything. When we tried to calm him he was unreachable. Just yesterday he had his fist clenched and pulled back ready to punch me when I was trying to help him with a computer problem. He was shaking and his face was contorted with rage and he just wasn't my little boy anymore.
It has been devastating for our family and we were ready to take him to a psychologist. He is normally an incredibly considerate, perceptive, loving child, highly intelligent, helpful and fun loving with a great sense of humor.
He has also complained of leg pains and has been wetting the bed again. It was only yesterday that I began reading about other people's side effects and have taken him off Singulair as of last night. Whilst he has still been argumentative today already the aggressive intensity seems to be easing.
I am absolutely mortified that I allowed this to happen to my son and my family and I am so grateful to others for sharing their experiences.
We still need to address his asthma and will make an appointment with a specialist next week, but given his asthma is so mild he should not have ever had to suffer these side effects.
I only hope now that he has not sustained any long term effects and that his younger brother has not been scarred by the truly horrible things that my son has said to him.

I am absolutely ecstatic to have found this webpage, although I feel like I have lost YEARS of my life to this drug. After reading the online article from The Plain Dealer (newspaper), my mom urged me to stop taking this medication.

I am 25 years old and have been on this medication since I was 12 years old. Over the years I have had NUMEROUS problems including migraines, chronic vertigo, anxiety, severe insomnia, irritability, urticaria, hives, eczema, and all sorts of GI issues ranging from GERD to diarrhea.

I have seen an allergist, a neurologist, a GI specialist, a family physician, a physical therapist (for the vertigo) and have had countless medical procedures ranging from MRI's to endoscopies.

I am horrified that ALL of these problems have stemmed from this one drug. I will NOT be taking my prescribed dosage before bed tonight and will be calling my allergist in the morning to inform them that I am going to quit taking Singular.

Thank you all for your support and for sharing your stories!

IN THE NEWS: Mentor mom helped sound the alarm over side effects from popular Singulair

I started taking Singulair 6 months ago. My allergies even with medication and immunotherapy were becoming unmanageable. My larynx would swell up and close my throat and make breathing difficult. I had trouble breathing at night laying down to sleep, my voice was hoarse most of the time. Within 2 days after starting Singulair, those symptoms totally disappeared. I thought it was the answer I had been looking for. I've had a lot real problems in the past few months with crying and sadness, but with my Mom in hospice with Alzheimer for 14 years, and my father breaking both hips last year, my mother-in-law with vascular dementia, and an insulin defendant diabetic, and losing my job due to outsourcing, and other stressors in my life, but II thought my sadness was all of this stress. Counseling wasn't really helping and I've got a new counselor now. In the past couple of months, my mental state has become more and more fragile; I have times that I wish I could go to sleep and wake up in a couple of months or just go somewhere and be left alone. I am angered easily; I have always been happy and easy-going. I cry daily and don't get out much, and I'm afraid of the unknown now. I feel like my self-esteem is in the toilet.

Tonight I have stopped the Singulair. I'm afraid because I know the allergy problems will return, but I'm hoping that I'll be able to manage them somehow. I have 'a lot on my plate' right now, but at least if I stop the Singulair and I feel better mentally I'll know it was the drug and not my life.

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.

I already had experienced some bad side effects due to singulair with my daughter. She had become moody, emotional, having nightmares and those are just a few to mention. However, my son had no side effects. When I went to my children's pediatrician, she agreed some children do experience some side effects like my daughter was having. But somehow she didn't see it as quite a concern. I vowed then and there to take both my children off it. Then my son continued having his allergies and over the counter zyrtec didn't seem to help him. I went back to the dr. and because I trust her and have known her for many years....she convinced my to put him back on singulair since he had never had any previous side effects. Well, its been maybe 2 months and now I see my son acting strange. He is not himself. The normal activities he used to enjoy don't interest him anymore. For the last few days, he has been wanting to lay down and he says he's sleepy. To me, he is acting like someone who is depressed and he's only 5!!!!!! I am taking him back to the dr. and taking him off this horrible drug! For all you parents out there...I think we should all go with our "motherly" instincts and do what we think is best for our children. We are the ones that know our children on a day to day basis..not the doctor's. So I am kicking myself for not sticking to my original instincts. My daughter improved drastically! Even her teacher noticed a difference. Please if you notice something, take action before the drug does more damage.

On the flip side i was on Singulair for about a year and i felt nothing different i never sneezed, never had a cold, or a runny nose. My mom found out that some kids had signs of suicide from Singulair so she instantly took me off of it and since then i have been miserable ever since. My doctors have put me on other allergy medicines, but none of them work with my runny nose and only take away the sneezing... even nose sprays don't work. I actually wish that i was still on singulair it never gave me any side effects and it's the only thing that works with my asthma.

My 11 month old baby was put on Singulair two days ago to help improve his ashma and severe allergy problems, he used to be a good sleeper (sleeps the entire night since he was 2 months old from 8 pm to 7 am) but last night he woke up at 10:30pm, 1:30 am, 3:45pm, and finally he was done with his sleeping at 6:30 am, also he has experienced nausea and vomit. I notice that his breathing is improving but how long I have to wait to really prove that he is getting any of all the terrible side effects I read in here?

My son (now 6) was put on Singulair at 8 months old for asthma and has been o it since. He has never had an appetite and is quite underweight. He complains of stomach pains and headaches daily. At age 4 he was sent to a pediatric GI and neurologist and any brain or gastro issues were ruled out. No one could figure out what was wrong. He has sensory issues and just recently was referred to a psychiatrist for occupational therapy. It was at this appointment that it was suggested that the Singulair is responsible and since he has been on it for the majority of his life we were unable to make the connection. He has been off of it for 2 weeks now and has not complained of headaches or stomach pain at all. His eating habits are slightly better, but not great. Hopefully his appetite will improve over time. I wish we had only known sooner. I feel like such a terrible mother!

I am SO sick at my stomach right now after reading all of these posts. My son is 2yrs old and was put on Singulair right after the new year. We have noticed a horrible change in his behavior....but we attributed it to his age and the fact that he is VERY strong-willed. However, thinking back, he has had some hallucinations. We had a babysitter tell us that when she tried to put him to bed that he cried and told her that there were monsters in the closet. When she picked him up and took him in the kitchen for a drink he kept reaching at the ceiling trying to grab something. Just last night he told me that he saw his Grammy dancing in the living room....my Mom wasn't even there. He has been throwing horrible fits to the point of gagging himself, hitting himself, kicking, hitting, screaming....you name it. At the end of them, I am usually in tears and we are both exhausted. I am not the only one who has experienced this with him....my Mom has too. He is also on Veramyst nose spray....both meds are for allergies. We have taken him off of both and decided to go a more natural route. We have bought local honey, an immune booster from teh health food store, and have him on a really good brand of liquid vitamins. It is hard as a parent to make decisions about your child. It is even worse when you realize that the decision you made has affected your child in a horrible way. I plan on giving him A LOT of attention tonight and giving him a big hug! I just want my fun, playful son back! Good luck to all of you and God Bless!

I'm so happy that I decided to research this drug. My son, who will be 2 on 1/22/09 was prescribed Singulair today. He has been coughing/wheezing, etc since we moved to a different state, 6 months ago. We have tried all kinds of OTC drugs and nothing would work. We finally brought him to the Dr. today and he says he has allergies (which we kinda knew already). I was happy that the Dr. prescribed something that we could not get OTC..to me, that meant that it was going to be better. I went to pick up the prescription and the pharmacist tried to talk me into a different kind of allergy med for my son. I told her that I wanted to stick with the Singulair, since that is what the Dr. prescribed. She told me, in no uncertain terms, to research this drug! She kept asking, "He's only 2, right?" He's only 2, right?" Her behavior was strange, I thought....it turns out that she was my angel today. I gave my son 1 dosage tonight before bed and he WILL NOT get another. Thank you! On Monday, my first order of business is to go back to the pharmacy and thank my angel....

My daughter's doctor put her on Singulair just about a week ago. She had a persistent barking cough that would not go away, even after 3 weeks on Albuterol. Because the pill was so expensive (even WITH insurance it was $120.00) and I could not afford it, her doctor gave me free samples. I gave it to her for the first time last night. I was telling a friend of mine about how nice it was that my daughter's doctor gave me free samples and what a blessing it was. When I told her what pill it was she started telling me about what happened to some of her kids in her class (she's a teacher). I was surprised. She told me she didn't want to scare me, she just wanted to make me aware. I didn't get scared, but I certainly wanted to find out if what she was telling me was common or just rare in a few cases. I am one of those people that will ask advice of other moms, etc., but ultimately do my own research and find out for myself to confirm any suspicions. I know some moms who freak out over every little thing and take someone's word for it, even without doing their own research. I am not one of those mom's. So I Googled "singulair side effects" and found this site. I could not believe that everything my friend had told me has also been experienced by so many others on this site. Needless to say, I will NOT be giving her Singulair anymore. I am just so thankful that I had someone tell me about it BEFORE she had to experience some of the terrible things that other children have had to experience. It is unacceptable that this drug is allowed to be prescribed, especially for young children. I am going to look into a more natural way to help ease her sniffles and cough.

i had posted back a few weeks about my daughters situation on singulair well she has been off of the medication now for 3 and 1/2 weeks now and just starting last night she seemed to be a different child she has been on the med for about 14 months she is doing better in school not wanting to fight me on everything. now she is eating great which is scary when your child goes 3 weeks not eating due to being afraid.she was sent to mental health and the doctor said he had never heard of a reaction to singulair and she could go back on it we said it was not going to happen they said it was her being bull headed which we knew different.we were almost to the point where the doctor wanted to admit her to a physic unit . we had her off the med and within 1 week she started eating little by little we just about have her back to where she was.we video taped her having her fits and showed the dr. he just stated she is a handful. we let her see the tapes the other night she started to cry and asked what was wrong with her and we explained nothing baby it was the medicine that was making you do that and now everything is going to be ok .this is the 3rd time she has quit eating in 1 yr and we could not pin point it well now we think we know it was the medicine.they put her on zyrtec we only give it to her as needed not on a daily basis.

I have an 8y.o. daughter that has been on Singulair for about 3 years now. Since she started taking singulair she has been absolutely miserable! She cries at everything, is very moody, has leg pains, wont leave my side and is tired ALL the time. She has circle under her eyes, she looks like she hasn't slept a wink in days! She has been off her Singulair for about 5 days now and she is a totally different person. She has been "happy-go-lucky" and full of herself, she has even woke up happy (which hasn't happened in I dont know how long). She was put on Singulair by our Doctor b/c she had Pnemonia two times in a row. She has Allergies and Asthma and for the past 3 years has been on: Singulair (4mg), albuterol, flovent, Zyrtec, and Flonase. That is just too much for a little girl to be on. She hardly eats at all, gets headaches. I just see such a difference when she is not on it but, what will she take in place of this? My husband also takes Singulair (he is miserable all the time), he doesnt sleep at night and is always tired. Anyone have alternative to this drug?

I found this web site while searching side effect of Singulair. My Son - 7 years old is experiencing same issue - Severe random leg pain in both legs or 1 leg as mentioned by few others. He can not walk when it happened and I have to carry him. The pain disappear in 2-3 days or sometimes it takes 5-6 days.

We did X-Ray and doc could not find anything wrong.

Others..who are facing same issue...I would appreciate if u can send me an email to ****** so that we can talk in detail.

My ADOPTED son almost 6 and was already on Singulair when he came to live with us at age 20mos.
After finding this site just over 2 weeks ago, I took him off on this stuff. Well, after about a week, things were so good that it was scary. His behavior improved so much, that everyone said he doesn't act like Jacob. I said, yes he does, we just didn't know him before going on this med.
He is currently going thru ADHD evaluation and I advised the therapist that I took him off this drug and he was like a new child. Her comment was "did we cure him"? Well, after her one on one with him, she commented, I don't know whats wrong, but he is extremely HYPER and then all hell broke loose on the way home. But, he has been fine since.
I am praying that I don't have to medicate him for ADHD, I am just not ready for that and have been fighting it for a while and then after reading all the side effects on this site, it described my child to a tee. He is in Kindergarten and is doing great academically and the therapist was a bit surprised by that with how hyer he is.
Please tell me with how long my son has been on this drug, that it's going take more than a couple of weeks. He is not near as hyper to us as he was before. Maybe he just got excited about all the toys in her office. He can also be very defiant, that is whole other issue we are dealing with. He does way better for his Dad than Me, so now if he doesn't want to listen to me, he Dad intervenes. I am hoping he will get it, that he can't be disrespectful to his Mom or he will have his Dad to deal with.
Thanks for listening and please pray that his behavior will continue to improve over the next few weeks with the absence of Singulair.

could anyone tell me if claritin is the same as singulair or what i could give my child that would help with the allergies/stuffy nose she was on singulair and was taken off

So happy to find this site. I never noticed My son never had an eye tick until last month, ironically we started giving him Singular on a daily basis about the same time. My son just turned two and is has also been waking up screaming 3 times every night. Have others reported this same problem...also he is on Pulmicort too, have you read that it is linked to Glaucoma and Cataracts? Do you think that this could be causing the tick? Please HELP! I want a parent's opinion before bringing this up to the doctor...they are so quick to jump to more drugs it makes me sick! Thank you! Any other children with eye "ticks" like really quick consecutive blinks?

I have been making inquires as to how and if the fda will conduct investigations in to permanent damage left from this drug.Although on taking my son off this drug i saw a 90% improvement,i am still missing the final piece,is it that he lost 3 years to this drug or did it do damage that cannot be fixed,we as parents need to know.The FDA responded to my letter,they said if they see a trend in reports from medwatch,it may prompt an investigation .I am asking all who still have missing pieces to file a report.What has happened is a tragedy,we need to explore ever option for continued success for our childrens future.Good Luck to all,Keep Fighting

My 11 year old daughter had been seen by a doctor to control coughing and wheezing brought on, I believe, by allergies. When she was 5 or 6 years old, she had an asthma attack and it happened again this year when we could not control the coughing and she was short of breath. That is when Singulair was introduced to her. about 4 weeks after taking medication, her heart started beating irregularly (called heart palpitations), and she was experiencing chest pains. (very frightening for mother and daughter). The Coughing subsided, and she was feeling good prior to the last week, when this started happening. After all the researching, the minor side effect is palpitations, however, how healthy is this and what else is going to pop up unexpectedly?

I am a mom of twin boys who are 3 1/2. They were 9 weeks premature so we battled RSV for the first two years of their life. Allergies are also an issue therefore, they were put on Singulair at 10 months old. It really seemed to work for them and things seemed to be going okay but once they turned 1 1/2, their behavior started to change. They were constantly throwing toys at each other, sippy cups at people across the room, screaming for no reason, etc. Some may say it was normal behavior for little toddlers. Then the "terrible two's" set in. They started biting, pushing, screaming over anyone who talks to get attention, not listening and for two kids that slept through the night....all of a sudden that stopped too! My husband and I mentioned it to the pediatrician and also tried to going through the state (developmental clinic because of being premature) thinking that we would get some answers and everyone seemed to think it is a combination of their age and the fact there are two of them....sibling rivalry. We now deal with two kids that use to sleep through the night, now end up in our bed every night to fall asleep because they don't like their room and their erratic behavior is stressing my husband and myself out. When they are good, they are great but when it gets bad....it is a nightmare! I even find it hard to get people to watch the kids because they are too much to handle! After reading these postings I realize I am not the only one with kids going through this and that the common link is SINGULAIR! I am not giving this to my boys ever again and I already put a call into the pediatrician to discuss my findings. I have a sense of relief to know that it is not only my children who's behavior is like this but I am scared because I pray that there is not any long term effects that can not be corrected once this drug is out of their system. I just want my boys to be healthy and okay!

My son is now 31/2 years old and has been on Singulair since he was about 1 Yr. old. His pediatrician recommended this due to his allergies and runny nose. He has had fluid on his ears since age 1, at least that we had confirmed, and she thought that the Singulair combined with another type of antihistamine could dry up the dripping nose and clear up the ears. It did not clear up the ears, but it does stop the drip. He had tubes placed in his ears a year ago in May of 2007 and is looking now at his second set coming up in Mid-October of 2008. He has been taking this medication all but one summer of his short life. My husband and I have both had children, he a boy and I a girl, both 14 years old now. In comparison to the other two, our little one has been so completely different to raise. I've always seen children of "other parents" that have discipline problems with their children and wondered what might cause that type of action in such a small child. Now we have this beautiful little boy, but all we've ever known is how difficult he is to handle and how is anger, temper tantrums and stubborness have always put a damper on outings and even casual days at home. Due to the fluid on his ears, his speach was delayed and he has now really began to speak like a normal 3 year old. I have noticed within the last 2 weeks how he has really started saying things that I have not approved of, but have fluffed it off thinking that he has heard other children in his pre-school say these things, or heard it on a superhero show. Something happened today that really made me stop and think. I picked him up at pre-school like normal after work and he would not come to me. He looked slightly glazed in the eyes, totally not like himself at all. He talked very little on our 30 minute commute home, which was not like him. He said, "I hate you and you don't like me". I told him I do love him and he said, "NO". He said, "I'm bad for you and I have a dangerous heart". He then told me, "I kill you". This was so disturbing that I told my mother what he had said. She told me that it sounds so much like what she had heard on the news that I should check it out. This is how I've come to find this site. We have stopped giving this medication to our son and I am curious to see if there will be any change in his personality. Tubes will probably be placed in his ears again despite whether his nose drips again, so that is a mute issue at this point. When we voiced our concerns to his pediatrician when the information first surfaced several months ago regarding adult behavior and side effects of Singulair, she fluffed it off and told us she has many young patients on this medication with no adverse side effects. He is taking Pediox every 12 hours. I am worried that we may need a substitute med, but we have tried so many that haven't worked. He has Albuterol Inhaler and Xopenex Inhaler when his Asthma symptoms kick in, when his allergies are at his worst. He has had pnumonia 2 times, or one like run of it I should say. It's important to keep his allergies under control so he doesn't get something like this again, but his overall mental health and stability cannot be jeopardized. Since his brain has been developing on this medication for 2 and a half years, does anyone know if this has lasting effects? He is very active and has a very short attention span. He can however sit through an entire movie if it is something that he likes and he has nothing better he wants to do at home. I do not believe he is hyperactive or ADHD in the sense that he needs medication for that symptom. He can be a very loving child and he is very polite and knows his manners. He comes from a very loving home with loving siblings. We have wondered for so long how he could possibly have turned out this way, and I am truly scared to think that this medication could be the cause of so much turmoil in our lives. I will be monitoring his results.

I have a 4yr old boy who has been on singulair for 5 months. Before he began singulair he was the most happy, kind, gentle, loving boy. We had an awesome close relationship. I enjoyed just sitting there watching him play. I could not wait for him to learn something new, but EVERYTHING has changed now. I took him off of singulair on Sept 19, 2008 after accidentally running into this site while looking up children and OCD. Thank God I did. It has been 12 days since I found this and took him off. I couldn't type then because I was to upset. My son who never had ANY mental problems or anxiety is now completely riddled with it. Instead of playing all day care free like 4yr old are supposed to do, my son spends his days now clinging to me in fear that I may leave or go into a room without him and he will not be there to open the door. He obsessively has to open every door now. He spends his days getting upset at the smallest things. He now gets mad at everything I say, or I don't say it right. Our relationship is not the same now, and I am devastated. Before Singulair he slept through the night every night. Now he wakes up every couple of hours to go to the bathroom and say "are you still there mom?" ok "I love you" "Don't let the bed bugs bite" I have to answer "I love you to" and "you either" If anything different is said he will go nuts, and he will obsessively say this over and over and over again. This is not my son. He is a totally different person. I am so very scared that this poison has permanently ruined him. I mean he is so young and his brain is developing. It has been developing with this poison in it, that has ruined him. It has been 12 days and he is still doing the same ocd stuff. He still seems really agitated. His muscles hurt, his tummy hurts, his eyes hurt, his ankles hurt, and he has diarrhea. My beautiful boy is now mentally and physically SICK because of singulair. I feel really bad to, because I did not know at first that the singulair was causing this and I was always getting on to him for his behavior and putting him in his room. At pre-school a couple of days after first giving singulair to him he started crying ALL DAY at school, and I made him stay there because I thought it was just because he had gotten a new teacher and he needed to get used to her. I feel terrible!! Does anyone know if the ocd will go away or has he now learned the behavior?

My daughter had been on singulair from the time she was 8 yrs old until she was 14. This will sound as if I am a horrible mother but I just thought that she was a raging bitch. Without my knowledge, she stopped taking her Singulair for a few months and she became a different person. She was so sweet and loving. One night she came in my room having an asthma attack and I asked her if she was taking her meds, she admitted that she had stopped taking her singulair and I got on to her and immediately got her prescription refilled. Within a few days of taking the singulair she turned into a raging, screaming emotional wreck, a TOTALLY different person. I feel so bad that for 6 years of her life I put her on medicine that caused her to have screaming, uncontrollable tantrums, and severe mood swings that caused her to be miserable. It does seem to be the only thing that effectively controls her asthma symptoms but the emotional havoc that is causes her and the people around her is not worth the benefits. We have an appt. with her doctor to see what other options we have.

My daughter began taking Singulair in 2003 for asthma and allergies. I slowly watched her deteriorate from a lively, intelligent, and outgoing young woman to a depressed, withdrawn and self-mutilating person who said that she hated herself and everybody else in the world. She was an athlete, a straight A student who had received an academic scholarship to college, she was fluent in German and had been teaching herself Japanese, and she was a staunch supporter for equal rights for children with disabilities and gay and Lesbian teens. On February 3rd, 2007 my daughter hung herself after working at the local community center. I no longer recognized who she had become. I have a degree in psychology, my father is a retired police officer, and my mother is a retired R.N. We were all trained to recognize the symptoms of depression and suicidal thinking, but we were never able to connect it to the medication that she was taking.We must all ban together to prevent other people from suffering the way that our loved ones have! Educate everyone that you know about what Singulair can do to you. They are still prescribing this drug to people without any notification of what the side effects are.

I am 16 and have been on Singular since July 9th of this year and the only side effects that has been affecting me that I really notice is the ear infections and headaches. my mom and I think that I might have one right now but have not gotten the chance to make a doctors appointment. The other side effects that I read about while googling it were a sore throat and upper respiratory infections which are both things that I have been fighting since March, which is what lead to me being diagnosed with asthma. In response to the person that was talking about asthmex, I also got put on that the same day and the only side effect that I had from that is a higher blood pressure that usual but it was still in the normal range, caused by the steroid in it.

I have been reading all of these posts and have another question. I hope that someone can help. My daughter, 8 years old, has been on Singulair since she was 4. She is normally a very happy girl with a wonderful disposition. For the last year or so, she has been having trouble getting herself to sleep at night. She says that she hears things in her head such as ringing or "noises". A few hours before she knows it's bedtime, she cries and when we ask her why she's crying, she can't give us a reason. We initially thought that she was crying for no reason because she didn't want to go to sleep. I remember reading about the side effects of Singulair causing mood swings, etc., but her's are not violent mood swings. Just very emotional and has a hard time coming down from the "episode". I'm at a loss...I have not talked to her doctor yet about it, but have told her that we will make an appointment this week to discuss it with him. My husband suggested that maybe it sounded like she was having a panic attack or anxiety attack. I hate to label her as that at such a young age. My mind now goes back to the side effects of Singulair and maybe this is to blame. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you! Concerned Mom

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.

I have asthma that was not controlled. I coughed and wheezed constantly. I had trouble eating, because even the food passing through the esophagus was enough to cause an attack. I was in and out of the emergency room for years, and the Ambulance folks knew to arrive with epinephrine when I'd call.

I started taking Singulair sometime around 1998. I haven't had any serious problems since then with asthma, and have had ZERO side effects.

Every drug has side effects for some people. For me, Claritin causes my heart to race. I can take that or that purple circurlar inhaler thing. I had a terrible reaction to that.

For ME, Singulair works. I am not sure it should be given to children if they are having severe problems. But it certainly should NOT be removed from the market...because people like me needed it to control their asthma.

I just wanted everyone to know that I am still here and concerned about everyone who is having side effects from Singulair. Sometime within the next few weeks I am going to post a summary and conclusion about all of the research that I have posted. I hope to come up with a well organized concise statement about why everyone who experiences side effects from Singulair should stop using the drug immediately. Not everyone has an adverse reaction to this drug. For those who do, it is very dangerous to continue this medication even for one more day.

STOP IMMEDIATELY IF YOU SUFFER SIDE EFFECTS FROM SINGULAR. WHEN YOU SUFFER SIDE EFFECTS FROM SINGULAIR, THE REASON IS THAT YOU ARE NOT COMPATIBLE WITH THE DRUG'S GENETIC BASED MODEL.

Singulair targets the CysLT1 receptor, which is a gene. This gene is not the same for everyone. If your doctor does not understand that the mode of action of Singulair has a genetic component, then tell him/her.

I have 2 sons with asthma that have both been taken singulair (the oldest for 3 years & his brother for 2). My younger son's asthma got alot better since he was diagnosed & he was recently taken off Singulair thanks also to my husband hearing a report about the moodiness caused. When he was on it he would cry for no reason, get very irrational & seemed to think the world was against him. In just 2 weeks he is happy & cheerful and has told me he thinks it is due to being off singulair. His older brother's asthma has gotten worse over the years & I'm concerned about taking him off but he too has crazy moods. Just tonight he started a new soccer team & got crazy & suddenly didn't even want to participate in something he loves (wanted me to let him quit right then) until we argued enough he reluctantly participated. He then came home complained of a headache (which is also way too frequent) and now has been asleep for hours. Are there any alternatives to this drug? I'm a stressed out mom that doesn't deal well with these mood swings. He is normally a social butterfly & a sweet kid but lately seems more withdrawn, more irritable (especially tonight) & complaining about leg cramps in addition to these frequent headaches. I can't deal with too many more of these evenings & wonder if all these things are possible side effects. I'm glad to see my other son doing well but miss his normally sweet brother! Even his siblings think he is acting crazy :(

hi everyone my name is Katie, and my son has been on Sindulair for over 6 months now. I took him off 2 nights ago, the day I found this sight. I just cant believe how many families this medication has hurt. When my son was put on, I was never told anything about anything like this happening. I thought his behavior was due to the divorce and child custody things in his life that were going on. It did not cross my mind that it could ever be this medication. He does not take anything else at all.
Some of the things we have been dealing with are, panic attacks at night, bad dreams, aggressiveness, depression, anxiety! Fits that you would not believe. Crying all the time, very emotional. And the newest one, thinking everyone he loves is going to get killed. These are not things a 6 just turned 7 year old should be going through.
I got to thinking that I needed to get him some professional help, this is not normal! I decided to look up Singulair on the net, I did not find anything. I looked up Childrens depression, and angziat, still nothing fit. Then I found this site. Wow did it blow my mind. It fit and it felt right, if you are a mom, I think you know where I am coming from. When you know you just know! So I got him off the medication, and already I am seeing changes. The first night was not grate but better than it has been in a long time, the next day though, he woke up and smiled at me for the first time in way to long, he only had 2 meltdowns that day, when he was having at lest 2 in an hr before. So far so good, I just hope that It keeps going well for him.
Thank you for letting me tell my story!

Dear Friends,

Just want to reconfirm that this drug, that according to the Lab, present this side effects as "rarely" now we can see that it is not, I have a 2.5 year old boy, that is presenting these same side effects that you are mentioning. In a sudden he starts to act really nervous, his eyes turn red and cries while he tries to express something, but he does not know what is going on, in the meantime he has this truly visible crisis, his heartbeat goes up like hell, and his hands shakes. My wife and I got really scared the first time we experienced this with him, and we did not know what to think, we asked the Doctor and the stupid guy told us that he needed a shrink, but we did not believed it. Today he had the second same crisis, not as hard as the last one, and we discussed and came up with the idea to find out what were the side effects of this drug, and voila, is the gdm Singulair. I just can't believe that the Doctors that are prescribing these drugs do not warn the people that this may happen. The only thing that I can do is write my experience to you, thanking you for your attention, and spread the voice to the other parents that are around me that they take care of this and prevent their children to go through this process. I really feel like trash, because I did not do this before starting giving him this drug. Thanks for listening.
By the way this is an international problem, I am writing you from Mexico City.

Added to my previous comment about seizures which my son developed, I have been worried about his growth as well. I realize that kids grow at different rates but my son's growth pattern is so different from my other children!! I have asked the Pediatrician about this several times but he always says that no studies have shown a link between Singulair and growth.Has anyone else wondered about this?

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...

I am an individual that started taking Singulair about a year ago. I've had allergies to weeds, grasses, and pollens since I was a little girl and have taken a variety of meds including Claritin, Zyrtec, Allegra, Flonase, and allergy shots. Last summer, my usual Claritin just wasn't enough so my doc prescribed Singulair. It worked wonders for my allergies. Soon after, I began to feel "numb" -- that's the best word to describe what I felt. I was depressed. It just so happened that my mother had had surgery and I had moved to a different city about the same time as beginning the Singulair. When I began feeling depressed and disconnected from the world, my doc and I contributed it to depression from life transitions. It didn't go away though. For a year, I isolated myself. I didn't talk to friends and family. I missed over 10 days of work just because I didn't want to get out of bed. I slept almost 15 hours a day, gained 60 lbs, didn't clean my house. I didn't really do anything and I didn't care. I felt so disconnected from the world. I didn't cry. I didn't feel suicidal, but I knew that something was wrong with me. I thought I was having a breakdown or something. My doc checked several things but all test results were normal. It wasn't until my mother seen a CNN report on Singulair that I began to link my depression to when I started the drug. I immediately quit taking Singulair and felt better within 4-5 days. After 2 1/2 weeks, I was back to being my old self. It was so scary feeling so isolated, numb, and disconnected from the world. I never would've thought about it being a side effect from an allergy medicine.

I took my 16 year old child off of singulair 6 weeks ago (3-28-2008). She started taking it 11-17-2003. She became dark, depressed, grades dropped, dropped out of dance and cheerleading, started cutting her legs with razors, stomachaches, headaches, anxiety attacks, trips to the emergency room. 6 months of fluoxetine given by her psychiatrist. Nothing helped her be happy again. Sad and Dark young woman. NOW: She smiles a lot, and is eating diner with the family. No headache or stomachache for a month now. She is sleeping better. Before she said that her mind would not stop thinking. She is taking pictures again and even asked me to order her book called "Understanding Exposure" and is talking about taking a class on digital photography at NMSU branch university to start on her college electives now. She is out more and even has a part time job at an ice cream parlor. Just lately I have stopped checking the trash for waded up tissues with blood (from cutting). Chris, I have had all her medical records sent to her primary Doctor and we are very willing to open them up. You have to have a child suffering to understand where we are coming from. The most dangerous place on earth is standing between a mother and her child. Singulair took our children from us and maybe changed them in some way forever.

After visiting this web site everyday for the past four weeks, I feel the need to share my daughter's (and my families') experience with singulair. My 8 year old daughter was put on singulair aprx. 2 years ago in addition to zyrtec to treat her allergies. Shortly after starting the drug, she developed stomach pain. After a few weeks of chronic pain, I pursued help from our pediatrician. After visits to two different pediatric GI doctors, an allergist (to test for food allergies), and an orthopedic surgeon ( because of sudden leg pain), the results were inconclusive. During this time my daughter also became very sad, angry and fatigued. She also completely lost her appetite and refused to eat much of the time. I attributed all of these symptoms to her stomach pain . In addition, she developed difficult sleep patterns and would often wake-up exhausted in the morning. Over time she also began to have more and more "melt-downs", breaking into crying spells over the smallest provocation or challenge. I recently contacted my daughters pediatrician to discuss what other testing or direction we could take to help my daughter. In the interim of making that contact, a friend told me about this web site. As I read page after page of other parent's experiences, I was in tears. I felt as if I was reading about my own family for the past two years. I say "family" because when one child is living through this kind trauma, everyone in the family is negatively affected in some way. My husband and I felt completely frustrated and unable to help our daughter. Our older children began to resent the great amount of time and energy I spent on behalf of our daughter. My younger daughter who had always looked up to and loved her older sister was sad and confused by her sister's anger and impatience.On March 29th I took my daughter off singulair. Unbelievable. Within 2 days, my daughter's appetite returned. On the second day, she came home from school and requested a corn dog and then some ice cream. She suddenly wanted to eat breakfast again. She started smiling and laughing again. She has suddenly become capable and responsible for doing her homework and chores. She is going to sleep more quickly and waking up happy. The best part is having our daughter back...the sweet, wonderful, happy six year old who I feel like I lost for two years of her life! As a side note-the return call I got from my pediatrician was that he wanted my daughter to see a psychiatrist. That's how close we were to taking another (completely unnecessary) path to helping my daughter. I also recently spoke with my daughter's allergist about our experience. At first he was somewhat dismissive. I asked him to listen to me parent, to parent for just a moment. He seemed to soften and said he would take a second look at singulair and its side effects. I encourage every parent who's child has been so adversely affected by this drug to be proactive. First, please contact the FDA to report your experience. Second, talk to your children's physicians and share, with confidence your experience. Third, share this web site or a similar one with everyone you know. I have been astounded how many children are on singulair just within my own small circle (school, church and play group). I really believe one voice can make a difference. I have to believe that for the sake of all the children still suffering.

Up until today I was unaware of any side effects. I have been taking singulair for about a week and I felt fine, until yesterday. Yesterday, I felt anxious and on the edge. I felt as if I was going to blow up if anyone said anything that I did not like. I was feeling as if my heart was going to beat right through my chest. Then when it was time for me to go to bed, I had trouble falling asleep. I awoke the next morning with vivid memories of nightmares that I had throughout the night. Even after I awoke I felt in intense rage. I called my mom later on in the day and I mentioned to her that I was taking Singulair for my allergies. She told me to stop taking that drug immediately. She told me that she just heard last week that it may cause some people to commit suicide. I'm glad I mentioned that to my mom, if I hadn't I may be worse off. Unfortunately I did feel as if the pills helped my allergies, however at what cost? Possibly my life...

I just read a few days ago that Merck is trying to get approval for a new drug. It is a combo of Singulair and the Shering pharm. co. drug Claritin. Isn't it nice to know that while we are suffering from this drug, Merck and another pharmaceutical company are trying to make more money on a drug that is supposed to be under investigation. Fortunately, the FDA is not approving it along with a few other drugs Merck is trying to push. This shows us how concerned they are with public health. They would sell us arsenic if they could get approval for it.

As an adult, I have had no problems with the drug. That being said, I wanted to remind readers that very few drugs, if any, are tested on children. As any good pediatrician will tell you, children are not just little adults. Drugs companies and doctors should not just adjust dosages and say that a drug is OK for kids. As a mom, I'm cautious to give my kids any medication that is new, including vaccines that are new, because I know testing has been limited with respect to children.

I wrote an earlier post but I am now reading alot of your posts where you say your child experienced FEAR on Singulair. That is so interesting. When my son was on it for around 3 years he would never sleep alone in his own bed and he would have episodes every night that would last up to 3 hours at bed time because I would try to get him to sleep in his own bed, even at 8 years old. I thought he was possessed!!!! He would scream and fight me and I would literally have to hold him down to get him to stay in bed. It was horrible. I'm not sure how a hullicination would be described but maybe that was part of it. All I know is that he turned into a totally different child. It was something out of a horror movie. I eventually gave up and let him sleep in our bed cause it was exhausting. He would just make blood curdling screams and the terror in his eyes was horrific. Then the next morning he would be fine like nothing had ever happened.
Now that he is off of Singulair he will sleep in his own bed with the light off all night. It was an amazing turn around. He also told me he's not scarred anymore.. Who knew????? Has anyone else experienced anything like that with their child????

I could not find the post from the mom of two who is a pharmacy student to reply to her.

My husband is a pharmacist with over 25 years hospital experience. he never questioned the doctors assumption that it would take 6 weeks to totally be out of his system. all drugs have some residual and cumulative or residual effects. it really isn't magically gone from your system in a set number of hours. especially a daily dose and more so in the elderly, and I have seen this first hand , when they are dehydrated or other wise compromised the drugs can stay in their system for a time and accumulate.

i will update on our son later today, he is doing much better two weeks off

Kate Kendle Here. I'm looking for Corey Miller's Mom. You had e-mailed me before. My son also committed suicide and you said that it was on your son's birth date. Please e-mail me at my personal e-mail address as I'd like to hear all about Corey and tell you all about my A.J. I'm sorry that we have to share this as a commonality but I'd really like to stay in touch with you.
If I remember correctly, your name is also Kate.
Hoping to hear from you. Kate Kendle

I am posting an update on my granddaughterwho has been off for 2 weeks since the story broke in the news. There certainly has been a difference, she's more 'present' when I'm speaking with her, not angry, calmer and she slept through the night the other day when she came over to visit. There were actually no 'scenes' or carrying on. However, in light of the last posting I do not know how she will be affected in the long term, None of us can know that, none of us know how this drug actually works on the brain to create such side effects. I just saw a Singulair commercial on TV and almost got sick. Cody Miller's mom in her post stated that he had no behavioral problems before his death. I imagine that is true for the majority of us. My granddaughter never had the need to go see a counselor before this drug. She was a happy, normal 9-year old. That all changed in only 2 months as her mother took her to a psychologist to find out why she was acting so bizarrely. I am convinced this drug has caused untold misery and should be at least restricted to adults or at most taken off the market. This website is only the beginning at some point those who feel strongly will have to come together and organize against this giant company Merck.

I just came back home from the dr. We made some tests and my 5 years old daughter is allergic to house dust mites and has beeing diagnosticated with athopic asthma. The dr. prescribed Singulair. Now, after reading all the posts, I freaked out and I have not idea what to do. I am really sorry I did't ask about side effect, but I considered, her beeing a dr, knows better than me. My thought now is: I'm not going to give my daughter Singulair.

Follow up to my post earlier today...

I took the my son to the doctor this morning and he was somewhat dismissive of the recent reports on Singulair...says he's had a lot of kids on the drug and never heard a peep about side effects until last week when the report on suicidal tendencies showed up. He did advise that when these kinds of behavior changes happen after a new drug is started he would recommend that we stop taking the drug no matter what it was, but I still felt uncomfortable with his response to us.

I felt like he was accusing me of making it up or only coming up with it because of recent news and message board posts. In fact, I made the appointment BEFORE I saw the posts. I was worried about his behavior BEFORE I saw the posts. It's just that seeing the stories from everyone else basically confirmed my suspicions that it might be the drug causing the problems.

I feel like I definitely wasted OVER AN HOUR waiting for a doctor to spend five minutes making me feel small.

Last night was the last time my son will take the drug, and I don't care what the doctors think of me.