Zyrtec and claritin

Wow! My husband and I have thought recently maybe I should stop using Zyrtec. Maybe it is causing my lethargy, weight gain, difficulty sleeping, inability to work for more than an hour doing anything, intense hunger. I have taken Zyrtec year round for several years since living in Santa Fe where I developed bad allergies. There I took it in conjunction with Nasonex. After leaving there I couldn't afford it so I switched to day hist but I started sneezing and had an itchy nose constantly. Sinus infections also. So I started Zyrtec full time a few years ago. I can't lose weight to save my life and have no energy. Depression-yes. I would never have thought I would experience that. My journals are full of it. But I thought it all was because of "the change" because I was under the impression there weren't any side effects. But I am all organic and still struggling with trying not to gain anymore weight. I have a terrible time just trying to clean one room without feeling wasted! I don't look forward to stopping but I have got to see if this is affecting me this way, Thanks to all. I want me back!

I started taking zyrtec a few days ago for seasonal allergies. I had tried the claritin (loratidine) before and it didn't seem to really help me much. I was avoiding the zyrtec because I knew it could potentially make me drowsy and I didn't want to be tired if I was working. I'm a pharmacist so I decicded to try it knowing the potential side effects. It works really well for me - but I started having really vivid strange - and disturbing - dreams. It has only been a week and they havent been too bad so far - but I am going to monitor it and if they get worse I will stop and try something else. The reason this is so strange is I don't normally dream much at all. I maybe remember bits and pieces of a dream - these are wierd and strange and make absolutely no sense. These dreams seem so real and are so clear - I can remember every detail of what was done and said.

I have allergies to dust mites, and started taking Zyrtec to help get over a sinus infection. It worked great at first. Then I started to feel not myself, and my thoughts were out of control. I have depression, and it magnified it. I stopped taking it, and started taking Claritin, which made me feel speedy and gave me heart palpitations.

My son was on a cocktail of Singulair, Zyrtec, Astellin and Nasonex. Like a miracle, his severe allergies cleared up almost immediately. Months later, behavioral changes started to surface. Extreme irritability, major meltdowns over nothing, problems in school and pulling out his facial hair including eyelashes and eyebrows. We stopped the medication in April and he improved. By mid summer, the hair pulling stopped. When his allergies started up again about 10 days ago, I put him back on the Zyrtec, because I was certain the Singulair was causing most of the problems. Within 3-4 days, the emotional outbursts started, panic attacks that never happened before - he said he couldn't breathe. Now the hair pulling is back. Everyone thinks I want to blame medication for his problems, but I am certain that Zyrtec has something to do with these problems in addition to Singulair. We have taken him off Zyrtec 2 days ago. We have a dr. appointment in 2 days and we will discuss all of this with him. In the meantime, his allergies are back and he is miserable. I would rather him be physically sick than mentally at this point.

I never thought an allergy med would have a reaction with my esophagus, but I guess everyone can discover something new! I used to be on RX Zyrtec many years ago and never really noticed any issues with it...I have taken Claritin OTC for some time now, but it doesn't seem to last long enough to cover the 24 hour day as it says, so I decided to try the Zyrtec OTC...by the third day I seemed to be having very tight and sharp esophageal pains in the middle of my chest and for the whole week I was on Zyrtec, the symptoms continued and became very intense...I stopped Zyrtec 3 days ago and have noticed a VAST improvement in the pain diminishing and I wondered if anyone else has had any of the same issues as I faced with this!

I have been taking Zyrtec for about 2 weeks now to help with an inner ear problem that I just recently realized was due to allergies. I ran out of Zyrtec yesterday and I think I am going to try Claritin for a day or two now. Zyrtec was giving me random shortness of breath spells (only about once a day and my asthma inhaler would usually help the shortness of breath). I also have been having nightmares and my attitude has been very apathetic. I don't feel like my happy self when I'm on Zyrtec. It's better than being dizzy yes, but I am in a relationship and I don't want to feel like I am wasting happy time with my significant other.

I only started taking Zyrtec regularly about 3 weeks ago because Claritin was not working for me. Zyrtec has worked but I am noticing that now, when I don't take it...I feel weird. Similar to how I did when I stopped my Zoloft. A little dizzy, nauseous, headache and now the itching makes sense. I take a pill and am better within 20 minutes. I was AMAZED to see how many people seem to withdrawal from Zyrtec- yet it isn't noted on the package that it's possible to withdrawal!!! Does ANYONE know how long the withdrawal symptoms last if I just stop taking it???

I can't believe what I am reading. My son, who is 10 now has been on this med for 5 years now. The same amount of time that he has been dx with ad/hd. He started a new med for adhd this past summer and was doing wonderful, at the same time I had run out of Zyrtec for a couple of months and was giving him Claritin instead. Well we got a Zyrtec prescription on Oct. 1 and since then his behavior has went down hill. I thought that the adhd med had just stopped working, now I am wondering if it is the Zyrtec. The time the med seemed to stop being effective is the same time we had the Zyrtec filled. I am taking him off of it immediately. He has been angry, smart mouthed, disrespectful. Doesn't listen to anything I say. This summer and even until last month was wonderful. He did what I asked the first time, I didn't have to repeat myself, and he was calmer and nicer. I can't wait to see if this is the cause of a lot of his problems.

I have wondered about the side effects of zyrtec - our daughter has been taking it for 5 year - the same amount of time she has been depressed, negative, etc and these symptoms just get worse as she grows older! I wish she wasn't taking zyrtec. I don't think it's just a coinincidence that her sadness, gloom, and depression began the same she started the zyrtec. She's only 50 lbs and the Dr has her on an adult dose (but she does have severe, severe allergies).