Zyrtec and zyrtec

Just started my six year old son on Zyrtec again. The dr. said he could take the adult pill now 10mg. The last few nights he has wakened with terrible nightmares/night terrors. And after reading these posts i remember taking him off for the winter (he was on the liquid 5mg) and i remember him always itching his arms and legs. i remember giving him oatmeal baths. Now i know it is from stopping the Zyrtec. I am calling the doc tomorrow about these nightmares. He was also on Singulair 4mg for 1 1/2 years then one year ago was upped to 5mg. Within one dose we noticed he was very depressed and cried easily. After a week called the doc about it, stopped it then had our son back in a few days. Will Never give Singulair again and now stopping Zyrtec. All these meds are so scary. A part of me feels these meds are created because it is a HUGE business. They have side effects then you have to take other meds for those side effects and it is a never ending circle i feel purposely created by pharmaceutical companys to make money. And we are all suffering because of their greed. Shame on them

I just took it today for the first time. I am taking it to stop my hives and it is working very well. I have had hives everyday for 1.5 months. Benadryl was working only so-so.

The Zyrtec makes me feel very calm and a little drowsy, but also very mellow and relaxed.

I am concerned about the poor reactions posted here. On the other hand, at this moment I have no hives, no angioedema and that makes me very happy.

Does anyone else find the Zyrtec to make them feel relaxed and happy?

I hope someone feels ok about this drug, or I maight have to stop it. Thanks for any comments.

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 just found out about the hives issue when going off Zyrtec. The incredibly annoying thing about this is that the reason I went on the Zyrtec is because of hives so now that I'm trying to see if my hives are gone by going off the drug I can't tell because that's the withdrawal symptom! I used to have to take up to TWO pills a day to deal with my hives and now I can go about three days since I started using traditional Chinese herbs (through a practitioner) to work on my hive issues. Part of me thinks that the herbs are working but it's impossible to know because of the withdrawal issues. I would not have taken this drug for hives if I had known that was what would keep me from being able to stop taking it. I'm really aggravated!

I have been taking Zyrtec for about a month to treat my seasonal allergies. I have noticed about once a day a shortness of breathe and my heart is beating very weird. I thought this was all in my head but now I am not so sure. Has anyone else experienced this? If so did it stop after stopping the medicine?

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.

Has anyone experienced Zyrtec withdrawal? I've been taking Zyrtec for at least 4 years and whenever I try to quit I develop hives, stomach pains, and it becomes difficult to breathe. I want to try and quit for good, but it will be difficult.

I wish I had found this site a year ago. My 9 year old son was prescribed Zyrtec for his nasal allergies. He took it each day for over 6 months. He began to have problems in school - withdrawing from class participation, moody behavior at home, depression, lethargy, anxiety, worry, feelings of despair, told me that he would be better off dead! I started to panic but never associated the Zyrtec with his mental state. Took him to a counselor who said that he seemed like a normal, well-adjusted little boy who was sensitive. Realized that the Zyrtec was not really fully controlling his nasal allergies so decided to stop taking it for a while. Not much change in the allergies but the emotional change was amazing! I had my little boy back in only a few days after stopping the Zyrtec. First thing I noticed was that he was no longer mopey and lethargic and wondered if the Zyrtec had been making him tired. Then when the rest of his emotional issues disappeared magically I began to suspect the Zyrtec but the ped. dismissed my fears. A few months later he began to have bad allergies again so again tried an anithistimine for him. Zombie-like state returned right away. For some reason he is hyper-sensitive to all anithistimines and we avoid them all with him. What I learned from this is that doctors are not open to admitting that these drugs they so casually prescribe have serious side-effects.

My son is in second grade and has been on Zyrtec and singular since he was four years old. He was diagnosed with asthma and peanut and tree nut allergies. He has always been the sweetest kid. However, we noticed in first grade that he was spacing out and not always focused. he became easily frustrated, did not want to do his homework, cried for everything and gave up easily. This year in second grade we are noticing the same thing in addition to talking back, being aggressive with his brother, rolling his eyes and having a nasty disposition. He is negative and complains a lot. His grades have been suffering greatly. He rushes through his school work and does not pay attention or try.
I am so happy for the reading that I am seeing on this site. My son is coming off the singulair and the Zyrtec first thing in the morning.

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 on Zyrtec for three years (Every day) haven't noticed mood swings in myself? My mother also takes them every other day and is not particularly moody. Although she has trouble sleeping which she attributes to the menopause But if i don't take one within 24hrs I get very itchy and hive up..now that I'm breastfeeding I've just noticed my daughter is very irritable..and am beginning to think it's related to the zyrtec. I'm changing to claratyne in the morning to see if there's a change..very,very interesting and scary reading all the side-effects!!

My personal experience with Zyrtec was so awful that I decided to document it in a blog in great detail to try and help other people: http://zyrtecsideeffects.blogspot.com/

I suffered severe depression, menstrual problems and other health issues whilst on Zyrtec. The depression literally disappeared overnight when I stopped taking Zyrtec. I suffered horrific withdrawal symptoms for 6-7 weeks after stopping Zyrtec which I have documented in my blog.

My 5 year old daughter was started on Zyrtec about 10 days ago (Dr.s orders) and WOW... not good. We can not see any changes in her allergies but her moodswings are way off. Last nite she told me "daddy that clear medicine I take now, makes me feel busy and funny". When we ask her why she is acting rude and being ugly, she says she doesn't know. She has been taking Singlar for about 2 months and Nasonex for about 1-2 years. HELP!!!!!

My daughter was taking a deadly cocktail of Zyrtec, Advair, and Singulair. She was on these medications for three years. At the time we thought that it was fantastic that her severe asthma and allergies were finally under control. After about six months of being on the medications we saw her slowly decline into a state of depression and withdrawal, she had constant headaches, she couldn't sleep, she was no longer interested in any of her friends or activities. She went from a loving and sweet girl to an angry and bitter person. In 2003 she committed suicide. Six months after her death reports started to come out about the links to Singulair and depression and suicide. Perhaps it was the combination of the three drugs in her case. If we would have had any idea what the effects of these drugs were we would have taken her off of them immediately! Please spread the word about the dangers of Singulair, Zyrtec, and Advair. Go on to the other sites and read what people have been posting and you will be shocked. The Singulair survivors are banning together to try and get this medication pulled. Do what you can to spread the word!

My daughter who just turn 7 has been on and off Zyrtec for the past 6 months. This last time it finally clicked... She was on it for about 3-4 weeks and I notice her mood changed and she was now very angry at anything and started hitting her sibblings and throwing things at me out of anger. She also was waking up at night either with bad dreams, or couldn't sleep. My husband and I realized that this all started about the time we put her back on Zyrtec. Two days ago, I took her off it and the next day she was an "Angel" compared to before. WOW what a difference. I did notice today (day two) she was sneezing more and didn't feel as well physically. So we are not out woods yet.

She also has been taking Singular for several years and I have been reading more about that medicine as well. I am not sure if needs to be taken off that yet, and will do an experiment. The timing isn't the best since school starts in just two weeks, but it might be worth it to have a happy child again.

On a side note, last year in school, they diagnosed her as having social anxiety. She is "extremely" shy and closed off in school. It would take her hours to do her homework which should have taken about 30 min. I am curious if stopping singular would help clear her head and make her less anxious. (She was on Zyrtec as well during that time).

This would be such an answer to prayer if it works. My two sons are so much happier than my daughter and I always wondered why. This may be the answer!

I'm glad my friend sent this link to me. My son was diagnosed with asthma almost two years ago. He was put on Singular and albuterol inhalers. He stayed with that for about a year. We didn't at the time have any health coverage and could no longer afford the Singular. We started giving him Zyrtec about three months ago. My son, he's 7, started going into these rages about this time last year and we had no clue as to why. We chalked it up to his age and being a boy. The raging has now stopped but he's still combative and lashes out easily physically. He's never been one to act violently before he was diagnosed with asthma. I'm now wondering if this is due to the medicine. After reading these posts we'll be taking him off the Zyrtec and trying something new.

My husband suffered for a full year with constant burping--not reflux, not heartburn, just air, like colic. He was so bloated that it was painful for him to sit. He went from doctor to doctor, and even to a GI who suspected Celiac's. He also had a feeling that his throat was constricted, and once went to the emergency room, afraid that it might close up. The doctors found nothing.

He has a severe dust allergy (it causes hives, no respiratory symptoms) that was diagnosed last year, at which point he was prescribed Zyrtec and Singulair. He mentioned the prescriptions to every doctor he saw (this is in New York, not the boondocks, btw), and every one said it can't be the Zyrtec or the Singulair. It should be noted that we eat all natural foods, no white flour, no white sugar, so we knew there were no artificial additives that could be causing his reaction. My husband even tried cutting out dairy, then wheat, then all gluten, for over a month.

Finally, about five weeks ago, he told a cousin about his mysterious symptoms, and she asked if he was taking Zyrtec. He said yes, and she said he should try going off it because she'd had a similar problem with that drug. He did, and within four days, the burping and bloating stopped.

Because his itching was uncontrollable with Singulair alone, he decided to try taking one Zyrtec, thinking it might not hurt. Within 24 hours, the burping and throat swelling was back intensely.

The doctor switched him to Allegra. He took one and it helped him. He took a second pill two days later, and the burping reaction started. The allergist confirmed that people who have this "rare" reaction to Zyrtec may also have that reaction to Allegra.

If you are suffering from these symptoms, go off the Zyrtec as soon as you can. I wish someone had told us so that my husband would have saved himself a year of suffering.

I was prescribed Zyrtec a few years ago for allergies. I also have MPV and need to take Atenolol, I will need to take Atenolol for the rest of my life. My cardiologist recommended I stop taking Zyrtec because it can give you an irregular heart beat. When I tried to stop it I got very bad withdrawal symptoms, chills,heart racing, insomnia, itchy skin. I thought I was going crazy, so I took one Zyrtec as soon as I took it 15 min later the symptoms stopped. The next night I decided to try and cut the pill in half and only take 5 mg, that was ok for 3 day's then the symptoms returned. I had to take the other half of the Zyrtec and then the symptoms went away.
I can not believe that I have to find a way to wean off Zyrtec. I am very annoyed that they do not list on the label that their could be withdrawal symptoms after taking Zyrtec for a while. I am not giving up I am going to continue and try to wean myself off the Zyrtec, hopefully I won't have a heart attack in my attempt to get off this drug. If anyone has a successful way to wean off Zyrtec please post it. Thanks and I hope this helped someone who was thinking of taking this drug. STAY AWAY FROM IT..

I started using Zyrtec recently after my niece received it from her doctor as the solution to her allergies. (We bought it at the drug store). My allergies are skin related where i walk and feel a deep itch in my thighs and anywhere else i have tight clothing. Also when i work out - i have itch deep skin. This is under the surface and very uncomfortable especially when you are walking/working out. Leads to confusion etc. I had never used any allergy medicine before but decided just to see if i would feel any different.

Anyhow, I started using Zyrtec the other day and almost immediately, I started fighting with my boyfriend - everything i was angry with him about came out. It was helpful but also i was very mean in my approach. I also started getting back pains around the spine area - not in the spine but around it and could not sleep until i took an ibuprofen. Today i experienced left shoulder and back pain. That was it for me and whats funny is that i took the lowest possible doze. So i am not touching that medicine again. I am a 36 year old woman. Its a strong medicine and something is strange with it (changes moods etc). I will have to change the medication for my niece before she goes through the side effects.

I am trying to get off Zyrtec after having taken it for the last four months. I am having a hard time doing so. I've taken Zyrtec every spring for about 10 years. Every time I go off of it I develop terrible insomnia. It takes about three months to get over the insomnia. BUT this time around, I have developed a terrible itching. The itching goes away if I take one-half of a Zyrtec pill. It comes back if I don't take another pill within 24 hours. Come to think of it, I have developed this itching before when I went off Zyrtec and used hydrocortisone cream to stop it, but I never before contributed the itching to the Zyrtec. It is definitely some type of withdrawal symptom.
Also, my husband has noticed that I get terribly moody, depressed, cry a lot, and become critical of everyone when I am on Zyrtec -- and go back to my normal self when I am off of it.
AND I have begun to notice that my appetite goes wild while on Zyrtec. When I go off Zyrtec, my appetite goes back to normal. I have gained almost 50 lbs since I was introduced to Zyrtec.
I would like to say that I will never take it again, but it is the only antihistamine that completely controls my springtime allergic asthma. I need to be able to breathe.

Hi, I'm a 25 year old male. I've had severe seasonal allergies for as long as I can remember. I'm to the point where the coming of spring usually means that I'm going to be visiting the emergency room inside of a few weeks. I've been involved with Zyrtec since the spring of 2003. During that season I experienced what could only be described as a near complete nervous break down. I had an issue involving administration at the college that I was attending losing some paperwork regarding a semester withdrawal ... as a result I ended up with 7 F's and owing the university around $4,000.

I ended up crashing. My family describes me as the guy "with a big heart" ... but I began getting into screaming matches with my parents that ended with me breaking down and weeping / sobbing almost hysterically while holding the door shut to my bedroom. I became incredibly "anxious" (that's how my families General Practitioner {GP} described it), but I'd describe my behavior like more along the lines of a parody of a guy that just smoked a ton of REALLY cheap pot and therefore began to think that everyone was out to get them and that no one had their best interests at heart. My GP decided that I must be on the verge of a nervous breakdown and put me on paxil in an effort to calm me down. In a way it helped keep me calm and drastically reduced the extreme emotional spells that I was having. I pulled myself off of Paxil (for another slew of side effects that I'll be posting on that tab) during the late summer and fall when I don't have as severe an issue with allergies and as my season approached I found a new doctor and when I brought up how I had eventually decided Zyrtec D was making me feel he told me that I was right on the money. He ran through the almost all of the side effects that are listed on this page and I was floored ... I couldn't believe that no one had told me about them. He put me on Astelin and since then I haven't had any issues. As a matter of fact, I'm totally psychologically sound now and I haven't experience a "heart flutter" since ... where as a few years ago I was on the verge of committing myself while on Zyrtec D.

As a little note: I'm currently taking Astelin along with the OTC Zyrtec on a once a day basis and the only side effects that I've seen show back up are: slight paranoia, a loss of energy and general virility, and a significant weight gain (about 20 pounds in the past 3 months that could be attributed to my near complete loss of energy) ... which is an ENORMOUS improvement coming from the prescription strength Zyrtec D.

I'd also like to mention that I don't have any disorders like bipolar disorder or severe depression ... but when I take Zyrtec I acquire a lot of the symptoms associated with those medical conditions ... the symptoms slowly subside when the season draws to a close and I stop taking the medication.

Is any one having menstrual problems? I have had a lot of cramping and little to no flow-which is unusual for me-I feel like I am constantly PMS-ing
and I want to eat all the time! The allergy problem is gone but my ovaries
are killing me and Im gaining weight!

i have taken Zyrtec for years during the fall during ragweed season - works great for me without any side effects. My husband can only take it every other day as it makes him feel flu -ish. 18 yr old takes as needed and it works great. 16- yr old has allergy asthma and has taken Zyrtec for years and now with Singulair. She now is experiencing all noted problems of sleeplessness, headache, anxiety, and grumpy. We are quitting the Singulair to monitor improvement and will do the same with Zyrtec if needed.

NOTE: Each person most be monitored with every drug for allergies and side effects. If you or your child cannot tolerate a drug, STOP taking it. You are your best daily diagnostician! Your DR. may not agree or understand, but pursue another course. REMEMBER though, that drug may be a lifesaver for millions of others that react favorably! Penicillin is a miracle drug unless you are allergic! Doctors should encourage close monitoring whenever your kids take a new drug - but when they don't - that's our job!

Here's what's going on...

I've been taking Zyrtec for years with no problems. I don't have the usual allergies like runny nose, itchy eyes, etc. My allergies make me very sick to my stomach--all day long. It was like morning sickness. I was on polaramine for many years and they discontinued it, then I found Contact and then they discontinued the ingredient that helped me that was in Contact. After trying a few other OTC and prescribed antihistamines, Zyrtec was the only one that helped me.

Since I have started taking the OTC Zyrtec (not to be confused with OTC Zyrtec-D), I've been getting terrible irregular heart rhythms...what happened??

Can anyone tell me if the product has changed since they went OTC? And what is in Zyrtec that makes the heart go crazy like that? It's very annoying. I'll have to start trying all different meds now to find one that works.

Our son was on Zyrtec for 3 years, we just took him off and went a homeopathic route for his allergies. While on zyrtec, he was so emotional, had trouble in school, cried a ton and was overall a mess! A few days after we changed his meds, he was a DIFFERENT person for the better!

my then 2 year old daughter began to take Zyrtec in sept 06 for allergies. she began to STUTTER in November 06. she has gotten worse over time. she also has experienced vaginal irritation for about the same amount of time
( 1 1/2 years) i have had her tested by a gyn and everything came back normal. her stuttering got worse when the doctor upped her dose. so bad that she can not complete a sentence. i took her off of it 1 week ago and we have seen mild improvement and Withdrawal (crying,itching,sleeplessness) has anyone else experienced this? please help us!

My son has been on Zyrtec for the past year - he is now 4. He the sweetest disposition one minute and is a monster the next hating us and wishing we were dead. We assumed that it was his age and possibly a behavior disorder until I read the other entries. We took him off immediately and he is back to the kid we lost last year. This needs to be taken seriously. When I researched the side effects on the drug website they do not mention behavior issues as a possible side effect. My son will live with a runny nose and a smile on his face.

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.

Thank goodness I found this. I thought my son was going to crazy. He is 5 years old and having terrible outbursts and says he cannot controll his emotions. I was really worried. This explains a lot. thank you

my 7 year old son has started breaking out with a funny rash since he started zyrtec. kind of looks like ringworms. is this a possible side affect?

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).

my 3 1/2 year old son has had problems with focusing, hyperactivity at times, decreased concentration and inability to complete tasks. He has trouble falling asleep at night. Had him evaluated for this. Pediatrician suggested that it could be the zyrtec, since symptoms started about a year ago. MD stated that 2 other mother's started their child on Singular and then stopped the Zyrtec and saw an improvement in child's concentration. Will see