ZYRTEC Reviews (CETIRIZINE HYDROCHLORIDE)Average Rating: 2.0 (1816 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare ZYRTEC with similar:
Type: Over-the-counter Drug
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Results are sorted by Age from youngest to oldest (reviews with no age reported listed first). Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.) Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 |
More on ZYRTEC: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR ZYRTEC | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 4 | congestion | none | seems to work | M | 43 | 2 years | 7/27/2004 | 4 | Allergies | The only side effect I had was major panic attacks.I quit taking it,I have never had another attack!!!! | F | 43 | 3 years 30 mg 1X day | 3/31/2011 | 4 | Allergies and sinusitus | The only possible side effect I've noticed is dry nose. This is irritating and sometimes painful. | I've taken Zyrtec year round for years. I still need occasional decongestants when the pollen is bad, but overall, it works pretty well. I sleep great and have a very level mood and am a happy person. I never realized how great this stuff was until I tried switching to Allegra this week. Compared to Allegra's side effects, Zyrtec's are nil. Thanks Zyrtec!! | F | 43 | 3 years 1X day | 5/5/2011 | 4 | Allergies (pollen) | Overall I've experienced less side effects with Zyrtec than most other over-the-counter medicines. Benadryl works great, but leaves me mentally on another planet. Tylenol Allergy works fine for a couple of hours, but within 4 hours it's wore off. Claritin has no effect on me at all. Only Zyrtec zaps out most of the symptoms. Dizziness however, does occasionally occur. | I find that the "3 days on, 2 days off" approach works great for stuff like this. Take it for 3 days, and then go OFF of it for 2-3 days. This SEEMS to lessen any side effects and keeps it effective, as taking it continuously will over time cause you to develop a resistance to just about any drug. Dizziness does sometimes kick in when you make sudden turns or bend over, so be prepared. I experienced no other side effects other than that one. | M | 43 | 3 weeks | 4/12/2009 | 4 | Allergies | No side effects that I have detected. | Have not had some of the complaint posted by others. Before taking Zyrtec my days AND nights would be absolutely miserable. I've tried other allergy medicines and they either didn't work very long or really numbed my mind. I do not have this problem with Zyrtec. I can smell, my nose isn't completely opened but I don't sneeze (or very rarely) anymore - which was my biggest problem before (the sneezing was so bad, I couldn't sleep at all). I think my allergies are from pets (cat) and dust. | M | 43 | 1 years | 8/27/2009 | 3 | Allergies/Asthma | Cant stay awake more than 3 hours at a time. No matter what I'm doing, watching tv, driving, typing, working, I just cant stay awake. I'm constantly in a fog. | Works great on my allergies though! lol | M | 43 | 2 months | 12/1/2009 | 3 | F | 43 | 1X day | 10/18/2017 | 3 | Allergies | HEARTBURN!!!! which I haven't seen commented by anybody else. I don't easily get heartburn but noticed this right away. And very tired/drowsy - more so then with CTs. Plus after Day 2, I noticed my fingers and feet were very swollen. I haven't had this symptom with any other allergy med. | It works GREAT for minimizing allergy symptoms, but you have to decide if the side affects are worth it. I absolutely WOULD NOT give this medication to a young child. It's too strong. I probably won't continue to take it except under the most extreme allergy attacks. | F | 43 | 1 weeks | 5/22/2008 | 3 | allergies/follicular eczema/hives. | Had episodes every spring until fall of skin eruptions,intense urticaria,sneezing, nasal congestion.ect...This started out about five years ago and just progressively got worse every year until started to seek actual medical care for condition. Was treated for everything including poison ivy and scabies by primary care for months was on high doses of steroids by mouth and injections,which resulted in high blood pressure,severe weight gain, mood swings, insomnia and the old wonderful pesticide cream for months, that the primary once again insisted that i needed so the rest of my family did not get the scabies.The cream never cleared up anything and my husband whom I slept with every night never had one skin issue.My children who were very young and would occ. sleep with us never had a spot. If you know anything about these pesty critters is, they leave no human unturned, skin is skin and infestation for such a period of time would have infected every family member.After much arguing wi | F | 43 | 14 days 1X day | 4/12/2012 | 3 | allergies | Another story about the itching when you try to get off it: when I told my allergist I was experiencing itching, he insisted it means I have exema and the zyrtec has been suppressing it (I have never had a sign of exema). Could he really not know it's a problem? | F | 43 | 3 years | 2/26/2007 | 3 | seasonal allergies | I take 1/2 a pill before bedtime. It makes me so sleepy that I sleep all night and take long naps in the daytime. In between sleep, I lay on the couch tired and foggy. I am crabby, short tempered and impatient I am usually a pretty nice, and easy going on my husband and kids! I have an appetite that is out of control. I am eating constantly. I feel hungry all the time. I have gained 5 pounds. I have no sex drive, which has upset my husband greatly! On a lighter note, it knocks out the allergies.....but at a high price! | I gave it a 3 rating, because it actually works. It knocks out allergies. I am sure that there are people out there that do not experience the side affects. I would recommend trying this medicine, it is worth seeing if you can use it since it works so well. I stopped taking it as of last night, and am alert and awake today for the first time in a month!!! My allergies are not acting up, but they will eventually. I will be going back to the doc to get something different to try. In the meantime, I have OTC medications that sort of work and don't have the bad side affects. | F | 43 | 1 months | 5/1/2006 | 2 | allergies which induced asthma | anxiety,inability to cope with frustration, not eating/excessive eating, fast emotional meltdowns, hives when missed dose, excessive thirst, now a kidney stone in a 7 yr old | My son is almost 8 and has been on this since age 4. We felt we had no choice as his allergies were contributing to emergency room level asthma episodes. It did help with that tremendously. But at what price? We have another child w/out allergies, very easy going. This little boy is very touchy emotionally, will rage over small things, has been in occupational therapy in school for 2 years for anxiety, etc etc.Will not eat for time periods and other times will eat excessively--not just "treats" but things like chicken cutlets. Also, having trouble concentrating on schoolwork, hard to read his writing. When we rarely forget to give it to him, he gets hives which we blame on allergies. Now he has a kidney stone, I have a bad feeling this may be related--has anyone else's child had this? I will be getting him off of this as safely and quickly as possible. | F | 43 | 4 days | 10/9/2007 | 2 | Allergies (no congestion) | Body aches, severe funk | I decided to try this out because I was sneezing and didn't want to be awake three hours after taking Claratin-D. While it did its advertised job, I woke up very tired and every joint throbbed. I also found myself going into Suicide Ideation. No problem, really (I've dealt with such thoughts over the years so I know how to get out of it) but I wouldn't want to keep going there, even with a clear sinus. | M | 43 | 1 days | 4/17/2008 | 2 | Seasonal allergies | Worked well , however in attempting to ween off during winter months.... Severe itching throughout body.... Today post nasal drip and sneezing w/ no exposure explanation !?! | Very concerned; am I to be addicted, why this intense withdrawal. Where is this addressed professionally ? I've read enough here to realize where there's smoke ; there's fire ?!? | M | 43 | 2 years 10mg 1X day | 1/30/2012 | 2 | allergies (indoor/outdoor/pet | on and off sleepiness, rash, memory problems, possible wheezing and then headache after stopping use. | I have taken claritin for years. Other than the occasional heard palpitation or sleepless night...I can't find anything wrong with it. However, we acquired 5 kittens last June. I know i'm allergic but they were young and we were trying to find them homes. A vet recommended I switch to Zyrtec for pet allergies. I tried taking it in the AM and was sleepy all day, tried it at night and couldn't sleep or had nightmares. WEnt back to the daytime dosage and dealt with the sleepiness. BUT, since I began taking it, I've encountered dizziness, sleepiness, rash, wheezing, among other weird developments. I cannot be certain that Zyrtec caused them all because cats can cause me to wheeze. However, the cats habe been out of the house for 10 days and I just stopped taking Zyrtec 3 days ago...all of a sudden I can breathe!!! All I can say is, everyone is different. For me, zyrtec is not worth the possible risks and Claritin just works better with less issue | F | 43 | 4 months 10 Mg 1X day | 10/11/2012 | 2 | Allergies | Like other posters mention, I freaked out. I would yell at my husband and feel no remorse over my actions until the Zyrtec wore off. It was scary. The allergies were at bay, except for the hives. I've learned how to manage my allergies by having my food allergies diagnosed which lessens my seasonal allergy symptoms. Considering the hives were not addressed and I was a psychotic soon to be divorced wife, I'm happy to report that now we're all happy again. And btw Weight Gain, check. | M | 43 | 60 days 1X day | 3/2/2011 | 2 | seasonal allergies | the main side effects that were a problem were a major change in emotional outlook and irritability. After just a couple of days on Zyrtec my patience grows very thin and I am frustrated and angry with everything. This time, after several days, I also started having pretty dark thoughts, almost suicidal, which is not like me at all. The worst may be that I am unaware of what is causing it and unable to really see the changes in myself accurately until after I stop taking it. The rest of the family sure notices immediately. When I stop after it leaves my system it is like a massive cloud just dissipates. I only use occasionally to manage bad allergies, but I have now decided I cannot take it again. | It works well for my allergies but I cannot handle the side effects. I usually only take a few times a year and for a week at a time at most, but it is causing big issues in the family and this last time I seriously was in a very depressive state, it was scary. | M | 43 | 5 days | 12/2/2008 | 1 | Allergies | My 4 year old daughter took Zyrtec for itching from allergies. It didn't take care of the itch, but worked to remove the red under her eyes. Her behavior changed drastically. She became defiant and rude (talking back). She also became overly emotional, crying and becoming angered easily. She really became another person while on the medication. | This is the second time I took her off -- the first time it was because I suspected it affected her behavior, but then her red circles came back so I tried it again. I just took her off last night and plan to call her allergist. She's just not her normal (sweet, confident, respectful) self when she's on the medication. We will NOT try this again. | F | 43 | 2 months | 11/28/2008 | 1 | sinus drainage, itchy eyes | irritability, sadness, depression, memory loss, lethargy, fatigue, quick to anger, | I really wish that I had researched this drug before I took it. It does work well, but the side effects were quite severe for me. I would not recommend it. It caused problems at home and work. I have been off it for about 5 days now, and I feel so much better. When I started forgetting things, I knew that I either had a serious health problem, or something had changed in the last two months. I narrowed it down to changing from Claritin to Zyrtec. I decided to switch back to see if it made a difference. It has made a huge difference. I will never take it again, and I am warning anyone who will listen about the very negative side effects of this over the counter drug. | M | 43 | 6 weeks | 6/1/2008 | 1 | suggested to take when it OTC | It was absoluetly horrible. I became sick with what appeared to be Brochitus, and had just started taking Zertec when it became OTC in place of generic Clariton (as it was suggested as being much better for what appeared to be seasonal allergies (Burning eyes, watering eyes, sneezing, etc). Unfortunately my GM Dr. believing the bronchitus was bacterial and not getting better, put me on another 2 series of antibiotics (in all - it was 3 in row (1st, Z-Pac, then 10 days of Levequin, then 10 days of Amoxicillan) my lungs sounded worse and worse, weasing, bronchial spasms, persistant coughing with what sounded like loads of phlem in my lungs. The Dr knew I had just started taking Zertec and he thought "oh good" it should help. When i came back a 4th time he prescribed Levaquin again, Advair, and referred me to a Cardio Pulminary Specialist. However - that appointment couldn't be scheduled for between 2-3 weeks. within one week, I was was so distraught and having a bronchial spasm | The Cardio specialist took Xrays, and breathing tests to see if I had cancer, Emphasema, or other possible deseases. He too was told that I had been on Zertec for about 2.5 months at that time, and again said "good". After 1 month of Prednizone, 35 lbs of weight gain, Advair, and Albuterol inhalents - I was still not well, I had nearly lost my voice completely and had severe weazing, coughing, phlem at times, and bronchial spasms. THEN BY CHANCE I HEARD OF SOMEONE AT WORK HAVING A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT SIDE AFFECT OF ZERTEC - POUNDING IN THE CHEST, AND THEN AS IF HIS HEART WAS FLUTTERING. When I heard this, I looked on the web for remote 4% -7% side effects - RIGHT THERE THEY WERE: Horeseness, Severe Weasing, Coughing, and Bronchial spasms. I literally felt like death warmed over at times, with sexual side affects as well. I then self diagnosed, and immediately quit Zertec and with 48 hours found dramatic improvement. Now 2 weeks later, I not only am completely clear in my lungs, but do not need any inhalents. In fact today I went on my first Cardio / Bike ride in nearly 6 mos, have complete renewed energy, and even was able to make lovve with my wife for the first time in 4 mos. I AM TOTALLY SERIOUS AND NONE OF MY DOCTORS EVEN BELIEVE ME. I KNOW IT WAS THE ZERTEC AND I HONESTLY BELIEVE HAD I NOT STOPPED IT, IT COULD HAVE KILLED ME. I want to know why the FDA made this an over the counter available drug without any of these types of warnings!?!?!? Zertec is adverti | M | 43 | 3.5 months | 3/22/2009 |