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 |
| 3 | seasonal allergies | Exhausted, shakey and very irritable. | Every time I take this drug to dry me out (when the Nasonex isn't cutting it) I feel like a zombi. I'm exhausted, shakey and very irritable the next day -- snapping at everything and everyone. I just want to scream. I need to find an alternative as this is not worth the relief I get from the nose drip! When my young son was on this he was also very irritable. Doing much better on Xyzol. I may need to look into that for myself. | F | 46 | 5 days 10 mg 1X day | 9/30/2010 | 3 | corn pollen / working in field | I've been OK in the past taking zyrtec--drowsiness and feeling stoned shortly after starting. But this time, pollination season has gone on longer, and I'm getting side effects that last even on days when I'm not in the field, and not taking the drug. The headache in my temples is the worst, and now repeatedly recurs as the drug wears off. Also histamine-like symptoms (stuffiness, sore throat) which I assume is just a rebound effect. I feel like my salivary glands are also confused / sore--again, probably a rebound effect. When I try to take a full dose (10 mg pill) I might as well be a zombie for a few hours afterwards. | That said, zyrtec is the ONLY allergy med I have found that works in extreme conditions. So long as I have to (basically) keep dumping corn pollen all over my face and body, I will continue to take zyrtec. I also take a couple when traveling in case of emergency, for similarly extreme circumstances. I would recommend this pill only for short-term use, and not more than half a pill every 12-18 hours (adult dose). In fact, I can feel the half pill wearing off at around 17-18 hours. When I start to itch, I take another half quickly, before I start to wheeze, snot up, get swollen eyelids. It is very effective, but IMHO, not really appropriate for long-term use, nor for "convenience" use. If you can deal with the situation by removing the allergen (or removing yourself to an allergen-free space) or by taking something weaker, do that. I wish they made a 5 mg version that I could split into two 2.5 mg doses (which might also be more appropriate for pediatric use). The take home: meds are not candy. They do things to your body. Treat them with respect, and don't use them unless you really HAVE to. In contrast, some other allergy meds score barely above placebo as far as effectiveness. They have fewer side effects--but they empty your wallet, and don't do much for your allergies. | F | 46 | 15 times 5 mg 2X day | 8/23/2012 | 3 | Indoor and outdoor allergies | I would take the pill at night. I was so tired even at 2:00 the next day . I felt like a zombie and was having crazy and upsetting dreams all night. I did use a generic brand . I stopped cold turkey and I feel restless legs at night and headache. It definitely cured allergy symptoms , but is not worth the other feelings . | F | 46 | 4 days 10 mg | 8/17/2012 | 3 | Itching and allergies | This medication worked at first however, after about a year I started to notice itchy red bumps on my skin, severe eczema which spread all over my body, mood swings, anger issues for no reason at all, mussels hurt, sore stomach, very sore breasts, hair loss and no sex drive at all. I also noticed that when you try to get off the drug you can experience up’s and downs with depression and feeling useless at times and yes intense itching that only Excedrin and benadryl helped! I have taken this off and on over a three year period. | I would not take this drug unless nothing else works for you and even then I would take it only as needed and not everyday. | F | 46 | 3 years | 9/29/2008 | 3 | Year-round allergies | Hair loss while taking, severe itching when stopped. | I took 10mg Zyrtec religiously every day for close to 10 years. Zyrtec works better than any other med I've taken for my year-round allergies, but at 46 years old I have lost over 75% of my hair. I have been tested for all others reasons for hair loss and come up negative. Never dreamed it was the Zyrtec until changing doctors. Experienced severe itching of palms, feet, and scalp since I stopped taking it, but the hair loss has subsided. FYI, both of my kids have taken Zyrtec, first liquid then pills, seasonally for 8 years with no discernable side effects, but I am flushing it all down the toilet now. | F | 46 | 10 years | 5/26/2009 | 3 | seasonal allergies | my 4 year old daughter has been taking zyrtec for 3 weeks now and I have noticed that in that time her stuttering has gotten noticeably worse. She has also been complaining of frequent stomach aches and headaches. My daughter's preschool teacher said that her son who is 11 also had similar side effects. We have stopped this medicine and we will treat her allergies holistically as long as we can. | the medication is working great on her allergies, but the side affects fall short of my satisfaction. This medication should not be OTC in my opinion. | F | 46 | 3 weeks | 5/16/2009 | 3 | Allergic rhinitis | 25 lb weight gain, slowly over 5 years- last week I read something about Zyrtec causing weight gain and it finally clicked for me- I've been going mad trying to figure out the cause of this weight, despite eating a very clean/moderate calorie diet and exercising regularly- nothing else changed in my life to cause this. | Zyrtec actually worked extremely well for me- I'm a lifelong sufferer of allergies, allergic to everything, 8 shots/week for years- Zyrtec + Flonase at night gave me my life back. Was able to breathe through my nose again, didn't suffer wheezing/itching all the time, slept so well. But now that I've learned that it may be the cause of my weight gain, I stopped taking it one week ago to see if the weight will drop off. I feel awful- insomnia finally waning, wheezing, stuffy nose, and extreme histamine reactions to foods causing swelling of the tongue and throat- food I ate daily with no reactions whatsoever. If weight doesn't drop I'm going back on it. Either option is awful- fat or miserable. | F | 46 | 5 years 10 1X day | 3/2/2015 | 3 | Chronic hives | Tired upon waking. Lack of strength. Loss of balance. | Helped great with calming down hives for about 80%. Bad thing is the side effects of feeling tired all day. | M | 46 | 30 days 10mg 1X day | 8/5/2021 | 2 | Seasonal/Pet allergies | Weight gain (lots for me!), irrational thoughts, weird dreams | Wow! I just realized that all of the negative thoughts and 15 pound weight gain is due to my taking Zyrtec...Not sure why I didn't peruse the reviews before because I usually do extensive reading before taking anything. I have gained 15-20 pounds in the last 3 months. Unbelievable because I work out 4 to 5 times a week and eat sensibly. I have only been taking this medicine for about that long too. I quit taking all of my vitamins for perimenopausal symptoms because I thought that they could be contributing to the weight gain. I'm totally freaked out by this medicine. Talk about weird dreams...the weirdest. Also I have had really illogical thoughts which made me even consider committing myself to a mental institution...stay away from this medicine for sure!! | F | 46 | 3 months | 8/15/2009 | 1 | Seasonal Allergy | anxiety, panic attacks, very aggressive behavior, overly emtional, paranoid, memory loss, confusion, feeling stupid. | This drug is poison. Looking back, I now realize that 5 years ago it was probably taking Zyrtec that caused my need to go on anti-depresants and the onset of panic attacks. Never had a panic attack before taking this drug. This allergy season I have been a miserable person to be around. Ready to fight all the time. Feeling violent. Lots of rage. I never thought that I could get hooked on a drug I only used as needed. Been off it for four days now. Terrible withdrawl. Crazy itchy and feeling sick. I just feel like I'm going crazy. Tell everyone you know to stay off this drug. They may think you're crazy(which is the reaction I've received), but you might save someone some grief. | M | 46 | 5 months | 8/9/2009 | 1 | allergies | horrible anxiety and irritability | I have worked in the mental health field for 23 years and now understand what my clients experience. Took a zyrtec and it sent me into a 48 hour funk that scared my wife and my kids. Thank god it was a long weekend or I would have had to call in sick on Monday. I thank my training and experience for totally not freaking out. I knew something was very wrong and that I needed to be alone so I would not act out against the people I love. Horrible drug that could lead to some very bad actions by the people who take it. Would much rather have allergies. | M | 46 | 1 days 1X day | 5/26/2015 | 1 | Hay fever | Feeling dizzy, extremely tired, bad stomach, feeling sick. | I will never take this medication again. 24hrs after stopping I still feel rough and have an upset stomach. | F | 46 | 2 days 10 mg | 6/29/2017 | 1 | allergies | Irritability. Vivid dreams. Increase in the amount of nightly sleep. Constant tiredness. It seemed there was a ceiling in the amount of joy I could feel. | Made me feel like a zombie. Then I started taking only half a pill per day. This was enough to stop my allergies, but I still felt like a zombie. When I stopped taking Zyrtec, my old self returned, as did my sneezing, itchy mouth, and running nose. Stopped my allergies better than Clariton. But Clariton didn't make me feel like a zombie. | M | 46 | 4 weeks 10 MG 1X day | 8/2/2010 | 1 | i had hives | I had fogginess in my head. That shit belongs in the dumpster! | I rather have hives than take this crap. | F | 46 | 3 weeks 10 mg 1X day | 2/7/2010 | 1 | Allergies | IRRATIONAL ANGER, constant irritability, mood swings, depression, brain fog, crying jags, "thought disorder", lethargy, weight gain, poor nights sleep, swelling around stomach, blurry eyes, lack of motivation.... I use to take this medication before going to sleep, so I didn't make the connection between Zyrtec and the side effects. I also took Claritin on and off for a year prior to Zyrtec which I now see was the beginning of my symptoms. I Googled Zyrtec and weight gain (because I've gained 20+ lbs since starting the med which I can't lose no matter what diet or how much exercise) and found this site. I was shocked by all the posts about the effects this medication had on people's thinking and moods, especially irrational feelings of anger and extreme emotional lability (eg crying over the simplest things.) | I stopped taking Zyrtec over a week ago and immediately noticed a difference in my thinking and mood. It was like a dark cloud lifted and the simmering anger I felt inside me all the time GONE. No more negative, obsessive thinking, or crying jags either. All my life, I have always been a positive, easy going, happy person. But over the past 2+ years I was slowly turning into an irrationally angry and over emotional disaster. Friends and family thought I was either having a nervous breakdown or symptoms of menopause. I have even seen a counselor to discover what *issues* were effecting my life, lol. Who'd of thunk that an ANTIHISTAMINE could cause such havoc! I had been attributing my change in mood and personality to the stress in my marriage, fighting, and divorce issues. I see now that Zyrtec has been THE ISSUE. In researching histamines, I discovered that they have to do with neurotransmitter and hormone regulation. Who knows what is going one when they are blocked by an antihistamine. No wonder there are so many psychiatric adverse effects being listed, rather like antidepressants. The children are the canaries in the mine. If so many kids are having such SEVERE emotional and mental reactions, you have to figure this med is TOXIC to ones brain. This med should NOT be OTC. I predict we will see black box warnings on this med pretty soon, maybe even see it be withdrawn from the market. One can hope. | F | 46 | 2 years 10 MG 1X day | 2/10/2010 | 1 | allergies | after the 4th day starting getting severe muscle & joint pain. Then starting sweating nonstop followed by cold chills ongoing for 48hrs straight. Stopped taking the Zyrtec and now I have hives which from reading others reports is part of the withdraw. Do not take this drug. | F | 46 | 6 days | 2/6/2008 | 1 | allerigies | a fast feeling of nausea, lightheadness, shaking, just generally not feeling right | F | 46 | 7 days | 3/27/2008 | 1 | Seasonal Allergies | I became very unfocused - to the point of scheduling an ADD/ADHD test. My sleep was very disturbed. | I was advised the drug could make you sleepy and it'd be good to take at night. For me it was not. | M | 46 | 4 weeks | 10/22/2008 | 1 | Sinus Headaches | Heart beat is too strong and fast. Tired and Sleepy. I have been hungry all day. Just two days on this medicine and I already know I can't take it. Ringing in my ears. High pitch noises make me cringe. | Not worth taking it. There has got to be a better way to get rid of these sinus headaches! | F | 46 | 2 days | 2/7/2007 | 5 | Sinus Drainage Due To Sleep Apnea | Same as below! 5 Just to get your attention. Vivid Dreams, very tired during the day although taking Zyrtec at night, can hardly get moving in the morning (and I'm a morning person, I love a new morning!)I'm 47, male, 160 pounds and was disgnosed with sleep apnea during last summer. Went through labs and was placed on a CPAP breathing machine. Felt much, MUCH, better after getting use to the face mask. Had more energy, slept better and felt I was breathing fine. Dr. prescribed Zyrtec for sinus drainage that comes along with using a CPAP machine with moisture. Was getting use to that and just snorting and coughing in the mornings to clear my head. Have also been using Nasacort_CQ nasal spray once each morning (longer than using Zyrtec). After starting Zrytec (on it for over two months now) eventually began vivid dreaming, can hardly get moving in the morning, feels like sleep apnea all over again during the day due to being tired and just wanting to sleep. Also have been taking Lexapr | See to the left | M | 47 | 2 months | 1/5/2007 |