ZYRTEC Reviews (CETIRIZINE HYDROCHLORIDE)Average Rating: 2.0 (1816 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare ZYRTEC with similar:
Type: Over-the-counter Drug
|
Results are sorted by Date added. 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 |
| 1 | Allergies | Horrible nightmares, tightness and swelling of tongue and throat, scratchy throat, hoarseness, tiredness. | I decided to try Zyrtec because Claritin doesn't do anything for me, and Benadryl gives me panic attacks. The first day was okay, but I did not notice any side effects. The second day, I had a strange dream where my father came on to me sexually. I have never been abused or molested ever in my life, so there was no reason to have such a nightmare. Then last night, I had a dream where my body was covered in an awful rash, my throat swelled up and I could hardly breathe, and I was losing vision and consciousness and I couldn't see anything but knew I needed to put on my clothes and go to the ER. I was also screaming my husband's name in the dream, but he couldn't hear me because the bathroom fan was on. I woke up in tears, relieved it was a nightmare, but still very disturbed. I haven't taken the Zyrtec in 2 days... hopefully it is out of my system now and the nightmares will stop. My throat and tongue still feel swollen. My stepdaughter is 6 and so far has no problems with the zyrtec - she takes a 5 mg dose every day. | F | 30 | 3 days 10 mg 1X day | 12/1/2010 | 1 | Seasonal allergies | Itchy hands and feet with occasional burning on the soles of my feet after 3 days without a dose | I have wanted to stop taking Zyrtec for the past year but the closest I've gotten is taking it once every 3 days which is when the itching sets in. I started my research today on the itching and realized, like so many others, that it isn't just me. My doctor told me the itching must be from an allergy to something in my house. Not so - it is definitely withdrawal from the Zyrtec. I am going to cut back to half a pill every three days and buy Claritin to help minimize the itching. After a week or two of half pill doses, I will try to stop completely. I'm determined to do this quickly. The sooner, the better. To everyone else having similar issues, I wish you the best of luck. This issue should be publicized and the exact effect this drug is having on our bodies needs to be discovered. | F | 40 | 2 years 10 mg 2X W | 11/30/2010 | 1 | allergies | Exhaustion, weakness, sleep problems, dry mouth, weight gain | I had been successfully treating my allergies with Allegra for several years, until my insurance company switched me to Zyrtec about a month ago. Almost immediately I started feeling tired and miserable all the time, and noticed my weight creeping up. I began to suspect the change of medication and after about three weeks decided to quit taking the pills to see if they were causing the trouble. Sure enough within a day or two I was feeling back to normal. I did have some itching, mostly at night, but nothing as severe as described by others, maybe because I hadn't been taking it for very long. After five days off, I tried to complete the test by taking one pill last night at bedtime and already today I have been so exhausted I could barely keep my eyes open all day. Thank goodness I didn't have any real work to do. I've had enough and will learn to live with the sneezing if this is my only alternative. | F | 60 | 30 days 10 MG 1X day | 11/30/2010 | 1 | Hay Fever, Itchy nose, Itchy throat | Where to begin! I feel as though I am late with my response to how this medicine really took away 1 year of my life in a sense. I just found this site but I went through Hell getting off this drug back in 2009...before beginning this drug I used to be a very deadline driven ambitious person, confident in myself and easy going. This drug completely changed me. I didnt notice that I had "changed" until those around me started saying I had gained alot of weight (30 extra pounds--the heaviest I have ever been was 125 and I was almost 160 lbs on this med.) I started getting in to major arguments with my boyfriend to the point where I felt psychotic! Over the littlelest things, crying spells, sitting in a room thinking about life is not worth living, thinking of the worst in everything---that there was no bright side. I felt so depressed. All my problems in my life where intensified with this drug. These side effects began about 6 months of starting the drug. Thats when the major a | continued...I was late on my assignments and at work I was also falling behind to the point I was gonna get written up! totally not my personality. The sad thing I didnt even care. I just wanted to go home and sleep all day. I never went anywhere...I was a zombie. I found your website and immediately stopped taking this drug. I used Aveeno to bathe and lotion myself down with to stop the itching. I could shave my armpits for a while though because i broke out in a rash a month after stopping the med. I was able to shave after a few months after that. I drank tea for my throat and just endured the seasonal allergies. Every time I itched I just put lotion on. I very well weaned off this horrible drug a year later. I have lost so much weight --especiallyy around my stomach area! I am now 140 something getting close to 130 lbs and hopefully back to my original weight in a few more months. I am trying to go back to school and I am doing way better at work--I can concentrate now. I dont sit at home sleeping my life away. I get out and socialize now and am more active. This drug made me anti-social. I just wanted to say that you can wean off this. I dont take anything for my allergies anymore. I just dont trust the side effects and its not worth my life. Please spread the word.Would not recommend to anyone, please stop taking this drug if you have been experiencing these side effects. | F | 28 | 16 months 10 MG 1X day | 11/27/2010 | 3 | hives | Hair loss, fatigue, weight gain, irritability. | Wow! I have been wondering for a while why I am losing my hair and cannot lose weight that I have gained. I have never had this much of a problem losing weight. I was actually pleased when I read these comments to finally figure out why these things were happening to me. The only problem is it is the only thing that stops me from itching. I don't know what I am going to do because either way, with or without it I will be miserable! Does anyone have any suggestions? | F | 42 | 1 years 10mg 1X day | 11/23/2010 | 1 | seasonal allergies | After trying to wean myself off of the generic Zyrtec once allergy season had passed, I had trouble sleeping. I would wheeze and/or cough. If I fell asleep, I would wake up 2-3 hours later and go take an allergy tablet, which would alleviate my breathing within an hour. This isn't how previous over-the-counter allergy medicines worked for me, so I called the manufacturer and reported that I believe I have an addiction. | I would not recommend it after researching the public's reaction to taking this drug. I feel like I have to go to an allergist now to get off this drug and manage my allergies otherwise. In the past, I only needed allergy medication in the spring, late summer, and fall. | F | 44 | 5 months 10 1X day | 11/22/2010 | 1 | allergies | Have developed a dependency. If I miss a day, by that evening (36 hours after taking last dose), my skin feels like it's crawling and it's a miserable, itchy evening. As soon as I take even 5 mg, the itching stops within 1 hour. Looks like this is a common issue. | It's the only thing that has seemed to work for eczema and allergies, but it's NOT worth the addiction! I've successfully gotten my kids off the medication, but I am still dependent on it. | F | 38 | 3 years 10 mg 1X day | 11/19/2010 | 5 | seaonal allergies, digestive issues | Was told to have my son take it at night, just in case it made him drowsy, but we didn't notice any increase in drowsiness. | Zyrtec was wonderful for our son. He went from having 2+ weeks of unbelievably runny noses every time he caught a cold, to just normal symptoms of a few days. He also felt a great lift to the almost constant depression he had been feeling, and it cleared up the gastro issues he had been having as well. We took him off Zyrtec and put him on Claritin and it just didn't do the job. I see a lot of negatives on here about Zyrtec, but for our son, it made such a positive difference in his life. | M | 16 | 4 years 10 mg 1X day | 11/18/2010 | 1 | seasonal allergies | I have taken Zyrtec probably for about 9 yrs. I took other allergy medicines before that. I have had seasonal allergies for about 35 yrs. As I get older I have found that I am tired all the time and have no energy to exercise. I have tried going off Zyrtec before during the winter months but always have the itching that gets worse with each day I'm without Zyrtec so I usually start it again. But after reading all these testimonials, I am going off it for good. It's been 4 days since I took Zyrtec and I am feeling flu symptoms. I just feel really weird and have a sore throat. I don't know if this is from not having the Zyrtec or if I really do have flu symptoms (I haven't felt right for 2-3 days) and its not getting any better. Has anyone had these symptoms when going off Zyrtec? The itching hasn't started yet. | Had I know that Zyrtec was addictive - I would not have started it! My doctor never told me! | F | 56 | 9 years 40 mg 1X day | 11/18/2010 | 1 | Seasonal Allergies | I take a 24/hr zyrtec every day. If I 'skip' a dose I can't go more than an hour or two before my hands and feet begin itching. It then spreads to my head, legs/arms. It's so intense my only option is to take another zyrtec. My wife has taken the same dose for about the same length of time and has the same symptoms. | Zyrtec definitely helped my allergies but the withdraw symptoms are not only undocumented but seemingly impossible to overcome. | M | 32 | 4 years 10mg 1X day | 11/17/2010 | 1 | allergies | sleep problems, fast heartbeat and most recently night terrors after stopping dosage for 2 days | My recent allergy episode was so bad that I took Zyrtec and continued to take it for about 5 days. When the allergies got better, I stopped taking the drug. I woke up drowsy, sleepy and very irritable this morning. An hour later, after sending my son off to school, went for a nap and woke up 6 hours later from an upsetting dream. I was sluggish throughout the afternoon and early evening. Finally went to bed and shortly afterward began having night terrors for the first time in my life! I couldn't breath, felt paralized and had to lay there until I calmed down. Will not recommend this to anyone especially children. But for parents whose children are on this medication, I would suggest contacting a doctor as stopping the drug IMMEDIATELY HAS ITS OWN SIDE EFFECTS. Good luck. | F | 41 | 5 days 1X day | 11/17/2010 | 1 | severe allergies to grass and trees | My 14 year old son became a completely different person - formerly happy, cheerful kid turned severely angry, moody and suicidal. Also developed skin rashes. Didn't appear to help his nose symptoms either | My son took this drug haphazardly which is probably the thing that saved him. He took it most regularly when he started going in for his allergy shots every Friday. Then every weekend he was a depressed mess. Looked up ways to commit suicide on the internet. We started to wonder if it was the allergy shots and then made the link to zyrtec. He was off it for two weeks and became more normal. Two days back on it, suicidal again. I don't think this drug is appropriate for children!!!!!!! | F | 48 | 4 months 1X day | 11/16/2010 | 1 | allergies | Anger, tiredness, lack of appetite, night terrors | I have just tipped my bottle down the sink!! My 3 year old was on this off and on during the spring for allergies. While it helped with the allergies it turned my wee man into a tantrum throwing brat. The worst part was he ended up having night terrors and it would take hours to calm him down, never again!! | F | 41 | 5 days 5ml 1X day | 11/11/2010 | 2 | allergies | drowsiness, loss of focus, feeling "out of it" | worked well but side effects caused me not to continue | F | 45 | 1X day | 11/7/2010 | 4 | allergies | I took zyrtec for about a year and a half. Loved it. However, Ive had to stop taking it to have some allergy tests taken. I was violently sick to my stomach, have headaches and now cant have an empty stomach. I can only hope these symptoms go away as my activities have been SEVERLY limited. | F | 58 | 10mg 1X day | 11/6/2010 | 3 | Year round allergies | If it was the zyrtec, as my new allergist claimed, extreme lethargy, dizziness, foggy thinking, never able to fully wake up, worse depression, ADD and anxiety. | Never related these symptoms to zyrtec. I was happy that my allergy symptoms were better (never fully gone, but better than any other med) that when Dr's would suggest getting off of zyrtec b/c of lethargy/complete tiredness, I told them they were crazy; My allergies would go nuts. But now I've been off of it for 3 days and feel so much better. Almost human right now. Symptoms got worse every year I was on it. I just assumed my allergies were worse every year as I heard others in this area talk about. | F | 42 | 12 years 10 mg 1X day | 11/5/2010 | 4 | Allergies | tiredness, dry mouth and eyes, irritable, some dizzyness | I really like this product. If I don't take it early enough at night, like before 8, it will make me tired in the morning. If I take it during the day and I get very relaxed, it will make me fall asleep. Sometimes my eyes get dry and my contacts stick to my eyes so I have to be careful about that. I do get dizzy, irritable and have heart palps and I'm not sure if Zyrtec is contributing to this. It might just be anxiety. I can't take more that 1/2 tablet or it will make me very sleepy. It's not a fast acting antihistamine so if you need something fast you might try chlortab or benadryl. I take the zyrtec as a last resort if I can't get the darn sneezing to stop or if my eyes start itching. It has strong sedative qualities so take before bed time. | F | 41 | 4 years 10 mg 1X day | 11/3/2010 | 4 | Allergies and Asthma | None that I have noticed, although I do take it just before I go to bed, so I'm really unable to tell if it may cause any drowsiness. | I have moderate allergies year round, but I am severely allergic to cats. I have recently moved into a house with three cats. For awhile I was taking other allergy pills that were working okay,but I had to take them more frequently, and I was still suffering a lot of symptoms. When I began to take Zyrtec 24 hour, Nearly every one of my symptoms were reduced greatly. Before, living with cats was nearly unbearable, with the itching, sneezing, watery eyes, inability to breathe, etc. Now, I can even play with the cats and I feel fine. Just a little bit of itching still occurs, and my nose isn't always perfectly clear. One day I went just over my 24 hour limit to see what would happen, and my allergic reactions came back with a vengence, so this medicine might have to be a full time thing for me, but it's better than my other options. | F | 18 | 50 days 10 mg 1X day | 11/1/2010 | 2 | allergies making my voice raspy | extreme tiredness, yawning all day (needing a nap right after I woke up),inability to focus at work,lack of energy | I started Zyrtec at the suggestion of my doctor because I was having relatively mild allergies that were affecting my voice. I think it helped the allergies, but I have been so tired, I can barely function. Like some others, I am so glad I found this website because my doctor did not tell me/think it could be this medicine. But based on when the symptoms started, I know that this is the culprit because I am usually a very energetic person. Didn't have the negative emotions, but who knows, maybe I would have had I continued. Thanks for posting everyone. Going off--the "cure" is way worse than the "disease". | F | 48 | 20 days 10 mg 1X day | 10/29/2010 | 1 | Moderate seasonal allergies | Heart palpitations, dizziness, itching when I stopped taking it. | I only started getting allergies about 4 years ago. Most of the time the symptoms are pretty mild. My doctor recommended Zyrtec and I would take it for 2-3 days at a time when my symptoms were intolerable. 5 weeks ago I started having bad dizzy spells and hives and my doctor diagnosed allergies and said that since I was so out of it I needed to take the Zyrtec until they cleared up. The dizzy spells went away after about a week. I would take the drug for several days and then skip a day to see if the allergies had gone away yet. Every time, I started itching again, so I thought the allergen was still around and went back on the drug. Several days ago, the dizzy spells came back along with a pounding heart that would last for hours. I'm very fit and physically active so this seemed really weird. Went back to my doctor who told me that palpitations and dizziness could both be side effects of Zyrtec and gave me a new prescription. I didn't even try the new prescription but my dizzy spells are gone already so I assume this bout of allergies is over. My heart rate is also getting closer to normal. I do still have a little itching, but looking at what everyone else has to say, I'm now convinced that this is due to stopping the Zyrtec and not to an allergy. | F | 38 | 5 weeks 10 1X day | 10/28/2010 |