Zyrtec for Allergic Rhinitis User Reviews (Page 4)

• Mom2One
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 12, 2021

"I have taken this for the first time ever and feel absolutely awful. I lost all appetite, am so tired and lethargic and have been so itchy tonight that I cannot sleep. I will never take this ever again. I just hope it leaves my body very soon. It did not even seem to help my allergies at all. I was so moody and depressed from this medicine on top of everything else. Never again. :("

• Miche...
• August 15, 2020

"This is the only allergy medicine I use after trying multiple ones. It works best for me without any side effects except very slight drowsiness. I also have an anxiety disorder but this medicine doesn’t effect it at all, if anything it helps. I take as needed and sometimes daily if my allergies are bad or if my asthma kicks in. I’ve used it on and off for the last 7 years. My allergist recommended it, and said it works the best for me after allergy skin tests."

• Ju-Ju
• July 7, 2008

"I have been taking Zyrtec about 3 months now..and one side effect that i have not seen is i sound like i have laryngitis all the time. My throat is too dry and scratchy. Other than that it works great..no itchey eyes, sneezing and such!!!"

• stick...
• March 9, 2009

"This stuff works great. Clear head and reduced asthma reaction to allergens. The only problem is if I take it at night it is real hard to get out of bed in the morning and I am usually groggy for the first couple hours at work."

• AZJJ
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• May 21, 2022

"I had been using this several times/week... for years... at the same time, I had strange gut pain, mild nausea, and generally, days where I just felt lousy... many days with anxiety and fatigue. My eyes get extremely dry overnight too. I tried so many things, including many doctor visits, leading to CT scans and ultrasounds... nothing found. I would sometimes have some pretty good days... never realizing that the bad days occurred when I took Zyrtec. I use this site often,as I am very sensitive to all drugs and supplements, but never dreamed that Zyrtec could be the source of most of my issues... After reading the negative comments... I stopped taking it... and my gut pain went away almost immediately, as did the general malaise and anxiety. I had thought these popular OTC antihistamines were harmless!! I tried Claritin and Allegra and they are no bargain either, but not nearly as bad as this nasty drug. Good old Benadryl works fine... but is not recommended for daily use."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• April 12, 2022

"It sucks if you quit taking it. I had been taking it for 2 years. Just be prepared for for your skin to to itch and crawl like you have bugs all over you. Don’t take it because if you stop it’s miserable .."

• Be ca...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 1, 2022

"Don’t take!!!! I started taking Zyrtec at the end of February due to fluid in my ears. My medical provider recommended taking it every day through spring. I started feeling very sad and thought I was just because of the long, cold winter. I was also feeling tired all the time and napping more than usual. I thought it was from starting work earlier at my new job. I had my annual physical yesterday and my MD noticed I had an irregular heart rate and an EKG verified this. She is referring me to a cardiologist. When I got home from my appointment, I remembered that the only thing that has changed is that I started taking Zyrtec so I didn’t take it today and I swear that I feel 10 years younger. My joints don’t ache, I have energy and I feel less anxious…. I plan to see the cardiologist but I would bet my house that my heart rate is back to normal without the Zyrtec…."

• Skath...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• May 26, 2017

"This product has worked well for me overall. I use it in conjunction with Dymista, and the two together are great. If I miss a dose, then I'm itchy all over, so I take it every day religiously. The main side effect I've experienced (and this is common with Claritin and other similar products) is dry eye, but I simply use some Refresh Plus once a day and it's not a problem."

• Miser...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 15, 2022

"I went off of it because I had the flu and needed to take cold medicine and it interacted. I have itched for DAYS. Miserable itching, my entire body is raw from scratching and I felt like I was losing my mind. I realized today the itching is from not taking Zyrtec. Please don’t start this if you haven’t already. It’s not worth it"

• Kanek...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• June 27, 2021

"I've been frustrated, in pain, and experience irritating skin with an uncontrollable itch over my entire body for the last two weeks. I stopped taking the medicine to prepare for an allergy test, a few days later I'm itching all over, it's effecting me mentally, it was so bad I took benadryl daily.... guess what, I wasn't able to take my allergy test. When I told my doctor about the uncontrollable itch, they never mentioned this being a withdrawal symptom from the Zyrtec; how is it possible they wouldn't be aware of this. I feel like I'm going crazy, the doctor prescribed prednisone to help but it's not, scalp, soles, palms, entire body is irritated and itching. I've cried. Why is this medicine still on the shelf and doctors not warning their patients."

• KTano
• July 5, 2021

"I don't know what day I'm on. It's is a nightmare. I washed with apple cider vinegar. And I mixed tea tree oil with cocoa butter and rubbed tea tree oil on my scalp. It's helping. I'm also looking into doing a liver cleanse and currently drinking sassafras tea."

• Anonymous
• November 13, 2008

"The best OTC antihistamine. Relieves sneezing and that stuffy feeling in your nose. Doesn't seem to do much about the post-nasal drip or the coughing though. A bit of a stimulant for me, it makes me a bit energetic and hyper, even with just 5mg."

• Ray
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• April 10, 2021

"I began taking Zyrtec on a daily basis around 1.5 years ago. For allergy testing, I stopped Zyrtec cold-turkey. One day off Zyrtec, I was dealing with intensely itchy hands and fingers, and some dizziness. After 2 days, I was miserable with the itchiness on my arms, neck, chest, stomach and hands. I have never felt anything like it before. Even the intensity of mosquito and ant-bites pale in comparison. Three days off, I was in bed for 5 hours because I was so dizzy I couldn't stand up, and my whole torsoe was on fire with itch. I called my allergist, who told me to take Benadryl. Thirty minutes after taking the Benadryl, the itchiness and dizziness was completely gone. The next day, I started taking Zyrtec again. I thought that it was all because I was allergic to something in my environment, but I have never had those symptoms occur like that due to seasonal allergies before stopping the Zyrtec."

• Miyuuu
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• July 31, 2022

"I started taking Zyrtec many years ago, on and off only when I suffered seasonal allergies and it worked fine. However, a little over a year ago when it came to the end of spring allergy season and I got off Zyrtec, I started getting pruritus all over my hands and palms, arm, feet, and buttocks. I thought I was having allergic reaction from another medication I was taking at the time so I kept on taking Zyrtec to relieve the symptoms. Thankfully, my health improved and I was able to stop taking other medications recently so I also stopped taking Zyrtec, thinking that I wouldn't need it anymore. This is how I found out that this severe pruritus was from withdrawal itching due to Zyrtec! The withdrawal itching is really severe and although I can barely stand it during the day, I cannot sleep at night. I get hives all over my body, from top of my head to bottom of my feet including my private parts. It is an absolute nightmare. Don't use Zyrtec if you haven't yet or switch to another kind."

• tdkeand
• February 18, 2009

"I have had allergic rhinitis for as long as I can remember. OTCs worked for a while but my symptoms always returned. My primary care provider prescribed Zyrtec and Flonase. Though prescribed to use each of these medications on a daily basis, I use them only when required and the combination halts my attacks within 20 minutes of taking them. I could not be happier with this regimen."

• Feeli...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• May 3, 2022

"Zyrtec works great for allergies but I was having terrible anxiety. I remembered my son couldn’t take it because it made him so anxious so I stopped taking it and most of my anxiety disappeared within a day. Be careful with this medication. It can cause anxiety and depression."

• Laura
• January 13, 2018

"I used Zyrtec D for some really bad sinus pressure. It makes you sleepy during the day and anxious at night, but it has a very strong decongestant, and it works. I would never consider using it for a chronic condition, because the side effects are pretty heavy, but if you're just using it for a few days to help while you kick something, it works great."

• elate...
• July 8, 2009

"My child cannot swallow pills so the chewable Zyrtec is wonderful. Quick tip: to avoid drowsiness the next morning take your dosage by early evening (don't wait until bedtime) by doing so you'll get a comfortable nights sleep while breathing easily too."

• Funny...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• November 16, 2021

"I take this daily as it helps my cat allergies, (I live with two cats), helps my mood swings (I am autistic) and generally just makes me feel a lot better due to decreasing all the inflammation in my body from all my health issues. Or maybe its just a placebo effect."

• Itchy...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• August 9, 2021

"I had to go off Zyrtec for allergy testing and the itching was awful. I was able to get prednisone to take but by nighttime it wore off and I was up itching. I didn’t want prednisone at night as it wires me, but I guess the itching kept me up anyways. I also take Zyrtec at night. So morning are very difficult to wake up. I notice now that I’m off it, getting up isn’t as rough. What can I take to replace it that won't put me through awful withdrawl itching?? Please help! Don’t take Zyrtec."

• Violet
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 24, 2023

"I only take it when I feel itchy and have watery eyes, an itchy nose and throat, and sneezing mostly due to seasonal allergies. I try not to take it on a daily basis but only if I feel hay fever symptoms are coming. I feel the effect within an hour and for the rest of the day, I’m allergy-free which is great. However the next day I’m exhausted, lethargic, find it hard to concentrate, I get a headache and I feel like my head is super cloudy. If I have no more allergies that day I won’t take it again and the next day I’m back to having normal energy. I’ve sometimes had to take it for days and weeks in a row when the pollen levels are very high and I get the same low energy lethargic feeling every day I take it, but it does prevent a sinus infection which I am prone to and stops me from ending up having to take antibiotics."

• John
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 12, 2023

"I have chronic allergies. From all the drugs I've tried over the years, this one worked the best for me. That's not to say it really worked great. Just better than others. But it's a funny one, some days it worked, some days it didn't. Often I was taking up to 30mg a day (3 tabs), the effect was fairly mild but better than nothing. About 6 months ego I decided to stop, so I did and nothing happened, no withdrawals, etc. I simply decided to try natural way like Netipod, healthier food and indeed I'm getting better results. Only a strange thing is, after I stopped Zyrtec, I've started to have Arthritis problems. Not sure if this drug caused it or my age but the Arthritis been getting much worse over the past 6 months. On the contrary, I read reports that Antihistamines can help Arthritis pain so I'm going to try taking it again for few days and see what happens."

• Envir...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• October 11, 2022

"Zyrtec works fine for our allergies, but it's hard to imagine a company that shows less concern for the environment with their packaging. Their Go Packs have a cover package and individual packaging for each pill. Little is biodegradable and the waste is extreme. We'll start using other products that show more concern and care."

• parsons
• March 20, 2009

"This medicine seems to help my 10 year old son with his allergies but he still needs benadryl as well sometimes - to keep the fluid down in his ears. I agree on the square bottle and weird bottle neck - it is very difficult to get just one pill out, and they tend to fly everywhere when they do come out. Hoping they change that bottle."

• LetsG...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• April 8, 2022

"I use this for seasonal allergies. I only take it as needed. I tried the 5mg dose but I found the 10mg dose is more effect. It clears from the body in about 48 hours so take heed because you do not want to have it in your system if you are planning on going out drinking alcohol on a weekend or whenever. I would advise not to drink alcohol in general. I find that Zyrtec works better than other allergy medications. I have tried other allergy medications and found that they keep me awake. Whereas Zyrtec tends to knock me out so I only take it a few hours before bed time. In my previous country it only came in tablet form. But in my current country it also comes as a syrup. I prefer the syrup form because it causes less stomach issues. I noticed with the tablets that sometimes it would cause loose stools the next day or two. I do not notice that with the syrup so I think it must be from something that is in the tablets besides the active ingredient. Stay well."