Fexofenadine and Drowsiness: What Users Say

• fan...
• February 27, 2012

Fexofenadine for Urticaria "My husband got a very acute urticaria on his whole body for 2 weeks. Nothing helped really to get rid of the burning patches. Benadryl caused more drowsiness than any help, and additionally, my husband's face was swelling all over when taking Benadryl. Finally, we got Allegra 180 mg pills. And just after the first Allegra pill, all red patches on his skin and all swollen areas were gone for good as long as he keeps taking it twice a day, 180 mg each tablet. This medicine is really great."

• Wor...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 13, 2015

Fexofenadine for Urticaria "I went to a local clinic to treat urticaria and was given 60 mg of prednisone on my cheek. It had no effect on my body, and the symptoms even got worse. Then my doctor recommended taking Benadryl (H1 blocker) and Zantac (H2 blocker) altogether. I took both pills, and it made me extremely drowsy (Benadryl), while Zantac actually alleviated my symptoms just a little bit. I woke up the next morning and found out that urticaria had come back. Then someone recommended that I take Allegra (Fexofenadine 180 mg), and it really works without any side effects of drowsiness. I think Fexofenadine is a godsend allergy medicine. I tried Benadryl, Zyrtec, and Claritin before. Their effectiveness on urticaria is far less than Allegra."

• wra...
• March 24, 2013

Fexofenadine for Urticaria "I finally found a medication that controls my hives. Ever since I was a kid, I have been battling hives that come and go every couple of years. It's the type where my face swells and hives appear all over. I've been through prednisone treatments and several other medicines that make me drowsy. Nothing works like Allegra. Definitely worth the price."

• Ale...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• January 12, 2020

Fexofenadine for Allergic Rhinitis "So, my body has a very high natural histamine level, which means that I will break out in hives with feet and hand swelling almost every day. There’s no cause, my histamine levels tend to just be high. A long time ago, my sister used to use this medicine for the same condition. Therefore, when I started breaking out, my mom recommended this to me. As soon as I started taking it, it was truly a miracle. It works so quickly and efficiently to relieve my hives and remove the swelling to allow me to be able to walk on my feet properly. I have zero side effects. It’s just a medicine that does its job: no drowsiness, no nausea. I accidentally double-dosed once, and not a single problem happened. It’s an incredible medicine. I’m thankful for Allegra/fexofenadine."

• NCR...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• July 19, 2016

Fexofenadine for Allergic Rhinitis "It seemed to me the reviews here were overly negative for Allegra. For me, Allegra has the fewest side effects. I've never had any drowsiness issues with Allegra. I have noticed that it takes about two hours to get the maximum benefit, although it starts to work in 20 minutes. It does lose potency after 7-8 hours. I sometimes cut the pills in half so I can extend the effect a little longer. It does provide excellent relief. For extreme pollen levels, I think Zyrtec or Xyzal are a little stronger. But I would try this because it seems to have fewer side effects if you have not been a regular antihistamine user."

• all...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 16, 2015

Fexofenadine for Allergic Rhinitis "I took Allegra 24 hours recently for the past two days. It works fast and relieves every symptom, but has only lasted for me for up to 8 hours. I then end up having to supplement with Benadryl, but it makes me drowsy."

• Zob...
• April 5, 2014

Fexofenadine for Allergic Rhinitis "I've never encountered hay fever allergies prior to this spring, so as soon as it all began, I decided to do some research. Allegra looked like my best bet because it claimed that drowsiness was not a side effect, and I was told it would work quickly! I decided on the 24 hr. I have yet to notice a difference and have not been sleeping very well!"

• Ker...
• May 11, 2017

For Allergic Rhinitis "I have used anything from chlorpheniramine to Claritin to Zyrtec, and then Telfast. By far, Telfast is the only one that didn't make me overly drowsy. Just this morning, I woke up feeling miserable, stuck nose and sneezing like over 10 times, and heavy-headed. I popped a pill and went to work, and within an hour, I was almost good as new. Throughout the day, I was very productive and not once dozy. With my nose not running a bit, I even had the energy to run a 10km in the evening myself!!!"

• Jlm...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 25, 2021

For Allergic Rhinitis "Took fexofenadine to combat an allergy attack. Had heart pounding and tachycardia (100+ beats per minute, resting heart rate) for 25 hours. Horribly uncomfortable. Also felt somewhat sedated and not like myself. Will never take again."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 2, 2022

For Urticaria "Worse experience with this. I will never take it again. I only had one tablet, and within 10 minutes, my ears were ringing and thudding. Made me very drowsy. Woke up at 4 a.m. Severe night sweats, awful dreams. Have felt sick and dizzy all day and not with it. Dry mouth and headache. I don’t know if I just had a bad reaction, but I never experienced anything like this. I’m a single mom and had to look after my daughter, feeling like this was a very scary experience for me! Never again, and these should not be allowed to be bought over the counter. Awful and has put me off taking any type of this medication now."

• Bib...
• June 21, 2015

For Allergic Rhinitis "As a nurse on a busy unit, I cannot afford to be drowsy nor work effectively with intense ear and eye itchiness. At times, I would even get wheezy and have problems with my breathing. None of the meds worked, and they all made me extremely drowsy. My new family doctor recommended this med, saying, 'even fighter pilots can take this.' That was in the UK, but in Canada, the highest dosage one can get is 120 mg, that's my one complaint about the med."

• Anonymous
• April 4, 2011

Fexofenadine for Allergic Rhinitis "Works much better than other over-the-counter medicines. My allergy came back this time of the year, and this year got worse. My sneezing won't stop, even to the point I get a nosebleed. So I tried Allegra, it did suppress all the sneezing for hours, however, my nose is still somewhat congested. When they mean 'non-drowsy,' they really mean it. I took other over-the-counter allergy medicines before, which they listed as 'non-drowsy,' but I constantly found myself falling asleep every now and then."

• Ano...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 8, 2025

Fexofenadine for Allergic Rhinitis "Allegra has been the best OTC antihistamine for me. I've had a minor increase in headache frequency since taking it, but this is far preferable to the side effects I've had from other allergy meds (like extreme drowsiness and nausea). The Allegra keeps me from sneezing and dripping snot all day, as well as makes it much easier for me to breathe!"

• mik...
• October 5, 2013

Fexofenadine for Allergic Rhinitis "I've gone through Zyrtec, Claritin, Xyzal, and Allegra has been the most consistent for me. Doesn't cause any drowsiness either, although I do take it at night."

• ann...
• May 11, 2009

Fexofenadine for Allergic Rhinitis "I have taken it for years. It does not make me drowsy and works great."

• Mar...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 26, 2019

Fexofenadine for Allergic Rhinitis "The worst allergy medicine ever! I’ve taken Benadryl in the past, and it works, however, I didn’t want to be drowsy, so I thought I’d try Allegra. Nothing ever happened, very dissatisfied!"

• Lar...
• July 24, 2011

Fexofenadine for Allergic Rhinitis "I love Allegra for my allergies because it doesn't make me drowsy. This week it went to an over-the-counter medication, so my insurance won't pay for it anymore."

• Nur...
• March 9, 2017

Fexofenadine for Allergic Rhinitis "Allegra gel tabs make me drowsy, whereas regular Allegra does not make me drowsy."