Montelukast for Asthma User Reviews (Page 3)

• Guh...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• December 20, 2022

Montelukast "I started taking 5 mg when I was younger. And I’ve continued with 10 mg for the entirety of my adult life. It’s a must-have for me to function. Just opens my lungs without all the prednisone—one of the best medications on the planet, in my opinion."

• Ast...
• November 12, 2019

"This genuinely changed my life. 32 and have chronic asthma/allergies/eczema since birth. I could barely move most days, it was disabling. I was on the top dose of steroids, and they weren’t controlling it. I’d be in the hospital with attacks and just generally living a horrid life, not being able to breathe. I can’t tell you how amazing it is to be able to exercise, go on walks, keep up with people, not wake up numerous times every night needing inhalers, and forever worrying, trying to stave off going to the doctors/hospital. I just wish I’d been put on them sooner, and I might not have wasted my 20s! Still use inhalers, but much less. My asthma is still there, but is ‘controlled’ along with proactive behavior (dust/chemical avoidance, etc.), something I never thought I’d be able to do. I’m also on fexofenadine once a day for anyone needing help to figure out what might help them. No side effects for me - lost weight, but that’s because I can now move."

• Lou...
• June 19, 2017

Montelukast "It worked very well for asthma symptoms. Greatly reduced lung inflammation. It takes quite a few weeks to reach max effectiveness. But gave me joint aches, muscle aches, and all-over malaise. This is listed as an uncommon side effect, so it may not affect most."

• Lal...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• June 15, 2018

"At 40 years old, I have had increasing allergies, mostly with nasal congestion, but also shortness of breath. A couple of years ago, I was prescribed 10 mg of montelukast for a respiratory infection. Once I stopped taking the medication, I realized the shortness of breath returned, so my doctor prescribed it continuously. I have gained 40 lbs in the past two years, with most around my upper back and stomach. I have been off the medication for one week and have noticed a remarkable reduction in puffiness/bloating in many areas of my body. I discontinued the use because there is a greater risk of weight gain than any benefit I had."

• Ksu...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 17, 2018

"I have been taking montelukast for three months. I persisted with the vivid nightmares, irritability, anxiety, and depression because it was so effective for my asthma. Family, friends, and work colleagues noticed my mood change and my inability to be happy. The weight gain was another unwanted side effect. The prolonged and worsening side effects have forced me to stop taking it."

• Jzb...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• June 6, 2016

"Started taking this medication about two years ago, and it has changed my life. Before the montelukast, I would use my rescue inhaler (ProAir) about five times a day, even more sometimes. I had that annoying cough that just wouldn't go away, super whizzy, tightness in chest, could barely walk like two flights of stairs without being winded and starting to wheeze, it was horrible. I finally started taking the montelukast seriously, it saved me. I take it every day. I can finally breathe, no annoying cough, no waking up trying to catch my breath. I can finally go for a run and not die and even laugh all I want without reaching for my rescue inhaler! I feel so much better!"

• lom...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• July 21, 2014

"Since taking montelukast for my asthma, I can finally breathe freely without constant use of the Albuterol inhaler! I use it in combination with Zyrtec for my allergies, and I think it is terrific! I call it my miracle!"

• bak...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 27, 2023

Montelukast "Asthma and allergies. I have both. I've tried every steroid and bronchial dilator inhaler and had awful side effects. I can only take tablet steroids short term for the asthma. Allergy-wise, I've tried Flonase, Claritin, Zyrtec, Allegra, all of it, and still have bad drainage and cough. So, my doctor prescribed Singulair. I vaguely remember being on it as a teenager, and I remembered I was taken off it. He said, "try it again now as an adult." Well, I had awful anxiety and panic attacks starting from the first dose. By a few days into it, I had been constantly battling the anxiety, and one night had a full hallucination. I thought, for sure, I heard someone in my house. I was up looking everywhere, freaking out. I'm a single parent, I can't be going crazy to feel better! So, within 1 week, I had to stop it. I did notice the post-nasal drip was a bit better, and my asthma cough at night was still there, but not as severe as it was. No idea what we will try next. It was scary and frustrating."

• Ind...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• November 24, 2019

"I have been on Singulair for six years. I have asthma and allergies that get worse every year. I had episodes where my throat would start closing, and I could not breathe. They are nearly gone since I started Singulair at night. I did gain weight, and I do have night terrors, but I have not experienced any other symptoms."

• Ang...
• May 21, 2016

"My daughter is 7 years old, and she had been taking Singulair for 4 years. It worked great. But for the last 3 months, my daughter started having extreme anxiety issues over little things, to the point where she wasn't herself. Saying things like nobody loves me, I am a bad kid, you should just get rid of me. She was having tantrums, outbursts of disruptive behavior, major mood swings, and crying hysterically at night. I researched and researched what was causing this behavior and came across side effects of her meds. It was worth a try, even though it could alter her health, but her mental health I was way more concerned about. By the 5th day of her being off the meds, she was back to her normal, loving, and positive self. I will never give it to her again."

• Mel...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 11, 2019

"I experienced horrific side effects from this drug. After about 4 days of taking it, I developed anxiety and depression, body aches, and an extreme feeling of tiredness. I stopped taking it right away, but I had flu-like symptoms for the next 5 days or so, where I could not even get out of bed. I'm now on day 9 off the drug, and am slowly getting back to myself but still feeling quite tired, sleepy, and anxious."

• Lad...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• August 25, 2016

"Singulair saved my life. It's a wonder drug and has set me free. No more ER visits, no more gasping for air, no more clutching my rescue inhaler. I have been back to my normal life mowing, lifting, energized, and not afraid."

• Mja...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 2, 2018

"I started this medication when I was diagnosed with pneumonia. I thought my gas, bloating, fatigue, and weakness were from the antibiotics, but even after finishing them, the bloating, etc., got worse, so I am guessing it is the Singulair. I don’t think I really need it, so I will stop taking it and hopefully feel better. After reading all of the information on anxiety and depression (which I have had for 30 years), I am shocked my Dr. put me on this."

• Foo...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 3, 2018

"I took Montelukast for 9 days before bedtime. I was having frequent common colds, so my doctor prescribed me Montelukast as an alternative to Levocetirizine. My asthma is not so serious as I only use the Revolizer and not the inhaler. I'd advise everyone to not use this med as it has some serious side effects. After taking the first few tablets, I started feeling anxious, and I experienced breathing problems. I visited the doctor, and he said that I shouldn't have any breathing problems as my lungs were fine. Then I checked for the side effects of Montelukast and found out it has a lot, so I consulted with my doctor, and he removed Montelukast from the prescription. It's been 5 days since I dropped that drug, and I still feel anxious and have difficulty breathing at times. Reading others' reviews has helped, and now I'm just going to wait till this anxiety goes away. I just hope that it goes away, this anxious feeling is getting on my nerves."

• Vir...
• August 25, 2016

"There is a gap between the known side effects of this drug and doctor education. We placed my child on it unaware that it causes nightmares and violent behavior in children. He did experience both, to the point where he was almost removed from a regular classroom in 3rd grade. I had a nurse friend educate me, and we did take him off. The nightmares and violent outbursts have completely gone. It doesn't happen to all users, but it did for my child. We switched and are managing with saline spray and Flonase with success. It almost ruined my child's life at the time. I also filed a complaint to the FDA on our experience on this as well."

• Mom...
• October 13, 2010

Montelukast "My son has had asthma from the beginning, he was placed on Singulair at 18 months. It did seem to help, but he has now developed side effects, and we have taken him off of it. He becomes very agitated and aggressive. He is normally a very calm and sweet child. It took a while to put two and two together. We took him off, and his sweet nature came back. Truthfully, it scared me how much this medicine affected his mood. It works great for asthma, but we won't use it anymore."

• Ast...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 30, 2019

"I started taking this medicine, montelukast, in May 2019 on Labor Day weekend for asthma. To make a long story short, it is now October, and I officially got diagnosed with severe allergy-induced asthma. I used the Advair pump daily and take this montelukast along with strong allergy meds and then more allergy meds. I haven’t been to the ER ever since I started this montelukast. My concern is serious weight gain. I am a soldier, and I’m pretty active, I weight lift and do CrossFit. Besides not being able to run when I was having asthma attacks, I still do serious weight lifting. I’ve never weighed over 150 lbs in my entire adulthood. Now I've lost my abs and now have a 31-inch waistline from 28 inches. I was also getting daily muscle spasms in my hands and feet, and they are painful (I thought I was dehydrated). Today I quit taking this montelukast. I love that it helped my sudden asthma, but I quit smoking."

• tco...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 28, 2018

"This drug gave me back my life. I have cough variant asthma and flare-ups would last for months. I would have violent coughing several times an hour. This takes the 'itch' or 'tickle' away, so I no longer feel like I need to cough. It also helps with the feeling I need to clear my throat. A godsend."

• Ddr...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 15, 2018

"I went on montelukast three weeks ago. I have had no prior mental difficulties, anxiety, or depression. Three weeks later, I’m experiencing agitation, anxiety, nightmares (which I haven’t had since I was a child). I’m a 52-year-old woman. I’m irritated, and my thoughts race. As far as those racing thoughts... I seem to get obsessed on a subject, and I can’t stop googling, looking, checking, and doing something related to that topic! Every day it’s something new to obsess over. A close friend who is a psychologist looked at the side effects of montelukast and said CALL YOUR DOCTOR. NOW. She also gave me the phone number of a psychiatrist. I called both my pulmonologist who prescribed and the psychologist. Ugh. This stuff works wonderfully, but quite seriously, I’d rather just cough and have asthma attacks."

• WAT...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• March 28, 2017

"My daughter has taken this for about 8 years. She's always seemed to have extreme emotional reactions to the smallest things. I asked her doctor multiple times if it might be the montelukast she takes causing this. The doctor said, 'No, reported side effects just happen when the child starts taking it. Must just be her personality.' I know what is normal, and her reactions were extreme. Everything came to a head this past winter when she started having obsessions about eternity. We took her off the montelukast. About 2 weeks later, she had a psychotic break. She was crying all day, saying she didn't want to exist. It has taken 2 months to get her back to semi-normal. This drug is not good for children! Her experience is not unusual!"

• Got...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 19, 2016

"I am now 48 and have been taking Singulair for 2+ years, and it is truly a medical drug for allergy-induced asthma. I love it! I could not breathe, and the phlegm would not move. Now, whatever phlegm there is moves very productively, and I do not wheeze at night anymore. It saved my life!"

• Bin...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 12, 2019

"I was diagnosed with allergies/asthma at 3. I’m now 44. I started smoking at 17, and since then, I've never really had attacks unless I caught a cold. I got sick last fall with what we thought was bronchitis. I quit smoking, I was so bad. For the next 6 months, I was at the ER 6 times and on prednisone 5 times. I was told to give it time for my lungs to heal. Last month, my brilliant new doctor put me on this medication. I can’t say enough about how this has helped me. I can actually feel it working. This may sound crazy, but I will start to feel my chest start to tighten, then it stops. Whereas before, when I would feel it tighten up, I would start wheezing and coughing. I have not had any issues with side effects, but I’m already on Prozac. At this time, as out of control as my asthma was, I would live with nightmares if I had to. For myself, this medication is as important to me as air!!"

• Mat...
• June 17, 2013

"This review will not completely apply to most people as I am bipolar II and am extremely sensitive to some kinds of medicines. It normally takes me a very long time to fall asleep (sometimes until dawn), but once I am, I stay asleep and get plenty of rest. On Singulair, I once couldn't fall asleep until about 12:00 in the afternoon after going to bed at 11:00 pm the night before, and I would often wake up multiple times while sleeping. My anxiety was much higher, I was significantly more depressed, and my previously very well-stabilized mood was once again destabilized. I also had some water retention, weight gain. Was absolutely amazing for my asthma though, so I guess that's something. Really wish it played nice with my sleep and bipolar."

• Mar...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 17, 2024

"Like everyone else, I was scared to death to try this. As I moved closer to menopause, my allergies got worse, and asthma started. Antihistamines and inhaled steroids weren't helping me very much, I was very frustrated. Finally, I decided to try the Montelukast - that night I felt both nostrils open up for the first time in years! I've been on it for over a year now and am so thankful I decided to try it, for me, it's been life-changing. I can enjoy the outdoors again and rarely need to reach for my inhaler. I have the MTHFR gene mutations, so I worried about mood issues. In the first couple of weeks, I did feel more short-tempered, but that went away. I also take a methylated B complex. If you have allergies and asthma combined, TRY THIS!"

• Jud...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 5, 2017

"When my asthma drug was discontinued, I started taking montelukast with horrible side effects! For a week or so, the asthma improved, and I was very happy, but then I slowly developed some type of breathing problem unrelated to asthma. My breathing was very heavy, and I had chest discomfort and could barely walk to the bathroom. Feeling of extreme anxiety and felt like I was suffocating. I tried to do controlled breathing for hyperventilation in case this was the problem. I don't know if the drug caused me to hyperventilate or if it caused such anxiety that I hyperventilated on my own or if it was some other kind of breathing difficulty. I stopped the drug, and it took about 3 weeks for symptoms to leave permanently."