Itching Withdrawal From Cetirizine Or Zyrtec (Page 20) (Top voted first)

I want to know how many are suffering from withdrawal from this drug that causes itching all over the body. At the people's pharmacy there is an article about this very problem, yet Zyrtec doesn't list the information on their web site. This is my third attempt to get off of this med and I'm going crazy from the itching.

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I used to have itching from statins and now it seems if I eat foods with niacin like peanuts. I quit taking Zyrtec last week because it wasn't helping. Itching is worse than ever about an hour after meals

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Check out adverse reactions to allergy shots first. You may be better off with your allergies. You may not have them, but its all over Internet.

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I am so glad to find this forum... I have been suffering with joint pain for months; so bad that I had to have an M.R.I. to find out what was going on; some mild arthritis; swelling; it was nothing major but I was still having terrible pain and stiffness in my knees to the point I could hardly get out of bed. Started having some sinus issues started taken some OTC medication and stopped taking my cetirizine. The pain in my knees subsided and I started thinking what had I done differently that would make the pain go away. Then I realized I had stop taking my allergy medication. I started researching and found this forum - little did I know I had been having the same things happen just not realizing what was causing it. I have taken this medication for years and have occasionally missed a dose; believe me it will let you know if you have missed it. The itch is so intense it will drive you crazy. I thought is was my allergies that was causing me to itch that bad. Little did I know it was the medication. I've been three days without it and I can't stand for my clothing to touch me. I feel like I have the chicken pox. Other issues I've encountered since using this medication - weight gain; swelling of feet/legs; dry skin; insomnia; fatigue. This medication needs to be removed from the market and the consumers need to quit being used as lab rats

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That's just crazy, I've been taking cetirizine weekly for the past 6 yrs maybe and thought that this itchinnes which in fact is unbearable is caused by the allergy!! How stupid I was, just realized that lots of folks are having the same symptoms when decided to look for cetirizine side effects. The only thing that really helps with the itchiness is hot water, at least for me. Palm of my hands and feets are usually affected by the itchiness, sometimes I've got itch throat, usually in the middle of the night. Need to stop taking it now. This is just crazy. thanks guys for any tips and for spreading the word.

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Thanks so much for this site and all the replies. I took Zyrtec for about a month through the spring when the pollen was bad. I stopped taking it and had AWFUL headaches for about 5 days after stopping. Then came the ITCHING and Hives..... After day 8 i'm still breaking out and itching with hives all over my body. Sleepless nights. Only BENADRYL would help me sleep at night and keep the hives to a minimal. I found this site on day 9 and couldn't believe what i read and the symptoms of withdraw from a Zyrtec.... Day 10 i took 1 10mg and of course it went away. Im going to take 5mg on day 12 and try and rid it from my system enough that i dont itch and break out in hives. I will keep you posted.

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Hi Susan,

Many thanks for your suggestions, I'm now more than a week since I stopped tking the cetirizine. I've done some research and to be fair I'm scared. Week one after going cetirizine free wasn't that bad, but now it's really bad, itchinnes is sometimes unbearable, like dozens of tiny needles is going through my skin while burning hehe. Since last two days I can't really sleep and got other side effects too, like watery eyes and running nose - but these are fairly non-annoying to be honest.

Trying to take some calcium and high anounts of vit. c as I heard it helps to remove the excess of histmaine from your body. Also heard that the histamine is mainly produced in your guts, so if you have the gut flora in balance you should be allright, unfortunatelly it's not that easy in my case as I've been taking antibiotkics for acne(I'm 30 but got some annoying acne on my face, nothing major but this can be annoying) and this I suppose is not helping either.

Thanks again for your tips.

Regards,
Simon

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Hi Susan,

Sorry to hear that! Personally I'm on the gluten-free diet since last year, not that I have to, but it was my personal choice and it's great, the only problem is that you need a fair amount of fibre(linseed is quite good for this, I'm adding it to the porridge oats during breakfasts).
Unfortunatelly the histamine level in my body is not directly affected by the food I think, as eating processed food(sauerkraut/yoghurts/wine) is not making my body itch more, not-having any of those histamine fueling food is not helping either. I might try a Allegra cream or any other insect-bite type gel, as there's no way I'm gonna eat any more pills.

Stay strong!

Best,
Simon

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Hi Simon,
I also gave up Gluten for the same reasons as you as I know you can still be sensitive without Celiac Disease. You must read the book "Super Immunity" by Dr. Joel Furhman..my bible. OK so today I feel 100% better and it is my second day on Zantac...stomach acid reducer and H-2 antihistamine blocker and I feel so much better!!! I do not believe in taking medicines and always want to get to the route of the problem. But, my Allergist said to try it as I was not reacting well to the H-1 antihistamines because of stomach issues. I wanted to feel better as I am 7 weeks off Zyrtec and sick of feeling sick. The fact that my stomach felt good today and I have no hives is making me think that the route of my problem all started with the over acidity of my stomach to begin with!!!! I may have avoided this whole problem if I had taken some medicine seven months ago as the hives started with horrible heartburn. I still hate taking anything and will look to work harder to get rid of the reflux, but in the meantime I will take a little Zantac every day and let you know. Susan

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I'm in my third week without now. I don't seem to itch as often but when I do, it's bad! It is terrible in the evening!

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This is a terrible drug in my opinion for the values you receive from it. It is repulsing the drug manufacturer does not inform us!
For those who want to get off this drug, you will have to bear the consequences which for some has been several months however, many get relief after several weeks. It took me about a 4-6 weeks and I would NEVER take this medication again! I thought about Benadryl for the itching but they say it has the same histamines.......I think you should consult your physician for his/her recommendation there as you should NEVER take medical advice from a website!!
People should just post their experiences and leave it at that while allowing licensed doctors to do the rest!!

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Well it's been about a month now since I stopped Zyrtec. I thought I would come back here to share my story. I was glad I found this site after I broke out in hives and couldn't stop itching. At least there was hope. Well my story is a little different... Unfortunately at the time I stopped taking Zyrtec my body was reacting to a new herpes outbreak... I still don't know if my body was reacting to the medicine or the new STD... Anyway after 2 weeks of itching the outbreak came. Once the outbreak came the hives and itching went away. I had a new problem to deal with. A week later everything is cleared up itching and the outbreak were gone. I just wanted to say thanks to this site and I hope everyone can successfully get off Zyrtec.

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I googled this info because I was going to go off the allergy med I've been on for a little over a year. I never had allergies before then so I thought maybe I would be ok. And I've now been off for 3 days and cannot sleep because the itching is so bad. I am going to start taking again since reading this. Would rather stay on my allergy med and not have the other allergy problems I had before. This intense itching is making me claw myself. I have claw marks all over me from scratching. I would put a cream on it but I would have to coat my whole body. I may itch in one place one minute and then it moves to another then another then another. It is crazy and I feel like I have ants biting me all over. Ok Zyrtec here I come.

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I had to go back on Zyrtec as I got so sick about two weeks off of it with hives and angioedema and severe gastric symptoms. So far all my testing is normal and I can not figure out what I am reacting to. I stayed off for over two months but I could not function and had to go back on. I will try to bring my body back to a healthy balance and then try to slowly taper it again. Right now I have to follow my doctor's advice as doing it on my own has impacted my quality of life.

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I take 30mg Cetirizine, 300mg of Ranitidine, and one dose of Singulair, I have major scalp itch, and my skin is dry. Also I am having trouble managing my weight. Does anyone know if this combination of drugs can cause weight gain?? My medical condition is aquired angio edema, that presented a few years back, I had serious outbreaks, some almost life threatening. I finally found a dr., that didn't think I was crazy and he put me on these meds. I began taking them last September 2012, and have not had a serious outbreak since. The drugs are working to control my issue, but the itching is enough to drive you crazy.

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I also had a horrible scalp itch last year after getting permanent hair extensions. It was so bad and I used a topical steroid lotion. Then last fall, I got hives after being exposed to too much cold without heat for a week. Stayed on zyrtec for 5 months and tried to go off this past April. I got angioedema so badly, I was never so sick. Look up Mast Cell Activation disorder. I have had every symptom and I need to be on the Zyrtec and Zantac for now and may need some singulair as well. Seeing my allergist today, I feel so much better back on the antihistamines and I hate to take them but this is some kind of autoimmune issue with me as all of my tests are healthy. Susan

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This honestly sounds like aquired or hereditary angio edema. I say thay because you mentioned gastric issues, the disorder causes your digestive tract to swell also, and it is extremely painful. I aslo use this drug for those purposes, and I think I can live with the side effects because having huge outbreaks of hives and swelling was not livable for me.

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Jill,
I started getting so sick about 10 days off the Zyrtec. I started getting the angioedema in my fingers and toes as I started tapering the zyrtec to go off and that should have been a sign that I needed something. The stomach issues were horrible and I had a normal endoscopy and abdominal sonogram. I just showed acid reflux. I just saw my allergist/immunologist and he said that I may have to increase the Zyrtec a little and it kills me to be on this drug. I have no choice as I was so sick, queasy and burping like crazy. I could not eat and lost a lot of weight. I felt like I was dying!! Anyway, now it is 9 days back on the Zyrtec and I am taking 10mg now and I feel better and can eat normally. I would rather take the pill the rest of my life than to feel what I was going through. Susan

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I have to take 30mg a day to stop the angio from occuring. I know your pain. It is a most debilitating disorder.

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Hi there, I've tried many times in the past 3 years to get off of my allergy meds containing Zyrtec. I thought I just needed it when I'd try to stop and get MAJOR itchiness all over, so I'd start it again. Finally I found this blog and decided cold turkey. What a nightmare! For 1 month I itched everywhere!! What helped me is keeping busy, cool and taking Benadryl at bedtime when it was too unbearable. Itching is completely gone now. Funny thing is now my allergies are very minimal, and the darkness under my eyes has decreased! Weird, but I'm happy it's all over! Hang in there guys, it does stop!

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Finally off of zyrtec. I accidentally got off of Zyrtec! I had to take a 6-day regimine of prednizone for an injury I suffered and I hadn't taken zyrtec since before the injury. No torturous itching. I had been on zyrtec for about 4 or 5 years. Not stopping because of the itching. I'm thinking of trying over the counter Allegra...Any word if that would have a similar side affect?

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