Itching Withdrawal From Cetirizine Or Zyrtec (Page 8)

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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Well my cold turkey has not lasted. I had to take half a tablet on Sun night and another half last night. So I've taken 2 x 10mg since Thursday morning. I didn't believe it was possible to itch so much. I was literally tearing my skin off, my feet were so swollen. So I've decided to go as long as I can and then take a tiny bit and try and wean that way. One of my main issues is that I work on front of house at a fitness centre and pool and itching in front of clients is not that good! What foods have you all been eating then? I've been taking the vit C but my worst itching was on Sunday night when I was feeling extremely tired and slightly worse for wear after a staff night out Saturday night, so maybe not feeling on top form makes it worse? So glad I'm not alone in all this, it's horrible. x

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I am just over a year since going cold turkey off zyrtec. I took it for food allergies like my doctor recommended. I am for some reason suffering more than most people who go off this horrible drug. The first 2 weeks I could not even go to work, I went to the E.R. was put on steriods and told to go back on the zyrtec. I will never take an antihistamine again. My feet, hands, and scalp are the worst. My hair turned into a ball of straw, very hard to mannage and lots of hair loss, it is listed as a rare side affect. I am lucky I had a lot of curly hair before this nighmare began. I just wanted to share my resent struggle. I came down with a nasty cold and took Nite-quill every night for 6 days and I suffered a serious set back, I am itching like crazy again. It is depressing. I am beginning to wonder if I am every going to fully recover from this. I know some people said it took them many months but this is something I continue to deal with. I try my best to eat healthy, no processed food, gluten free, fruits and veggies everyday. I work out and I am still itching, my scalp, and mostly my feet, my hands are not as bad anymore. i feel for everyone going through this horrible withdrawal. Hang in there and don't give up.

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I am on five days off the Zyrtec and I just found this website. I am going to try this approach. thelowhistaminechef.com
Along with the diet, they mentioned Holy Basil as a herb that can calm histamine reactions and I tried it and it seems to be working. I put the powder in a cup of tea. I feel it has to be a stomach/food/digestion problem. I have never had any real uncomfortable allergies but maybe as I get older I am developing them. Will post my progress. Susan PS I hate the swollen toes and fingers..I have that too.

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Hi everyone - Carly here!! Last early week I saw a holistic doctor who has suggested I take the following natural supplements - Curcumax Pro 1 tab 2x per day and Isoqercetin - 1tab 3x per day and using a neti-pot twice a day. On a side note last Saturday I also had a Craniosacral therapy massage that one of the benefits can be a reduction in sinus swelling - i must repoat that i have no allergy symptoms! However as the weather here in my region is beginning to turn spring(ish) my itching CAME BACK!! But taking the supplements as mentioned above has curtailed the itching !! Hang in there!!!

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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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I have been off of OTC Zyrtec for 7 weeks now, my last post was on Day 22! So here is my update--- I have to say that I am much happier off this drug. I get the occasional "hot spots" and itch pretty bad, but overall I am itch free and not in need of this drug. I have not replaced with anything else either even with experiencing some mild seasonal allergy complaints. I am happy I decided to get off of this drug...

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I am a month and 3 days off the drug. My hives and itching have disappeared considerably with an occasional tiny flare so I know the histamine level is still high in my body. My problem now is that I am reacting to food when I eat so I have to eat a very low histamine diet. My body has not calmed down from the rebound affect of getting off the drug. I am getting tested for everything under the sun now as I never had any food allergies or problems like this before. Susan

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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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Simon..getting off completely is horrible!!! I am off 5 weeks and still getting problems. Research excess Histamine and Histamine Intolerance on the web as you may go through this like I am when going off. You get some miserable symptoms..Susan

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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 Simon,
Ii am going through a histamine revolt in my system right now and have resorted to some Zantac H-2 blocker for my stomach problems and a tiny dose of Allegra and I am afraid I may end up back on the Zyrtec. This is getting worse each week and my stomach is so out of whack. I sometimes can not eat until later in the day when the histamine levels drop. The problem with the Allegra is it also gives me a bad stomach and you can not take hearttburn meds for 2 hours. I wonder if our stomachs cause the hives in the first place..acid reflux and inflammation. The hives are still around but not as annoying and not bad enough to take meds, but once in awhile on a bad day, I feel them burning under the skin. I may have to resort to all kinds of gastro tests now. I almost wish I stayed on the zyrtec with the way I feel. Anyway..a good website is "The Low Histamine Chef" . Will keep you posted. Susan

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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 so glad I found this post! I've been taking Life Brand allergy medication for over 3 yrs now. I started taking it because I lived with my sister who had 2 dogs and was also smoking in the house. We lived together only 2 months and I still HAVE to take this medication. I've tried stopping on numerous occasions but the itchiness drives me mad and I end up taking a pill again. Battle for 3 years now. Now that I know it's withdrawl and not allergy symptoms, I will try to tough it out. Getting headaches too though!!

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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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