Anyone use an antihistamine that doesn’t cause anxiety?

[EveHarrington]

I know that all antihistamines can cause anxiety....

I’m wondering if anyone has a personal experience with an antihistamine not giving them anxiety?

I took Zyrtec for about five days and now my anxiety is through the roof.

Benadryl doesn’t give me anxiety, but it also knocks me out. (I’ll take some tonight.)

Has anyone had luck with anything else? I know I’ll have to try on my own, but I’d like to at least have a starting point.

Thanks!

 

[digger]

Some drugs and brands go by different names in the UK than in the states. Benadryl here is acrivastine and I haven't noticed any anxiety increase for myself with that (The benadryl sold in the US is actually sold as a sleep aid here under a different brand name rather than as an antihistamine) Acrivastine doesn't cause drowsiness but I don't know if it's sold under the same name in the US.
I also regularly use cetirizine without any noticeable anxiety issues, but I think that might be zyrtec?

 

[barefoot]

I use certirizine hydrochloride though, as digger says, I think that may be Zyrtec.

I used Loratadine for a long time before that but swapped to certirizine hydrochloride as I felt that the Loratadine had become less effective in terms of hay fever/allergies after taking it for so long. It was still decent though and I didn’t notice any anxiety issues.

I also use nasal sprays. Have used Beconase successfully for years - good for allergies/hay fever/any kind of congestion and no issues re anxiety. Not sure if that is an antihistamine or something else though?! I’ve just swapped to another one, which is stronger - can’t remember the name of it but happy to find out and post it here if that would be helpful.

 

[digger]

Beconase successfully for years - good for allergies/hay fever/any kind of congestion and no issues re anxiety. Not sure if that is an antihistamine or something else though?

Beconase is a corticosteroid nasal spray (beclometasone dipropionate) - I'm on it (prescribed) pretty much permanently for sinus and allergy problems. It does help but because I'm on it all the time I'm not sure about whether it affects anxiety for me. It does help with the allergies a bit though. Depends what you need the antihistamine for @EveHarrington?

Decongestants (sprays or tablets) on the other hand definitely seem to spike my anxiety.

 

[barefoot]

Thanks for providing the extra info @digger!
I use nasal sprays throughout spring/summer and then a bit ad hoc during non-hay fever time when I have congestion. I basically sound like I’ve got a cold most of the time :rolleyes:
Haven’t noticed any anxiety link.
So, if you want something to help with congestion/sneeziness @EveHarrington a spray might be worth a try?

 

[Daph]

I used to take aerius (desloratadine) and was okay. But what has worked for me, is I generally take a full dose for a a couple days/week, until symptoms seem somewhat controlled, and then start breaking the pills in half as sort of maintenance of what has been built up in my body. One doctor suggested that for me.

But I believe the ones that have the least effect on anxiety is Claritin (loratadine) without the sinus portion/med pseudoephedrine, the cetirizine (which I think you said you tried already), and Allegra (fexofenadine).

It is sort of that lovely trial and error process.... :-(

OR! I bet you could rock one of those sexy heavy duty industrial masks with the filters :D

 

[littleoc]

I agree with @Daph and @barefoot -- Loratadine seems to work for me pretty well :)

 

[EveHarrington]

I am doing research now for the future.

I am ok where I am, where I currently live, as I grew up here and the native pollens and such don’t bother me.

However, when I am elsewhere in the spring, my allergies kick in.

I was in Florida for a week visiting my sister and my allergies kicked into high gear.

I’m keeping my fingers crossed that now that I’m back home, they’ll go away as I typically don’t have spring allergies here. It has gotten better. (I go running outside around many pollinating trees and it doesn’t seem to bother me.)

No more Zyrtec for me! My anxiety is horrendous and I have crying spells throughout the day. I can’t wait for this stuff to be out of my system!

 

[Tornadic Thoughts]

Have you ever tried diy acupressure for anything? I've found it helpful for sinus stuff in the past, but it took a while to get comfortable doing it because it was yet another weird thing that was foreign to me until I tried acupuncture.

I haven't had any severe allergies/colds since I changed my diet, which still amazes me as i used to be a frequent flyer in mucusville (knock on wood) but I do tend to wake with a head full of technicolor yellow crap the day after a heavy spray day, each and every time. (when the man-made "clouds"/trails/various experiments are thick and block out the sun and such)

Might be worth a shot and it's free. Here's an example of what I'm talking about (he demonstrates the specific point for antihistamine relief is at 4:17 if you wish to skip the rest):Sinus Congestion Acupressure Points
May relief and calm energies find their way soon.

 

[EveHarrington]

Have you ever tried diy acupressure for anything? I've found it helpful for sinus stuff in t...

Thanks! I’ll check it out!

Thanks for providing the extra info @digger!
I use nasal sprays throughout spring/s...

I’ve tried sprays in the past and they never did much for me. It was a prescription, not sure exactly what the name was though.

 

[Victory]

Benadryl, but only in the "dye-free" gel capsule form, and I do it only once a day, at night. This is with the blessings of my doctor who agrees that it helps dampen anxiety. The problem is that I have to skip a few nights whenever I can because I seem to built a tolerance to it very fast. I cannot tolerate any meds or supplements with dyes or fillers like potato or corn starch. Those make me vibrate in place. :)

 

[EveHarrington]

Benadryl, but only in the "dye-free" gel capsule form, and I do it only once a day, at night. This is...

Yep, that’s the same kind of Benadryl I take. I took some last night and today is a good day.

My allergy symptoms are nearly gone, thank goodness. I’m glad I was only reacting to pollen in Florida!