Benedryl and BiPolar
 

Has anyone had an adverse reaction to Benedryl. A couple of days ago I took benedryl because of really bad itching and suddenly I started feeling all panicky. I thought I was about to loose my mind. So much so that I had to take my anti-anxiety meds quick.
Has this happened to anyone else?

Most people take Benedryl to relax. It is the "active ingredient" for Sominex and all the other OTC sleeping aids. Many people take it (and doctors prescribe it) for reducing anxiety - as a mild tranquilizer.

Have you taken Benedryl in the past? How many milligrams did you take? I would suggest your calling your pharmacist to ask about this - or better, ask our OWN resource, MrsD. If she doesn't know it off the top of her head, she knows where to go to find out.

I don't know if it could be related in any sense, but when I was bitten by a rattlesnake, I immediately took 100mg of benedryl (it is a regular daily used med for me) ... and the first thing they did at the ER was hook me up to an IV and give me benedryl. And it caused me to develop a bright red streak up my arm, the length of the vein, and they d/c'd it immediately. Not the usual response, I gathered. I had no other symptoms of any kind. Don't have a clue what was happening in my body to cause that to happen.

Having the complete opposite reaction to a medication from what the USUAL reaction is that same medication is called having a Paradoxical Reaction.

A mood stabilizer (like Depakote) that normally reduces agitation and impulsiveness in MOST people will have the opposite effect (paradoxical) in SOME people, causing them to become rageful and prone to violence. However, on a different kind of mood stabilizer (another kind of anti-seizure med), that same person will have the expected "normal" response, showing that it was drug specific, not generalized to the class of medication.

It has been said that "paradoxical reaction" is why ADD/ADHD children and adults are able to settle down, focus and filter out extraneous distracting environmental input when given Ritalin. This is a paradoxical reaction to what it does to "normal children and adults" -- jazzing them up and making thoughts come quicker, giving more energy to get up and move around.

Teri

Hi,
I can only take Benedryl once. On the second night in a row it doesn't work. I don't know what happens on the third night -- never tried.
Sorry that you went through that.
Mari

Reaction
 

One time I had really bad hives, the finger length raised welts started at my scalp, face, to chest and warmest areas of my body. They gave me Benydryl, 50 mg but a shot and I had anxiety, rapid heart racing feeling.

It did subside.
Another time for a worse migraine, cervogenic headpain flare from muscle spasms they gave me compasine shot and I thought I would crawl out of skin, I had to rip off everything touching me wanted to leave right then before they harmed me. Doc's came in and in unison said compasine reaction. I had ativan and was Ok.

I never want the compasine again!
The other thing that races me and anxious is my albuteral when I ahve a flare.

I think the thing must be what it does to restrict or dialate the blood vessels and how the body reacts.Maybe heart rate, blood pressure, too much dopamine release I am not sure but it is scary and not pleasant.

I can take bendryl Ok, a few, but not a big dose.
My youngest gets hyperactive on it complete opposite from what normal reaction is to kids. She bounces off walls.

Di

The Benedryl Kid
 

Too much Benedryl can make you want to jump out of your skin. Can't sit still...

My mother used to give it to me and my brother like it was candy. This was back in the early 70's and it came as a liquid which the pediatrician prescribed freely. She gave it to us as a sleeping aid. A nice early exposure to a dependency on drugs.

Too much Benedryl (diphenhydramine) has made me feel like jumping out of my skin. But that was after a pretty big dose given IV in the ER as a rememdy for the side effects (dystonic reaction) of yet a different drug (which I wasn't supposed to be taking).

Smaller dosages (50mg) work really well as an antihistamine and sleep aid on a short term basis. When my 'real' meds aren't quite working sometimes I'll add a little Benedryl and it often does the trick to settle me down.

Benadryl is a box of chock-lates...
 

Benadryl is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get.

I don't anyway: sometimes somnolence, sometimes huge paradoxical reaction - very very activating. the worst was as one person described - like a panic attack.

I will not take it if avoidable, and never for sleep. But from the times that i used it as an antihistamine, 25 mg were usually "safe", might or not make me groggy. With 50mg (most i have taken) more likely i become Jumpin' Jack Flash... and it ain't no gas!

But I'm really not sure... it seems like once i took 50 and it was a knockout. back to square 1. me+benadryl = ???????

fwiw i have had occasional paradoxical reactions with other antihistamines, including the one i usually use - Chlortrimeton. But nothing in the extremes of Benadryl. When I first saw ppl here given it for sleep here I was like... :eek: :D

I read that paradoxical reactions to antihistamines are quite common in children. Perhaps because kids are already in "high gear" and thus more predisposed?

~ waves ~

Thanks everyone. To answer your question, I took only 1 25 mg OTC pill of Benedryl. I had switched meds recently and unfortunately a side effect in the beginning is the itching. Now that the itching is gone, I am not taking it anymore.
I had been taking benedryl for quite a while in the past and this was the first time I needed it. I normally take Claritin for allergies.
Again, thanks everyone for your input. It helps me understand this confusing jungle.

I saw this post and thought I'd stop to say I cannot take Benedryl without feeling panicky or anxious. My son, as a child, could not tolerate it either...he'd become really wired and have night terrors. I think it is one of those that says "may cause drowsiness or hyperactivity"... it effects people differently. It also makes me sick to my stomach, and it did this too my husband recently as well.

Cara

I took benadryl for 2 years as a sleep aid...worked great!
then it stopped.
very sad day....
as has been stated above, some folks have the exact opposite effect from htis med.
Most people take some form of benadryl for the sedative effect as opposed to the antihistamine effect.
I wish it still worked for me...I took lunesta for a year then that stopped...and currently...hoping that the ambien cr 12mg works until they come up with another new sleeping pill.
I have heard that some people take this while trying to taper off of tranquilizers.
I wish you well.
bizi

benedryl knocks me out if I take more than 25 mg. I have to take it for hives sometimes.

I am glad you don't have to take it anymore.

befuddled2

I have taken benedryl in the past, it did help me sleep, and it also helped for a cold or my sinuses, I can't remember.

I didn't have any side effects though.

Hugs, Nikko

I can't take Benedryl either. While dealing with my insomnia (all 10 years worth) I tried it at various times but I would get the heart-racing-panicky-feeling rather than the sleepy-feeling.

by the way, I finally decided to join you all - from Braintalk. I probably won't post much but I check in just about every day to see how you all are....

I take benedryl on a regular basis for migraines and to help me sleep I have always noticed that about the first hour I take it (no matter how bad I felt before taking it) I have this surge of energy before it makes me sleepy but it always does eventually calm down.

I think that I have an allergy or some other permanent sinus condition. It seems that virtually anything, (e.g. a change in the weather), can set my nose running. A year or so ago, I decided to add Benedryl to my maintenance meds. The effect of this, which I didn't notice until it happened about four times, was that every six weeks I would crash. That is, I would sleep for sixteen to twenty hours. Once I stopped the Benedryl, this stopped as well.

The same thing happened to me as a child. I was under the doctor's care at the time, so it was verified as a true reaction. I am assuming that it is the Fibromyalgia, but it could be manic. I have also had the same reaction to Versaid and Sublimaze (sp) which are meds that are supposed to put you out. I am so glad that I am not alone.:grouphug:

Dear Naja,

:welcome_sign:

Mari

I see this is an old thread...
 

but I will chime in anyway.

Benadryl (diphenhydramine) is related to the phenothiazine family of antipsychotics. Its tranquilizer potential is much less.
It however is a strong anticholinergic (causes dry mouth, dry eyes and will dry out membranes and perhaps make sinus worse over time). It also works on some receptors in the brain--you can read about it here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diphenhydramine

Children often have paradoxical reactions to it...leading to agitation etc. Typically they outgrow that. Many drugs have paradoxical effects in children since their brains are not developed. Some adults retain that reaction.

As people age, Benadryl is in the "do not use" category, because anticholinergics are not handled well in the elderly.
It can cause dementia-like confusion.

Benadryl is also used for some dystonias, especially those caused by drugs like Risperdal and Geodon.

It remains a potent antihistamine and is lipophilic and crosses the blood brain barrier to cause sedation. It blocks the neurotransmitter effects of histamine in the brain. Many people do not know that histamine is a neurotransmitter that is thought to be the "releaser" for other neurotransmitters. This is why it is so complex and hard on some people.

Many products for cough/cold/sleep now have doxylamine in them
instead of other antihistamines. Unisom and Nyquil are examples.

I've used Benadryl for years...but had to give it up. My doctor kept at me, and I did notice the drying effects on my eyes and nose were becoming significant. I've switched to 1/2 dose Zyrtec (5mg). I can't tolerate the full 10mg dose of that either, but it is working for me at 5mg as an antihistamine.
It does nothing for me for sleeping...in fact 10mg keeps me awake. Zyrtec is related to Atarax, with less sedation. It is chemically similar to Atarax.

welcome back Mrs. D hope you had a nice vacation!
bizi

I had a so so vacation...
 

I was sick twice. I have some posts scattered on the forums here, if you search me.

A sorbitol reaction from some Hershey's kisses, and a viral assault that resembled my old shingles (stiff neck, photophobia, nausea, ear pain).

It rained ALOT, and I only wore shorts maybe 5 days in all.
It was a cool summer, so I read alot of good books and worked on my flowers, and took pictures with my sort of new camera.

My avatar is a fledgling hummingbird who visited frequently and was pretty tame at first. The rainbow in my signature was a rare event, after one of the many storms. My hubby got a double rainbow pic, which I will scan in soon and post. I have never seen a double rainbow before!

We had many deer events. I have some pics on Pet forum, too.
A raccoon came in the house one night and spooked me when I was alone (my hubby returned to work for a while).
That was not fun. She came in the cat door and ripped open the corn for the deer. I guess I didn't put enough out for HER.
The bunnies were also very tame this season, coming every day.

I would like to add....
 

I've been home now for a couple of days and watching TV.
(we have NO TV where we live for the summers).

I see Singulair being heavily promoted in just the last day or so.
Very engaging ads IMO. The patent must be due to expire soon, because ADS become
more frequent before that event.

I will say I took this when I was working steadily daily, because I am allergic to some drug dusts/residues. This is an occupational hazard for me. Singulair really helped, and especially for my minor asthma.

BUT--- Singulair has been in the news recently for causing DEPRESSION.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/indust...ide-link_N.htm

Two seasons ago I was forced to get a light visor during the winter to help with depression. A major first in my life.
At that time I was using Singulair daily. Now I am getting old, and that is also significant.

But if folks here are considering using Singulair for allergies, be advised that this risk may impact bipolar depression.
Singulair blocks leukotrienes, which are the triggers for releasing histamine, which then causes allergic symptoms.
Since histamine is a neurotransmitter releaser in the brain, it follows that disrupting this sequence may impact mood.
I know it impacts the immune system, because severe infection and/or pneumonia are listed as side effects for Singulair therapy. Leukotrienes are the signals when you become infected with viruses or bacteria that cause infection. Blocking them, removes the signal to your white cells to attack the invader.

Don't assume that if you suddenly become depressed for no reason, that your RX meds could not be a reason. If you are using Singulair, that just might be a trigger for you.

I grew up taking Benadryl for extreme allergies. I felt like I was sleepwalking through much of my childhood. Only recently did my shrink say I'm probably Bi Polar (in addition to chronic major depression). I still take Benadryl as needed but all it does to me is make me a little drowsy, as usual...

As an aside: I was told today to give it to my dog to help calm her down!

Michael in Columbus OH

Welcome to the board Michael! Thanks for sharing your experience with Benadryl, so did it calm your doggie down? :D

Adverse Effects
 

It's weird that you mention this. At the age of fifteen, I had a grand-mal seizure for the first time in my life. It occurred within an hour of me taking Benadryl medication for my allergies. Since, then I have had 6 more seizures, and I was diagnosed with Epilepsy.