Benadryl Question...

Welcome to the Coping With Epilepsy Forums

Welcome to the Coping With Epilepsy forums - a peer support community for folks dealing (directly or indirectly) with seizure disorders. You can visit the forum page to see the list of forum nodes (categories/rooms) for topics.

Please have a look around and if you like what you see, please consider registering an account and joining the discussions. When you register an account and log in, you may enjoy additional benefits including no ads, access to members only (ie. private) forum nodes and more. Registering an account is free - you have nothing to lose!

momof3boys

momof3boys

Account Closed
Inactive
Messages
2,284
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Who here has taken Benadryl and has had a bad reaction to it?

Im asking because today while my mom was here, we were talking about how I wished I could take sudafed for a cold or allergies. She's asked about how good I was sleeping at night, and I said some nights are harder to get to sleep than others. But there were some nights I would take a benadryl that would help.

Then it got me to thinking.... I cant think back to remember if I did take a benadryl on the night of Jan 21st, the night I had my first seizure since this has all started.

The seizures and auras have continued since... and because my neuro wouldnt prescribe me ativan, I didnt have a whole lot on hand, and was having seizures at night, I took a benadryl at night to help me sleep, thinking if I got enough sleep, it wouldnt cause a seizure to occur most likely. But now, thinking back, some of those nights I did take the benadryl, I was having seizures or auras constantly.

So, Im going to try to see if by stopping the benadryl, will it stop the auras and seizures too? :ponder:

Its weird because prior to just being on the keppra xr alone, I was taking carbatrol and keppra xr, and took sudafed, and had no problems. But then after they took me off the carbatrol and I was only on Keppra xr, I took sudafed and had seiuzres. So I wonder if the benadryl over time, is doing the same thing? Causing seizures to come about?

Im praying thats the case here. I just want all of this to stop!

But i thought id ask here to see if anyone else had problems with benadryl too?
 
I just didnt know if the Benadryl was linked to the seizures or auras I was having?

I didnt take a benadryl last night, and didnt have any seizures, but I woke up at 3am and couldnt sleep at all.
 
Yeah Ive been using the melatonin. My husband has monday and tuesday off, and there are some nights where I feel tired, but cant get to sleep. The melatonin at times will work ok, but there are those nights where I wish I could just have a really good night's sleep. So on occassion I would take a benadryl at night and sleep really good. Ive done some nights... maybe a few times a month... but I was trying to recall back to the night of Jan 21 when I went to bed, if I did in fact take a benadryl that night. I know it was a sunday night, and my husband would have been home the next couple of days. So its possible I could have taken one. Which might have caused the seizures. But i cant recall if I did. All i know is that when the seizures did come about, of course I didnt have alot of ativan on hand becuase my neurologist wouldnt prescribe it to me. So when I was having the complex partial seizures, the ativan I did have on hand, I would take, which is .5mg tablets. Not much at all. Then that next night, in order to avoid waking up easier, which when I did, I would have the auras or seizures come with it, I decided to take a benadryl to help me sleep. It could be from that, but I dont know for sure.

Last night I didnt take a benadryl, and took melatonin before goign to bed. I woke up at 3am having auras,,, and it wasnt til around 4:15am that I said to hell with it... got up, took another melatonin and finally feel back to sleep. I woke up at 6:40am when the alarm went off and I was dead tired. Im going to go lay back down soon... just needed to check a few things on the internet.
 
momof3boys:

If you're on any type of anti-epileptic drugs, you should avoid anything with antihistimine in it like most cold and flu meds.as well as some alergy meds.
It is very well documented that antihystimine is a seizure trigger if combined with any anti-epileptic drugs.

Originally Posted by RanMan :
Forward2007,

I just had to add my piece, it's from an earlier post:

check with your pharmasist or Dr. but if you are on ANY anti-epileptic drugs, definately don't take any over the counter cold or flu meds (anything containing antihystimine and/or decongestant as the chemical reaction CAN be fatal.)

I speak from 34 years experience of being on anti-epileptic drugs.
I was told (and experienced myself) internal bleeding or nose bleeds from most headache meds exept Tylonol. That's the only one that I can take that doesn't react to my seizure meds.

It is also a known seizure trigger.

I can't take aspirin, IB Profen, Advil, Exederin, Nyquil, Benadryl or Motrin, just Tylonol.
This is more of a problem in my case because I also take meds for my ulcerative colitis.

This warning is not documented on any OTC cold/flu meds literature.
I don't know why the FDA doesn't make this info manditory.

Regards

Randy
__________________
Diagnosed with epilepsy and ulcerative colitis in 1979,
Been on meds ever since.

275mg-dilantin/day
120mg-pheonobarb/day
3,000mg-Mesasol/day
 
I was taking Zirtek regularly for itching there all along the same lines, within hour of taking this I would have a seizure so cannot take these anymore same with paracetemol too.
 
This is all good to know. I just wonder why someone couldn't type it up and hand it out at the pharmacy.

I take motrin as my main pain reliever, and from what i gather this probably isn't the greatest idea?
 
Motrin isn't a known seizure trigger the way antihistamines are. It should be safe unless you have a particular sensitivity to it, or have other health issues (as RanMan does) that may make it problematic.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom