Question

[juliewolf]

:hello: , I'm Julie, new to this forum. Not however new to seizures. I was diagnosed with epilepsy at age 7, I am now 27. My doctor told me that I would grow out of it and unfortuntaley... I am still waiting. I have hade a few grand mals, not any fun. Now I only have them at around 5 in the morning and they are focal facials. Just enough of a pain to make me sit up in bed and hold my breath for awhile. I have taken alot of different pills. It seem like every year or so the meds I am on decided that they aren't going to work anymore so I end up in the ER and get changed. Right now I am taking Vimpat, 150 in morning and 200 at night. As well as generic Dilantin, 200 bid.
My problem has been my allergies lately. I have never had them this bad! My eyes, nose, ears and mouth all itch likey crazy. I had been taking Claritin and it kinda worked. When I ran out, my next trip to Wal-Mart I got benadryl. For the past week and 1/2 I have been having auras. Mine are in my nose. I know... strange. I started having my seizures about a week ago and it was progressively getting worse. That is how I found this site, I was wondering if benadryl could have been the culprit. Ends up.. it was. But I still need to take some sort of antihistamine! So my questine is, if I start taking the Singular that my reg. doctor has prescribed is the same thing going to happen?? Thanks for all the input.

 

[Nakamova]

Technically, Singulair's not an antihistamine, but it's still a pretty powerful med. I couldn't find any particular warning about taking it with epilepsy, but its potential side effects might be rough on someone with a lowered seizure threshold:

Side effects include gastrointestinal disturbances, hypersensitivity reactions, sleep disorders and increased bleeding tendency. Mood changes and suicidal thoughts are possible side effects of drugs in this class. The drug is associated with a possible increase in suicidal behaviour and other side effects such as agitation, aggression, anxiousness, dream abnormalities and hallucinations, depression, irritability, restlessness and tremor.

You might want to check with your doctor and your pharmacist, and if you must take Singulair, try the smallest possible dose.

 

[difenbaker]

I had some pretty gnarly side effects from the adult dose of singulair but do fine with the kids chewable ones. It works on luekotrienes (that doesn't look spelled right sorry). I've taken it for allergies and asthma. I always found it works great. Especially during the bad allergy times. I would just be careful with some of the more uncommon and rare side effects. I had suicidal ideation on the adult dose. Who would have ever thought it was the allergy meds. But they pulled me off and it stopped. So just keep your eyes peeled. But it is a great med otherwise. I do still take the kids dose if my allergies are awful.

 

[Nakamova]

The chewable form of Singulair contains aspartame, so if you're sensitive to that, be careful.

 

[Blythe]

Welcome

I took singular as well as many other medications to control my asthma and allergies. In those days in my twenties, controlling my asthma was foremost on my mind because I can would end up in ER with asthma attack. You are 27, make sure your bones are healthy. Get a bit D level, a baseline bone density. Read up on how Dilantin over time weakens bones and contributes uses to fractures latter in life. I took Dilantin for 20 years. Just read today that it was noted in the 1960's that institutionalized patients with Epilepsy had high risk of fractures. Does your doc counsel you on this. I was never counseled by my neurologist of increased fractures.