I've got some very bad ragweed allergies, and have been taking an over the counter generic Claritin clone. The pills are 10mg size and advertised as "24 hour". They seem to work a little bit for me, but not anywhere near a 24 hour length of time. Is there any danger in taking this more frequently? Will it do anything to make it work better?


Last year I had a prescription for allegra, and it didn't do jack shit. I could tell no difference when I was using it vs. not. Went back to the doc and he added in some eye drops (patanol) and a steroid nasal spray (nasacort). The combination seemed to work well, but I'd rather not go back and do that again because I fuggin hate the nasal spray. This claratin stuff is the only pill form allergy med (other than benadry ... zzzzz) I've found that seems to do anything noticeable for me at all (and it doesn't do much). If I can get it to work better by taking more ... I will.

well Im not a doc. but my wife and son has allergies and she asked the doc about taking 2 pills instead of one and he said no don't do it. on another note claritin is over the counter you might want to go to that sometimes generic aint the best.  son has been taking it and no sneezing watery eyes ect...

We were always told when we were on Claritin not to take more tha 1!!! Talk to your doctor there are different allergie meds that you can try,you just have t find the right combination.

SUDAFED aisle 5

Quoted: SUDAFED aisle 5

wow thanks

immunotherapy, aka allergy shots.  i've been taking the therapy for a little more than a year now and i'm seein' some big time relief.  i used to have BAD allergies and now have very little trouble.  speaking to an allergist about all this would definitely be in your best interest.  best of luck- that crap is miserable.

-Grant

ZYRTEC

Zyrtec is a good choice if the others don't work and if your insurance company jacks with you, get your doctor to file a "Prior Authorization" requests stating the meds you've tried that haven't worked.

Don't take more than one Claritin (or mix it with anything, like adding Benadryl), it will dry your sinuses up beyone belief and you will have real problems.

Good luck with it, allergies suck!

EAM  

I am also very allergic to ragweed and have a few other hayfever-type allergies.  Sudafed-Plus does the job for me and I typically just need one a day.  It does tend to jack up blood pressure, which is the one bad side effect.

GunLvr

Take your Claritin in the AM and then a single dose of benadryl at bedtime. Not more than that for now.
Typically takes several meds to get relief if severe. I usually start out with what your doc told you to use and it is a good combo.
You can also take Singulair along with the loratadine. This also is an effective combo.

Combining with sudafed(pseudoephedrine) can also be helpful if not already in your laratadine--check the label.

Sometimes different antihistamines work better for certain individuals. Ask you doc for some samples to try if he has any left!

There's always allergy shots!

I'm no doctor either, but my girlfriend suffers from horrendous allergies and associated problems (nasal polyps like a mofo.. Don't get me started.)  Anyway, before they roto-rootered her sinuses out, she was on a whole host of steroid snorters and puffers, but when things got bad she hit the Claritin-D.  Claritin alone didn't do much for her, but the -D dried her out real good.  It's the same stuff with a dose of another common OTC decongestant, pseudoephedrine (Sudafed) I believe, but the combo seemed to work well for her.  The absolute best thing she did though, was to find herself a doctor that she trusted and who was willing to work with her on the medications.  Long term steroid use might clean the nose up, but what's it doing to the rest of you?

Quoted: Take your Claritin in the AM and then a single dose of benadryl at bedtime. Not more than that for now. Typically takes several meds to get relief if severe. I usually start out with what your doc told you to use and it is a good combo. You can also take Singulair along with the loratadine. This also is an effective combo. Combining with sudafed(pseudoephedrine) can also be helpful if not already in your laratadine--check the label. Sometimes different antihistamines work better for certain individuals. Ask you doc for some samples to try if he has any left! There's always allergy shots!

Thanks for the advice.

I'm trying to go without visiting the doc this year. The claratin (mine is the non-d version) is putting enough of a dent in the problem that it's tolerable, but it doesn't last the advertised 24 hours (more like 20). I've been taking it at about 7 am every day ... now that I know I can safely take a benadryl along with it for those last hours of the day, I think it will work out fairly well.

I'm planning on moving up to minneapolis at the beginning of next year. After that move is done, I'm going to hook up with a doc and see if the allergy shots can do anything for me.

What is singulair? Is that another antihistamine, or a decongestant of some kind? Is it OTC, or would I have to pay for an office visit?

Quoted:  Long term steroid use might clean the nose up, but what's it doing to the rest of you?

Yeah, I get nervous about that. I'm only hit by ragweed, so when I use the steroid sprays, it's only for a month or two at a time, but I don't trust that stuff. I read one blurb on a website (yeah, I know) saying that if you inhale the things too much it can screw with other parts of your body, including your eyes. Since I've got a serous problem with thin retinas I'm not going to do anything that has even a remote chance of screwing them up anymore than they already are.

Drjarhead gives good advice.  Short-term, you can also use Afrin spray, or the generic equivalent ( no more than 3 or 4 days) for sneezing and congestion.  A nasal steroid spray can work very well too, but a prescription is req'd.  There is no harm in taking the OTC loratadine twice a day.

Singulair is a leukotriene inhibitor useful for asthma and allergies.
It requires a prescription.

The loratadine(Claritin) is not something I would tell you to double up on. While it is unlikely to be harmful, I would never recommend exceeding the prescription dose without actually seeing you and evaluating other risks.

Allegra with Flonase has worked great for me.

My toxicology training tells me that the second generation H-1 antagonists are basically harmless, especially at less than two to four times the therapeutic dose.  I think Goldfrank would put them in the "wimpy" category when it comes to toxicity.