Recently my second born little boy was put on claritin for his seasonal allergies. He just turned two and has really been struggling this spring. He was actually throwing up once in the afternoon ever two or three days. I guessed it was because he was nauseated from all the drainage. Anyhow, he started taking claritin and I can not honestly say that I saw any real improvement. However, a few days ago my husband and I noticed that our son was having problems with his balance. He looked wobbly and shaky when walking or trying to play with his toys. He also just seemed a little disoriented... So I immediately took him to the doctor. The doctor was concerned and thought we should do a CT scan to make sure there wasn't something more serious going on. He was concerned about the vomitting and now the balance issues. Eventually it was decided our son would have an MRI done this coming week. Yesterday the nurse called and told us to stop giving our son Claritin. That it had occurred to the doctor that our son could possibly be having an adverse reaction to the medication. Unfortunately, the nurse said it can take up to a week for the medication to leave his system. In the meantime, he is still a bit shaky and wobbly and now I am over analyzing every little thing I see in him. Do any of you mother have any experience on this subject. I need some help and reassurance here. By the way they still want to do the MRI to just be on the safe side. My son has been healthy up until allergies hit about mid April and now we have been on a roller coaster ride! Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Many of you have asked if the doctor first started my son on Zrytec and yes he was. However, he was so wiped out from his allergies even after taking the Zrytec that the doctor wanted to try the Claritin. I wish now that I had never given it to him. My heart is breaking as I watch my little boy struggle with his allergies and now with just trying to walk around without falling or losing his balance. He just looks so clumsy. I am trying my best to hydrate him and yet it is difficult because he isn't much of a drinker. Again thank you all for your help! I will be sure to update everyone as soon as I know anything about the MRI.
If he is old enough to have honey, try giving him a little raw local honey every day for about a month before allergy season starts. It may help to try it now even if he is already sneezing, although I wouldn't give up if it doesn't work. It is like getting a bit of the "hair of the dog that bit you."
K. Loidolt
Author, Shopper's Guide to Healthy Living
This is not a fun. I am sorry to hear. I think an MRI is a little drastic, if things do not improve. I would put off the MRI for another week.
My son used to vomit at least once a day. He always had swollen tonsils, stuffy nose, and a cough. Our first pediatritions kept perscribing cough syrups. We switched doctors and he perscribed my son with singulair. We love it. He stopped vomiting and his cough went away. If I forget to give him his singulair for a day or to his cough comes back. I love singulair. We are going to take him to a ent and hopefully get rid of the tonsills.
good luck and I feal for you. My son learned to hit a toilet or garbage can at about 2.5 years of age
My son actually gets crazy hyper and was somewhat violent (biting and hitting) on many allergy meds including benedryl, singulair, and claritin. He requires the meds as he has allergy induced asthma. We finally saw an allergist, who said thier is a small population of kids that have adverse effects to meds. He is now on allegra, which has worked the best for him. Anyway one never knows how these things will effect our little ones, I suggest seeing an allergist your Dr. recommends. My son sees Dr Harvey at Greenwood Medical Center ###-###-####-he was trained at National Jewish Hospital. He has been very helpful-Good Luck.
It sounds like it could be inner ear. I used to vomit and pass out and loose my balance due to inner ear problems. Allergies could affect that. Our son is on Allegra for his allergies after Zyrtec gave him problems. Maybe a change of meds is all he needs. When he's a bit older he'll be able to help you, too. All we ever knew was that our son liked the taste of Zyrtec but it made him "feel funny". Hang in there. Hopefully the roller coaster ride is almost over.
It sounds crazy but I am allergic to Anti-hystamines and many other drugs including Benedryl. The best thing you can do is push a lot of fuilds. I find that Accupuncture works too. I have a really good one down on Hampden and I25. It is a drive but she is really good. Let me know if you are interested. Claritin might not be the only drug he reacts to.
Good Luck,
C. B
i don't have experience with claratin, but my 2 1/2 yr old uses singulair and hasn't had any adverse reactions. i noticed a change in his behavior within a couple days (sleeping better, less blinking, much fewer complaints about his nose hurting, happier). as far as hydrating, i try to keep the sugar level low for my kids, but when they feel sick and aren't drinking water much, i allow more juice, gatorade, and milk, because they are less likely to turn those down and i believe the benefits of the hydration and vitamins are worth a little more sugar. but i'm no expert! good luck!
I've had balance problems with Claritin myself. Only taking half a dose per day has helped me. Once my body got used to it (about 3 months), I went back up to the full dose and did fine. It also helps to take it at night so the dizziness doesn't get in the way of life. Doing a full MRI seems like too much to me. But the comments about fluid in the inner ear make sense. Many 2 year olds need tubes in their ears. Getting his ears checked would be my best advice. It's more of a common problem and the MRI sounds very intimidating to me.
My mom has horrible allergies and took Claritin and she used to lose her balance and vomit and it turned out that she had a massive fluid build-up in her eardrum which was causing both symptoms. She was fine after the doctors got rid of the fluid. I hope your son's problem is something simply fixed also!
Hi L.
I use to be a horrible sufferer of allergies every spring. I have been allergy free for 4 years because of a organic whole food product that has been around for 24 years. Children love it! If you are interested let me know.
best of luck
J.
Hopefully the balance issues will resolve as the Claritin leaves his system. For the allergies, I recommend you see a good Pediatric chiropractor. We have one in the Westminster area if you need a referral. My daughter had bad seasonal allergies that caused her to cough, have a runny nose, be unable to sleep, etc. for about 4 months every spring and about 4 months ever fall. It was miserable! She was on steroid inhalers and prescription allergy meds.
A friend recommended a pediatric chiropractor. We took her a couple of times and that resolved all the allergies. Now, if the allergies begin, we take her for an adjustment and that immediately takes care of it. If it lingers a few days, the chiropractor gave us a homeopathic allergy remedy that has worked great for my kids and without side effects.
Good luck, and let me know if you need a referral!
M.
My boys just got off Claritin also. We didn't have such awful side-effects but we switched to zyrtec and everything seems a lot better!! My 7yr old was having headaches and nose bleeds and not to mention the allergies didn't go away. Both my 3yr old and my 7yr old had runny noses nonstop with claritin. If you do choose to go with zyrtec though, have him take it before bed...it is amazing compared to claritin. Sorry about the trouble you are having! I hope everything goes well. God bless!
Hi L.!
My oldest son was the same way, we tried several different medications for his allergies, zyrtec is the only one that worked for him. I am NOT saying it will work for your son, but we had very similar balance and vomiting issues with both allegra and claritin, I am sorry to see someone else going through this. We have minimized the risk to any exposure to the stuff outside except this time of year. we have taken all the chemicals out of the house and use more natural products which has helped throughout most of the year, but this time of year is the kicker because he also has asthma so as soon as we have an allergy it is immediately a breathing problem. (did I mention I hate grass now? and trees? but he is much worse in California at grandma's and in new york at great grandmas) and I also will not let him go anywhere that has lysol or Tide as products they use consistantly in the home, he is highly allergic to those (and many others, but these have caused hospitalizations)
This child is almost 9, my other three are 6,4, 8months
L.-I have not had experience with side effects however, allergies do run something terrible in my family. Any antihis. makes my 3 1/2 year old grumpy-I do know that!
Just a thought-I am a speech therapist and I deal a bit with the inner ear. Due to all the drainage and such-have they checked his inner ear? Just wondering if he has some fluid in his inner ear which would cause some balance issues? It sounds like you have a great-proactive docter and he would definately know best-just a thought of mine?
Good luck. Stay positive-if anything, you are checking this out very early and that is a great thing. You will be in my prayers!
I'm very surprised your dr started w/ claritin. My son has eczema and the dermatologist put him on Zyrtec - and he said it was because zyrtec is the only antihistamine that has been safety tested in kids under 6. My peditricain echoed that when she knew he was on antihimstamines. So, if allergies are still an issue, you might discuss using Zyrtec w/your dr. also, be sure you've gone to the basics....washing sheets weekly in hot water w/detergent that has no dye or perfume, clothes are NOT hung outside to dry (if you want to be ecofriendly, use somewhere in the house), cleaning w/baking soda and vinegar - avoiding cleaners w/perfumes, bath every night to make sure no pollen is on him through the night, etc. Also, even though your personal care products didn't seem to have an effect on him before this allergy season, limit those too - particularly anything w/ a strong scent. No cologne or perfume for mom and dad, etc.
My son is very allergic and we give him a natural remedy---quercetin and nettles. Got is at vitamin cottage--works amazing!! My husband also takes it--it got him off of prescriptions. And no side effects :-)
L.,
I am very sorry to hear this about your son. This is exactly what I was afraid of when my doctor proscribed Singulair for my son and his allergies. I am always a bit afraid of the side effects of these simple drugs. I took my son to the doctor and did a blood test for allergies. It turns out he is allergic to wheat products. This can be a bit difficult, however, my son's allergies have all but gone away. I would consider asking the doctor about changing your son's diet. It may seem silly at first, but it is truly amazing how diets will effect the immune system in the most obscure ways. I think this could really help you in the long run. You never know it may help you discover other helpful things to know about your son.
There are things you can do to help it leave his system faster, but I would be afraid to advise on that since he has been vomiting. Keep him very hydrated, that will at least help. One tea that I think would be safe and good for electrolytes is raspberry leaf tea. It is very mild and you can mix it with honey or juice.
If it were me I think I would take him to an experienced acupuncturist, especially one who studied in China. Not everyone is into or thinks of that sort of thing but I have found it to be helpful.
Good luck.
My son took Zyrtec for some seasonal allergies a few years back and he started having night frights. We didn't know what was happening until we took him to the doctor. As soon as he started taking the medication, he would wake up, but not be totally awake and come into our room and tell us all about his nightmare or tell us something. He wasn't really awake or asleep, but he was afraid of what he was telling us. It was so scary to see him in that kind of state of mind. As soon as we took him off of Zyrtec, he was back to normal. Well, good luck with the MRI with your son. I hope all is well with him.
