Tell me how pseudoephedrine affects you

[Aurora63]

It's a decongestant found in Sudafed, Theraflu, Dayquil, and many others (in case you are scratching your head right now.) Every time I take it, I get extremely tired, and feel almost high...I cannot take anything with it during the day. I also sometimes feel like my heart is beating more rapidly whenever I take it. Anyone else here have this issue with it? It works for it's purpose (getting my nose clear so I can sleep) but the side effects are a bit much. I just took it last night (Theraflu) at around 8:30, and I'm still feeling it. What are the alternatives medicines out there?

 

[Miss Jasmine]

This is why it is used in Crytal Meth. Bad stuff. I stay away from it. I'll take Dayquil, it's not in that.

 

[ducklite]

It makes me all buzzy. I stopped using it long ago for that reason.

Anne

 

[Aurora63]

This is why it is used in Crytal Meth. Bad stuff. I stay away from it. I'll take Dayquil, it's not in that.

I didn't realize it wasn't in Dayquil. Thanks for the tip!

 

[Marseeya]

It is one of the very few drugs that doesn't have an effect on me!

 

[minkydog]

What you're describing are all very common side effects of pseudephedrine. Scary, huh..Even scarier is that it's in so many Children's medications, even for babies It dries their noses up, but makes them irritable, lethargic, low appetite and jittery. Not to mention that it can cause spikes in blood pressure. I'd rather just put Vicks Vaporub under my nose

 

[lovetheparks]

Does the same to me. I can't stand taking it, and rarely do. It's the heart thing that freaks me out.

 

[Blondie]

I never got a buzz from it, but it did give me palpitations which is why I no longer take anything with pseudephedrine in it.

 

[alliecats]

It completely kills my appetite. Weird, huh?

 

[THESCHULTZFIVE]

It's a decongestant found in Sudafed, Theraflu, Dayquil, and many others (in case you are scratching your head right now.) Every time I take it, I get extremely tired, and feel almost high...I cannot take anything with it during the day. I also sometimes feel like my heart is beating more rapidly whenever I take it. Anyone else here have this issue with it? It works for it's purpose (getting my nose clear so I can sleep) but the side effects are a bit much. I just took it last night (Theraflu) at around 8:30, and I'm still feeling it. What are the alternatives medicines out there?

It does the exact same thing to me. Trouble is sudafed is the only thing I've found that realy clears my stuffy nose. Even the non-drowsy makes me feel this way.

 

[Rafiki Rafiki Rafiki]

You need to be able to judge what's causing your sinus symptoms. Pseudophedrine is a vaso-constrictor that reduces the blood flow and tissues around your sinuses, opening the passageways for your breathing. Unfortunately, Sudafed has this affect on much of your body, which is probably causing your palpitations.

Afrin and NeoSenephrine are topical vaso-constrictors and work only within the nasal passages. The problem with these is that there is a rebound effect on the passageways, causing swelling. You eventually become immune to them with long-term use and you're stuck with a stuffy nose.

Do you have a lot of mucous in your nose and sinus cavities? If so, you can use an antihistimine to dry up the mucous. Just be sure to drink lots of fluid. You can also spray your nasal passages with saline if the dryness is causing swelling.

Another consideration is the amount of mucous you have. An expectorant will help break that up so you can get rid of it.

At any rate, drink lots of fluids and keep your head up. In 7 days, it'll be gone one way or the other...

 

[Disney Ella]

It makes me jittery and nauseous.

 

[monarchsfan16]

It actually rarely does anything to me. Occasionally I do have trouble sleeping if I take it at night, but even that is rare.

 

[sleepyone]

It makes my scalp feel like it is crawling along with sleepiness or a jittery feeling.

 

[jonestavern]

after years of no side affects, 2 years ago I took the regular dosage of NyQuil. It was the 1st time in some months I'd taken it.
well, I woke up 5 or 6 hrs later with heart palpitations, profuse sweating & dizziness, & very little ability to concentrate. After suffering this for about 10 hrs I decided to drive myself to the hospital (what the *&^ was I thinking! good thing we live out in the sticks) to make a long story short, I stopped at the local firehouse & took the wagon ride-
I had not had a heart attack, but very definately was experiencing irregular heart rythyms & elevated blood pressure.
No more cough & cold remedies containing the 'p' word. Nope, no way, I'll suffer the cold (which is a pain, but preferable! )
The doctors said my experience is not uncommon. Not even the fact I had successfully used this product since the late '70's with no ill affects. I did not take more than was recommended, nor had I been using alcohol or other otc or prescription meds.

Jean

 

[Keli]

I feel wired when I take sudafed. I can't sleep, no matter how tired I am. But it does clear my head up. Thankfully I rarely get sick and don't have to take medications except on very rare occassions.

 

[KimR]

I must be weird because I like the way it makes me feel. It makes me very clear-headed, not so scattered and able to focus much easier - it's like the mental fog just lifts away. I remember when I was younger I always enjoyed having a cold because I felt so much sharper mentally. Took a while to figure out it was actually the cold medicine, not the cold!

 

[SeeDisney]

Yes, the symptoms are quite similar to yours but not the heart racing. I take it very sedlomly.


My FIRMLY BELIEVE that psuedosphine-sp?, also found in Contac, is the reason my husband developed Raynaub Phenomeon from it. He used to take Contac for years due to constant sinus infections

He now doesn't take anything with psuedo.

 

[Sonya]

Because I suffer from panic attacks I was told not to take it. So my options are limited. Pretty much ALL cold meds have it in them. I can do vics rub, nasal spray, but what works best for me is the Zinc remidies.

 

[eeyore kelly]

Dh took it 10 years ago for a cold and it made him high as a kite. He was a happy fellow who sang about a fluffy bunny, didn't recogize his own child, and told the Dr in the ER that I was a mean witch and he was scared of me.

When he finally came down off of the cold medicine he slept for 16 hours. He is not allowed to take it anymore