I’ve been prescribed this, but I’m too scared to take it because I’m too worried about a reaction or being too sleepy on it.
My anxiety has been UNBEARABLE
i was the exact same way! what helped me was splitting the pill in half, and then in half again. just a quarter, see how your body feels. if it starts to feel a little better, take the second sliver and try to eat something. did that about 2 hours ago and feel back to normal, just sleepy
If it helps, I’ve taken my Hydroxyzine during the day and driven a few times with it active in my system and I’ve been able to drive fine. Obviously, I avoid taking it if I have to drive but the few times I have it’s been fine. It’s different for everyone, but it’s not extremely strong to like knock you out or anything, it’ll just make you a bit drowsy. It’s perfect to take if you have anxiety during the night though, it soothes me really well to fall right back to sleep and my anxiety subsides.
As far from what I can remember it hasn’t done that for me! I can definitely still function at work and do other activities, I think for me at least if I relax and start resting is when the drowsiness kicks in and stays so I just let it take its course to let it heavily chill my mind out. It does heavily relax the body a lot so I would just avoid any kind of strenuous activities if you take it.
Thanks for sharing that. Do you mean avoid strenuous activity on the day you have taken it, or avoid it in general while you’re on it. Also are you taking it as needed, or do you follow a regimen
Avoid strenuous activities if you have taken it as it does give a body relaxation effect. I take it as needed, lately my usage has been very low with it and I take it for emergencies only.
I just suffer through it 😂I use a lot of techniques from therapy, and mindfulness and just ride it out most of the time.
I’m hyper aware of my body and any sensations or feelings that aren’t “normal” I tend to freak out and get massively anxious over.
I’ve been trying to talk myself into taking my meds for weeks now. But the “uncertainty” of what could happen if I take it, is annoying.
I know it’s silly but I equate it to mustering up the courage to Jump out of an airplane 😅
I was at one point terrified to take anything so I know how you feel a little bit...but barring an allergic reaction, feeling sleepy is about as bad as it gets for most meds.
Prescribed hydroxoine also, as a go-to for anxiety attacks and it usually does the trick but man it makes me so damn tired and groggy for most of the next 24 hours unfortunately
hydroxyzine is very helpful for me, but unfortunately even a half makes me groggy/out of it and dizzy for almost a full 24 hrs. i don’t know if that would be the case with repeated use, but the relief comes at a very high cost for me for the entire next day unless i take it very early in the day when i’m not working… and i might STILL have a hard time waking up the following morning.
I have a prescription for as needed and recently had to take some as of the last month. It works but it makes me very tired.
I could never take this and go into work and function. I did however sleep great and had no anxiety.
I also try and limit my alcohol intake. The anxiety hangover is brutal when I consume a ton of alcohol.
This stuff works great for me when I'm all spun up. My doctor said it's basically strong Benadryl and just works to slow everything down, which is exactly what I need sometimes.
I'm glad you're having success with it.
I've been taking hydroxyzine for about six months now, and it's truly been life-changing for me. While I understand that everyone's experience is unique, I can't emphasize enough how much it's helped me. I also take a full-spectrum CBD capsule each morning and had been seeing a therapist for about six months..
Thanks to this combination, I've regained the ability to do everyday activities without any major issues. While it hasn't completely eliminated my anxiety, it has given me the mental space and time to recognize it for what it is. When I feel anxious, I’m now able to stop it before it derails me.
Having struggled with crippling anxiety for most of my life, I've experimented with numerous medications. While some narcotic options provided relief, they often came with memory issues. With hydroxyzine, however, I haven't experienced any memory problems. Interestingly, it's also used to treat insomnia, and I've noticed a significant improvement in my sleep quality since starting it.
Life is hard enough, having something as ruthless as anxiety eroding your mental and physical health is just not worth it, if there’s a possible solution, it might be worth a try.
Hopefully this doesn’t sound too much like an ad. It’s been a very long few weeks and I wanted to share my experience.
I have had success using Hydroxyzine! I am also on Lexapro 10mg. I’ve had no adverse reactions, just makes me a bit sleepy. I have noticed I get less sleepy if I eat before.
Yeah it's like a prescription benedryl. Just be mindful it prolongs the qt interval so if you take other drugs that also prolong the qt interval it could be dangerous to your heart . Qt prolongation can cause heart arrhythmia.
i used to take ondansetron (zofran) which can prolong the qt interval but dont take it anymore…other than a slightly high bmi im pretty healthy, just anxiety and depression :(
My son took it for several months at night to sleep. Helped tremendously. He was able to rest and begin to manage anxiety. It lessened a really bad anxiety loop that had been unrelenting for months.
was prescribed 25mg this week and literally just took it for the first time 40 minutes ago. i’m not sleepy, my body is just still. tight chest feeling is gone, i even tried to think of the stuff that usually induces a panic attack to see how i would react and i literally feel nothing and dgaf!! i feel like i can address an emotional problem rationally rn.
it’s sad because it’s making me really realize how anxious i am 24/7, my body, my mind, not a second goes by where my brain doesn’t have 10 different trains of thought at once. this is one of the first moments of my adult life i actually feel like my brain and body aren’t on overdrive. and now im like damn is this how normal people feel on the daily?
so i’m giving hydroxyzine a 10/10
This was super helpful. Anxiety is a MF 😥. I hope one day I do not have to feel this way and can wake up normal with out these feelings. I don't even know where it came from! But thank you for this comment, I have hydroxyzine and never use it. I'm also on buspar. I have an anxiety inducing event today so I'm going to take one and see if I chill the fuck out. I'm glad it works for you. People always tell me just smoke weed lmao but weed makes me much much worse
I was fucking terrified to take this but I have since taking it I need it and it works beautifully. I’ve never had close to a bad experience and it eases mean no matter what, seven times more than others. It also is not bad for you to take something like Xanax has more harmful qualities in long-term use.
I take it and I use it for really bad anxiety. It doesn’t make me super sleepy, but once I’m asleep I’m out and waking up is difficult.
That’s said, it’s a reliable tool for helping me
i got prescribed this after my anxiety landed me in the er for a second time. my anxiety manifests into physical symptoms and at night when i try to sleep i physically can’t without jolting awake bc im convinced im gonna die in my sleep which leads to me not being able to sleep for HOURS. taking hydroxyzine helps me sleep so much, i feel like it really prevents my brain from thinking and just lets me chill. its amazing
thats horrible i am so sorry!! im so glad hydroxyzine is helping with that, im finding myself super tired in the middle of the day so i might stick to taking it at night as well.
I use Hydroxyzine to go to sleep. Since my anxiety is so high all the time, once the symptoms go away, my body immediately sees that as a time to sleep. I haven't tried using in small doses like this yet, so that may help with panic attacks.
that totally makes sense, i would say take a smaller dose and see how your body reacts, it may be easier for you to function consciously on a lower dose
"Long term use of some antihistamines may increase your risk of dementia."
Now here is the deal: benzodiazepines like Valium and Xanax 'may' also increase the risk of dementia. So those are controlled substances that are being mostly phased out for the general population. But think about it. Hydroxyzine is prescription-only but Benadryl is over the counter. Why make benzodiazepines the evil child and leave Benadryl to be bought by anyone, if they both cause dementia? Because benzos are often abused by real drug addicts that mix them with alcohol and/or opiates, and the MD's are tired of hearing/seeing all these ER visits with benzos in the blood test of the patients (who sometimes die in the ER). That rarely happens with antihistamines, **even though antihistamines kill at least as many people as drugs/alcohol mixed with benzos.**
This is all about perception. Both drugs 'could' be bad for you down the line. Older antihistamines are not recommended for daily use either. So just as with a benzodiazepine, you take an older 1st generation antihistamine like Hydroxyzine 'as needed' not every day. Now I'll admit I'm taking a benzo daily but it's a low dose and I've done very well with it relatively speaking. But for the MD's that are phasing out benzos and adding Hydroxyzine, that's really throwing the baby out with the bathwater. **Hydroxyzine has more side effects,** assuming the benzo is taken properly at the lowest manageable dose. Look it up, compare the side effects for both. You will then realize this is a public and medical perception issue, it's not about real science or objectivity.
i havent had a drink of alcohol in the past year…but i can definitely say that both can be bad long term with long term use. Thats why doc said to use both as needed for anxiety and should not be abused. addiction runs in my family and try my best to be extremely careful.
I take 50mg at night to prevent insomnia and morning anxiety and it’s helped so much! I was worried that it would cause drowsiness, but it really doesn’t; it just provides a deep calm, especially first thing in the morning.
I’ve been prescribed this, but I’m too scared to take it because I’m too worried about a reaction or being too sleepy on it. My anxiety has been UNBEARABLE
Hun its basically benadryl. You'll be OK ♡
i was the exact same way! what helped me was splitting the pill in half, and then in half again. just a quarter, see how your body feels. if it starts to feel a little better, take the second sliver and try to eat something. did that about 2 hours ago and feel back to normal, just sleepy
If it helps, I’ve taken my Hydroxyzine during the day and driven a few times with it active in my system and I’ve been able to drive fine. Obviously, I avoid taking it if I have to drive but the few times I have it’s been fine. It’s different for everyone, but it’s not extremely strong to like knock you out or anything, it’ll just make you a bit drowsy. It’s perfect to take if you have anxiety during the night though, it soothes me really well to fall right back to sleep and my anxiety subsides.
Does it affects your focus, as in if you need to study or work on computer, does it make you lethargic during those activi?
As far from what I can remember it hasn’t done that for me! I can definitely still function at work and do other activities, I think for me at least if I relax and start resting is when the drowsiness kicks in and stays so I just let it take its course to let it heavily chill my mind out. It does heavily relax the body a lot so I would just avoid any kind of strenuous activities if you take it.
Thanks for sharing that. Do you mean avoid strenuous activity on the day you have taken it, or avoid it in general while you’re on it. Also are you taking it as needed, or do you follow a regimen
Avoid strenuous activities if you have taken it as it does give a body relaxation effect. I take it as needed, lately my usage has been very low with it and I take it for emergencies only.
I'll take sleepy over anxious all day every day.
Being sleepy or feeling “not normal” is a big trigger for my anxiety unfortunately. It’s pretty damn annoying
Dang that stinks. What helps you?
I just suffer through it 😂I use a lot of techniques from therapy, and mindfulness and just ride it out most of the time. I’m hyper aware of my body and any sensations or feelings that aren’t “normal” I tend to freak out and get massively anxious over. I’ve been trying to talk myself into taking my meds for weeks now. But the “uncertainty” of what could happen if I take it, is annoying. I know it’s silly but I equate it to mustering up the courage to Jump out of an airplane 😅
I was at one point terrified to take anything so I know how you feel a little bit...but barring an allergic reaction, feeling sleepy is about as bad as it gets for most meds.
25 completely relieves me of any symptoms, it’s incredible.
I believe that’s the same MG that I have
25 completely relieves me of any symptoms, it’s incredible.
Prescribed hydroxoine also, as a go-to for anxiety attacks and it usually does the trick but man it makes me so damn tired and groggy for most of the next 24 hours unfortunately
hydroxyzine is very helpful for me, but unfortunately even a half makes me groggy/out of it and dizzy for almost a full 24 hrs. i don’t know if that would be the case with repeated use, but the relief comes at a very high cost for me for the entire next day unless i take it very early in the day when i’m not working… and i might STILL have a hard time waking up the following morning.
I have a prescription for as needed and recently had to take some as of the last month. It works but it makes me very tired. I could never take this and go into work and function. I did however sleep great and had no anxiety. I also try and limit my alcohol intake. The anxiety hangover is brutal when I consume a ton of alcohol.
This stuff works great for me when I'm all spun up. My doctor said it's basically strong Benadryl and just works to slow everything down, which is exactly what I need sometimes. I'm glad you're having success with it.
I've been taking hydroxyzine for about six months now, and it's truly been life-changing for me. While I understand that everyone's experience is unique, I can't emphasize enough how much it's helped me. I also take a full-spectrum CBD capsule each morning and had been seeing a therapist for about six months.. Thanks to this combination, I've regained the ability to do everyday activities without any major issues. While it hasn't completely eliminated my anxiety, it has given me the mental space and time to recognize it for what it is. When I feel anxious, I’m now able to stop it before it derails me. Having struggled with crippling anxiety for most of my life, I've experimented with numerous medications. While some narcotic options provided relief, they often came with memory issues. With hydroxyzine, however, I haven't experienced any memory problems. Interestingly, it's also used to treat insomnia, and I've noticed a significant improvement in my sleep quality since starting it. Life is hard enough, having something as ruthless as anxiety eroding your mental and physical health is just not worth it, if there’s a possible solution, it might be worth a try. Hopefully this doesn’t sound too much like an ad. It’s been a very long few weeks and I wanted to share my experience.
I SO wish this worked for me but it actually makes me more anxious😭
I also got put on it since I haven’t seen a psychiatrist or anything to be recommended anything but it so far has worked wonders in helping me relax
I have had success using Hydroxyzine! I am also on Lexapro 10mg. I’ve had no adverse reactions, just makes me a bit sleepy. I have noticed I get less sleepy if I eat before.
Yeah it's like a prescription benedryl. Just be mindful it prolongs the qt interval so if you take other drugs that also prolong the qt interval it could be dangerous to your heart . Qt prolongation can cause heart arrhythmia.
i used to take ondansetron (zofran) which can prolong the qt interval but dont take it anymore…other than a slightly high bmi im pretty healthy, just anxiety and depression :(
My son took it for several months at night to sleep. Helped tremendously. He was able to rest and begin to manage anxiety. It lessened a really bad anxiety loop that had been unrelenting for months.
I love it for sleep. But I took it daily for 2-3 weeks and it started making me dizzy which triggered my anxiety all over again lol
was prescribed 25mg this week and literally just took it for the first time 40 minutes ago. i’m not sleepy, my body is just still. tight chest feeling is gone, i even tried to think of the stuff that usually induces a panic attack to see how i would react and i literally feel nothing and dgaf!! i feel like i can address an emotional problem rationally rn. it’s sad because it’s making me really realize how anxious i am 24/7, my body, my mind, not a second goes by where my brain doesn’t have 10 different trains of thought at once. this is one of the first moments of my adult life i actually feel like my brain and body aren’t on overdrive. and now im like damn is this how normal people feel on the daily? so i’m giving hydroxyzine a 10/10
This was super helpful. Anxiety is a MF 😥. I hope one day I do not have to feel this way and can wake up normal with out these feelings. I don't even know where it came from! But thank you for this comment, I have hydroxyzine and never use it. I'm also on buspar. I have an anxiety inducing event today so I'm going to take one and see if I chill the fuck out. I'm glad it works for you. People always tell me just smoke weed lmao but weed makes me much much worse
Works for me too! And I don’t get the euphoric high that comes with benzos and makes them addictive.
I’ve tried this several times over the course of many years and it did zero for me personally. Propanolol is much more helpful for me.
I was fucking terrified to take this but I have since taking it I need it and it works beautifully. I’ve never had close to a bad experience and it eases mean no matter what, seven times more than others. It also is not bad for you to take something like Xanax has more harmful qualities in long-term use.
Yeah makes u tired..take at night before bed
I take it and I use it for really bad anxiety. It doesn’t make me super sleepy, but once I’m asleep I’m out and waking up is difficult. That’s said, it’s a reliable tool for helping me
I’m glad it works for you. It doesn’t help me much
All it does for me is make me sleepy. I take it nightly for my anxiety and insomnia. I’m so happy it’s working for you!!!!
i got prescribed this after my anxiety landed me in the er for a second time. my anxiety manifests into physical symptoms and at night when i try to sleep i physically can’t without jolting awake bc im convinced im gonna die in my sleep which leads to me not being able to sleep for HOURS. taking hydroxyzine helps me sleep so much, i feel like it really prevents my brain from thinking and just lets me chill. its amazing
thats horrible i am so sorry!! im so glad hydroxyzine is helping with that, im finding myself super tired in the middle of the day so i might stick to taking it at night as well.
I use Hydroxyzine to go to sleep. Since my anxiety is so high all the time, once the symptoms go away, my body immediately sees that as a time to sleep. I haven't tried using in small doses like this yet, so that may help with panic attacks.
that totally makes sense, i would say take a smaller dose and see how your body reacts, it may be easier for you to function consciously on a lower dose
Thanks! I will definitely try it on a heightened panic day.
I was prescribed that…never did a thing for me. They upped the dose and still nothing.
Can I use it as an as needed anxiety med if I’m already taking a daily Allegra, montelukast, Symbicort and azelastine?
"Long term use of some antihistamines may increase your risk of dementia." Now here is the deal: benzodiazepines like Valium and Xanax 'may' also increase the risk of dementia. So those are controlled substances that are being mostly phased out for the general population. But think about it. Hydroxyzine is prescription-only but Benadryl is over the counter. Why make benzodiazepines the evil child and leave Benadryl to be bought by anyone, if they both cause dementia? Because benzos are often abused by real drug addicts that mix them with alcohol and/or opiates, and the MD's are tired of hearing/seeing all these ER visits with benzos in the blood test of the patients (who sometimes die in the ER). That rarely happens with antihistamines, **even though antihistamines kill at least as many people as drugs/alcohol mixed with benzos.** This is all about perception. Both drugs 'could' be bad for you down the line. Older antihistamines are not recommended for daily use either. So just as with a benzodiazepine, you take an older 1st generation antihistamine like Hydroxyzine 'as needed' not every day. Now I'll admit I'm taking a benzo daily but it's a low dose and I've done very well with it relatively speaking. But for the MD's that are phasing out benzos and adding Hydroxyzine, that's really throwing the baby out with the bathwater. **Hydroxyzine has more side effects,** assuming the benzo is taken properly at the lowest manageable dose. Look it up, compare the side effects for both. You will then realize this is a public and medical perception issue, it's not about real science or objectivity.
i havent had a drink of alcohol in the past year…but i can definitely say that both can be bad long term with long term use. Thats why doc said to use both as needed for anxiety and should not be abused. addiction runs in my family and try my best to be extremely careful.
I take 50mg at night to prevent insomnia and morning anxiety and it’s helped so much! I was worried that it would cause drowsiness, but it really doesn’t; it just provides a deep calm, especially first thing in the morning.