Benedryl

[GWENDOLYN]

Is Benedryl Safe To Take Often? It Seems To Help Me If I Am In A Flare! It Also Helps Me Sleep!!!! Does Anyone Know If It Is Bad To Take Daily?
I Have Heard That Some Medications Can Be Harmful To The Liver!

[SandyRN]

I take benadryl on a regular basis because the Atarax/Vistaril was aggravating my sleep issues. I guess you could check with your doctor to make sure you won't have any drug interactions, but I know many people take benadryl every day for allergies and don't have a problem with it.

Sandy

[RobinD]

I was taking Benedryl long before I was diagnosed w/IC. It was helping me sleep at night-not realizing that it was actually helping my IC. Anyway my primary care Dr told me it was fine to take on a daily basis. But now I take hydroxyzine prescribed by my IC dr which is basically the same thing as Benedryl-an antihistamine. I take one pill before bed-two if I am having a bad day. It has helped me to get a full nights sleep w/o peeing all night. Now I just get up maybe once or twice a night. That is a big difference compare to b/f when I got up every hour or two.

But as always check with your own dr

Robin

[dhoffer]

I was just wondering why you all take the benedryl and why does it help the IC? what wii it to?

thanks

[SandyRN]

Benadryl, like Atarax/Vistaril is an antihistamine that attacks mast cells in our bladders and throughout the body. The mast cells cause all sorts of nasty reactions.

[tigger_gal]

I take 75 mg of hydroxizine a night. When I stopped taking it when I was having problems paying for it, my bladder had a fit on me.

[CST]

I've seen many people who are helped by antihistamines but any time I take one, whether it's Benedryl or anything of that sort, my bladder gets much worse. It does not help me at all. Yes, I get drowsy, and then I'm peeing every 5 minutes. Any drug that has what is known as an "anticholinergenic" response gives me this trouble. That's a big word for something or other lol but whatever it is, it doesn't work for me. I also get worse when I take Midrin, which is for migraines. I didn't use to get worse from Midrin before I came down with IC, but I do now. If I have a migraine, I have to take it to relieve the awful migraine pain, and then I dread bedtime because I know I'll be up every 5 minutes literally all night long due to the irritation it causes. So, it's either have a migraine or no migraine and up all night peeing. Great choice. I'm not sure what is causing this about these particular drugs, but it's too bad because I know it does help people. There's something about antihistamines that creates some type of spasm or irritation. I wish I knew why, because I sure would like to get relief from a cheap OTC drug! Plus the drowsiness would put me to sleep so I could get some rest. Darn! I'm very glad it helps some of you tho. Whatever works, keep taking it!

[LeeAnn]

CST----Oh man, that sounds awful!!! I thought I had it bad! Yeah, it could definitely be worse! Getting up every five minutes WITH a throbbing headache would definitely be worse, that is SO AWFUL. I feel so bad for you. It sounds like a no win situation. Have you thought about a sleeping pill to at least help you get some rest? I take temazepam when I have sleeping trouble. The only thing is that once I do fall asleep I sort of wake up with a "sleeping pill hangover." Where I'm just groggy if I don't get at least 8 hours. Nine are better if I use a pill.

Also, since you can't tolerate antihistamines, have you considered something else such as Zantac? It's an H2 blocker. Most people use it for heartburn but it can also be used for IC b/c it helps target a different aspect of the inflammation process that an antihistamine targets---which is histamine, which we don't need, duh. Inflammation is normally a good thing that helps our body heal. But obviously too much of it for no reason is a bad thing. Our IC has us inflammed for no good reason!!! So we really don't need this inflammation. Zantac you can get OTC. My DR has me on a dose of 150mg twice a day. If you get a prescription of generic it comes out cheaper.

Also, another aspect of the inflammation process that you can target with drugs is leukotrienes. Leukotrienes contribute to inflammation. Singulair is a leukotriene inhibitor. Singulair is typically used to treat asthma but it can be used to treat IC as well b/c it helps reduce this inflammation process that causes us so much pain. I'm lucky that my insurance covers it b/c I think it costs around $100 for a one month supply.

Anyway, just thought I'd let you know about some drugs that have helped me.

[CST]

Thanks so much for the support and understanding. Yes, sometimes it does feel like a no win situation. Either hurt in one place or the other. Yikes...
I have taken sleeping medication in the past, but my bladder is so bad at times, nothing helps to keep me out of the bathroom. I have crummy health insurance right now, so I tend to take OTC if I can. I like Unisom for sleep - it doesn't affect my bladder in any negative way. I've also used valium (low dose) for sleep. I have a tendency to react badly to drugs, so I tend to be wary of anything until I very cautiously try it, but I will certainly keep the things you mentioned in mind. You never know what might help down the road! Thanks again for taking the time to give me some info, it's always appreciated!