Benadryl is BAD news!

Debjax wrote:Hubby is on 2,000 mg of Niaspan daily for his heart problems, and there are times where it makes him flush like a lobster and itch like mad. He has to take Benadryl on those nights, it is the only thing that helps even slightly.

Deb,

Congratulations to your husband for finding a doctor who will prescribe niacin (Niaspin). A doctor at the Mayo Clinic has explained what an excellent drug Niaspan is for controlling cholesterol and how it does not have the same dangerous side effects as statins. He goes on to say that many doctors will not prescribe it because they need to take time discussing with patients how to use the drug. In particular they need to talk about flushing with the patient and how to minimize or avoid it.

As far as using Benadryl, there are better ways to deal with the flushing problems sometimes caused by niacin (Niaspan). Your husband should talk to his doctor about the problem. Here are the recommendations from the Mayo Clinic.

For patients taking the extended-release tablet form of this medicine (Niaspan):

Swallow the tablet whole. If the tablet is scored, it may be broken, but not crushed or chewed, before being swallowed.
Tablet (Niaspan) should be taken at bedtime after a low-fat snack.

To decrease flushing of your face (redness), take aspirin or ibuprofen (e.g., Advil, Motrin) 30 minutes before taking tablet (Niaspan).

Avoid drinking alcohol or hot drinks around the time you take your tablet (Niaspan). This helps decrease flushing of your face (redness).

Take this medication exactly as your doctor ordered. If you stop taking this medication for any period of time, contact your doctor prior to restarting taking niacin.

http://mayoclinic.com/health/drug-information/DR601013

It also helps to drink a large glass of cool water (12 to 20 ounces) with the tablet.

I found that a hot shower immediately after taking niacin will increase the flushing effect. So I dial the temperature down in the shower and anyway my wife says the hot showers damage and age the skin.

Many people, myself included, find that when they are on a steady dose taken the same time each day the flushing will go away. If they miss a day taking niacin, when they resume the next day they may have flushing.

Since your husband has heart problems and the Mayo Clinic recommendations include aspirin or ibuprofen, your husband should definitely discuss this with his doctor before commencing.

If your husband is able to discontinue Benadryl at night he should have increased REM sleep which is important for cognitive functioning.

Good luck,

The reason I stopped taking Tylenol/acetaminophen in addition to my hydracodone is because it is not recommended to take over 4,000 mg of acetaminophen per day or you may be facing possible permanent liver damage. I was taking approximately 3,800 mg per day for almost five years. I have blood tests every three months, but decided it was time to try to find an alternative. A pharmacist friend recommended benadryl to me as it has the identical ingredient as Tylenol PM less the acetaminophen. I have noticed ZERO side effects from taking benydryl.

2girlsmom wrote:I took 2 Benadryl the other night for congestion. I had a horrid night data wise, woke feeling awful! My AHI has been around 3-4 with AI 0.0-0.4 nightly. Well the night I took benadryl AHI was 7.8 and AI was 2.0!!! Bad!!! I know people have asked about Benadryl recently and from my experience I can honestly say do not take it!!!

I have the exact opposite experience. On nights I take nothing my AHI is always higher. I normally take 2 benedryl and 2 sudafed before bed. I think the machine sees my struggles to breathe through congested nose as apnea events.

rooster wrote:

kayakdoc wrote:Benadryl alters sleep architecture? Can we hear a little more about that?

.........

The major reason for limiting the use of antihistamines for treating insomnia is their multiple side effects, including changes in sleep architecture, notably a reduction in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep caused by their anticholinergic effects; a reduction in cognitive functions;[12] day-after sedation; an increased risk of accidents;[13] the development of tolerance;[14] and interference with other medications. The side effects of antihistamines appear to be especially risky for elderly patients, almost 50% of whom use sleep medications occasionally or on a regular basis and who often choose OTC sleep aids.[15]

Source: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/495339

Rooster -- thanks for the link. Will check it out. Interesting to me about the reduct. in REM as I have been dreaming like crazy even on the benadryl! But the dreams have been more pleasant, so I'm not complaining. The tolerance they are talking about actually helps lessen the likelihood of the negative consequences of the drowsiness/hang-over but also the sleep-inducing properties! I didn't use it last night and this morning I don't even notice the difference except it was hard to breathe through the nose mask...I can hardly wait for the FFM to show up, claustrophobia be da**ed!

Wow I've just been reading that benadryl is a weak SSRI. That is scary. I do notice a bit of a hangover effect in the mornings. Maybe it's impairing me more than I realize. I don't know how I can stay asleep without benadryl, though.

Do some research on melatonin. Everything I have seen says it is safe and I am finding that a 3 mg dose gently helps me sleep through the night. There are posts about it on this forum. The late Snoredog claimed to have taken 3 mg nightly for years with good results. He lead a few of us to try the 3 mg dosage.

If you decide to try it, do so the night before you have a free day. If it makes you sleepy the next day, it may be dangerous for you to drive, operate machinery or go hunting with Harry Whittington.

randyd501 wrote:

Debjax wrote:Hubby is on 2,000 mg of Niaspan daily for his heart problems, and there are times where it makes him flush like a lobster and itch like mad. He has to take Benadryl on those nights, it is the only thing that helps even slightly.

Has he tried taking an aspirin with it..I do and it avoids the problem you discussed

They bumped him from 81mg to a full aspirin with it. It does not happen all the time, and since they came out with the enteric coated it is alot better, but when it does....

[quote="rooster]
Congratulations to your husband for finding a doctor who will prescribe niacin (Niaspin). [quote]

He's been on it now for over 3 years, since his heart attack in August '05. Our cardiologist is phenominal, he has managed to balance hubby's meds and keep his heart failure from progressing to any significant degree. After his Left Anterior Descending Artery (the widow maker) was 100% blocked for over 18 hours before they cath'd him, the entire front wall of his left ventricle and the apex of his heart is nothing but scar tissue. He started at 500mg daily, and has been steadily increasted to the 2K mg. He was to the point where he was not going to be able to take it anymore, we had tried EVERYTHING to stop the entire body flush and itch, when they came out with the enteric coated pills. He has to take his with dinner and an aspirin or he flushes. Bedtime does not work for him. The flushing is rare now, and he does not always take teh benadryl, only when it is really bad. The doc is the one that told him to take it when needed.

I noticed some people saying they take the aspirin "with" the Niaspan. If you're doing this and it's not helping, trying taking it about 1/2 hour BEFORE niacin or Niaspan. Everything I've read says this will give the most help from the aspirin.

My sleep doc says Meletonin up to 6 mgs is okay. There's also a timed- or extended-release version if your problem is not being able to stay asleep. Part of it is released right when you take it, the rest is delayed for several hours (or something like that).

Pam

Interesting comments regarding Melatonin. I tried using melatonin when I travelled internationally as I was told by my doctor that it might help my body adjust to the changing time zones and to acclimate better to the jet lag. In my case, it never worked. It sure never made me sleepy. I thought melatonin was a natural occuring hormone (?), or some such thing, in the body?

Melatonin is a naturally occurring hormone that your body produces -- the amount of melatonin the body produces decreases with age. Secretion is "signaled" by darkness.....
In all the research I've done and in my own experience it requires "total darkness" to work optimally.... If you used it on a plane, or in a room where light leaks were prevalent, it is most likely that it would not have worked "as advertised".....

Most times a 3mg dose is adequate for an adult, but 6mg is also a reasonable dose. Melatonin should not create any residual groggy feelings in the morning as it has dissipated and has usually done so by the 4th-5th hour.....The time release will cease working when light is turned on, but there may be some residual feeling of "tired" for a time.....

I rarely use melatonin myself as my wife uses a reading lamp or desk lamp to read in the bedroom prior to "lights out", so I have found that the melatonin solution is ineffective.....

Google on melatonin and you will find a few million links to check out......

cheers
goose

sheltie wrote:Interesting comments regarding Melatonin. I tried using melatonin when I travelled internationally as I was told by my doctor that it might help my body adjust to the changing time zones and to acclimate better to the jet lag. In my case, it never worked. It sure never made me sleepy. I thought melatonin was a natural occuring hormone (?), or some such thing, in the body?

When you were using melatonin, did you have a good cpap therapy working?

I tried melatonin on international trips before I knew my problem was sleep apnea. Melatonin will not solve any problems when you have untreated sleep apnea.

sheltie wrote:
Interesting comments regarding Melatonin. I tried using melatonin when I travelled internationally as I was told by my doctor that it might help my body adjust to the changing time zones and to acclimate better to the jet lag. In my case, it never worked. It sure never made me sleepy. I thought melatonin was a natural occuring hormone (?), or some such thing, in the body?

When you were using melatonin, did you have a good cpap therapy working?

I tried melatonin on international trips before I knew my problem was sleep apnea. Melatonin will not solve any problems when you have untreated sleep apnea.

To be honest, I don't know when I "caught" sleep apnea. I was diagnosed with it about six years ago after my wife finally got tired of staying awake at night when my breathing would stop to make sure I'd start again. At the time I was travelling, that must've been at least 10-15 years ago and I was travelling internationally a great deal. I never did find anything that helped jet lag.

Again, to be honest, I think I must be pretty lucky as I've only had one sleep test, have the same settings on my CPAP machine and haven't had to see a doctor about my apnea again. So when I see many of the postings in this forum about various readings, pain, etc., I just count my blessings.

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