Coming off Montelukast

[Wheezy54]

Hallo,Has anyone out there successfully just stopped Montelukast. I've been taking it for 2 years and am dubious as to whether it's doing anything for my asthma. My anxiety, however, has worsened considerably. !! Not sure if it's the montelukast or not. I was thinking of trialing doing without it for a week and taking my peak flow each day to see if my asthma worsened. What do you think? Thanks

[Lysistrata Administrator Community Ambassador]

Hi, I think that's one you might want to raise with your GP/asthma nurse/hospital team as appropriate. I can see why you're wondering, but it's best if they know and can advise rather than trying to freestyle it by yourself, as it may make you worse. They should also be able to advise on alternative options if montelukast isn't right for you.

You could also try calling the helpline on 0300 2225800 or WhatsApp on 07999 377 775 Monday-Friday 0915-5pm. The nurses are very helpful but of course won't be able to see your notes or know your history.

[Homely2 Administrator]

I agree with Lysistrata.

If you just come off it, and it goes wrong, it may be quite difficult to get a helpful response from your asthma medic.

If you come off it, in the way they suggest, then the asthma medic can organise it how they want, and will be ready to help.

I wanted to come off some long standing cardiac medication, I was surprised at how cautious they were, given that I thought it was doing nothing.

[Chip_y2kuk]

Yes I stopped montelukast and didn't notice any difference... however I stopped because I thought it wasn't doing anything (I was taking it for years)

P.s I did this with the doctors say so and guidance, that's really why I took it so long no one else would agree for me to stop it.

[Gareth57]

I've not stopped completely but I have reduced to alternate days. I noticed a big difference in asthma control to start with but after a year or so the nightmares were getting a bit too much so I went to alternate days and the control is still pretty good but the nightmares have near enough gone. 👍

[6538]

Came across this yesterday, don't know if its applicable over here or accurate, I didn't read the whole story as I don't use it.

verywellhealth.com/how-can-...

[TuckBox2]

Hi Wheezy54,

I had been on Montelukast for 40+ years and the new consultant told me to stop in Nov 2022 as he said it is not likely to be doing anything, I stopped straight away and had no problems at all.

[cutiepie01]

My daughter takes Monteklukast for year around rhinitis. With xyzal and mometasone nasal spray. Allergies make asthma worse if you dont handle it properly.

My daughter takes it everyday

She has other medications to

Budesonide or symbacort

Mometasone

Monteklukast.

Famotidine.

Enulose

Multivitamin

Xyzal

Iron pill

Vitamin d

Atrovent

Albuterol

Ketoconaloze shampoo

Eye drops

Metronidazole cream

Sodium fluoride tooth paste

She takes everyday at different times

Of the day .

[Jimmy-Lyden]

I don't know about anyone else, but I've accidentally missed it a few times and after a few hours you can feel the difference. I then took it and within an hour my chest had settled down.

[Birthday60]

to be honest it was such a game changer for me with my asthma I was grateful it had been offered. Have you thought that your anxiety could be treated separately? If you are a worrier you can blame anything for your anxiety so it might be helpful to find a way to address your underlying anxiety rather than put the blame on a drug - my anxiety would increase if I was fearful of an attack… always get stressed when my inhaler gets low…!

[Wheezy54]

Many thanks to all for taking the time to reply. Update: Stopped taking it for two days and then realised I couldn't do without it. It does relieve chest tightness in me as it does for a lot of asthmatics. It does have a bad reputation. I guess as I have suffered bouts of anxiety in the past, I'll never know for sure if it's making my anxiety symptoms worse or not. It would be a tough one to prove in court !! 🙂I guess I will muddle along and in the meantime find ways of managing my anxiety symptoms.

[Grandy1962]

I’m not sure if this is the same but I was prescribed montelukast for allergies ( I have asthma too but no doctor has ever mentioned montelukast to me). After a few months, when it didn’t seem to be making much difference (practically everything makes me sneeze; if I was shorter you’d be asking me how Snow White was doing! 🤣) I stopped taking it. But soon after I kept waking up in the middle of the night with a really panicky feeling, almost like a fight or flight reaction. It was quite scary so I’m back on the tablets now (but also using a nasal spray for the sneezing).