Itching!

[montanagirl10]

I have been taking Tecfidera for two weeks, no flushing, some very mild stomach upset, but the itching! My skin itches, but the worst is in my throat and mouth to the point that I am taking the max amount of Benadryl you can take in a day. I have called my neuro to see if this is normal or an allergic reaction. Has anyone here experienced this?

[Marco]

Sounds terrible... sorry you are having so much discomfort.

Are you drinking enough water to stay hydrated?

- You could replace benadryl with cetirizine (Zyrtec) and see if it works better for you.

- Have you tried a lozenge, hard candy or even chewing gum may sooth your throat?

- An ice cube or three might help calm down your throat from the cold and moisture.

- A spoonful of honey

-Oral steroids (hydrocortisone) may help control the itching, but will require a prescription

You can also call MS ActiveSource/Biogen at 1.800.456.2255 for suggestions. A good percentage of Tecfidera users experience itching so they may have a magic bullet for you.

Please let us know what, if anything, works.

[TheBeans]

I just started Tec this last week and will ramp up to full dose this Wednesday. I had no problem the first 2 days on this med but then I developed insane itching. I feel like I do when I have a very bad reaction to pollen and my face and neck and arms and hands itch bad enough to want to rip the skin right off!

Tomorrow I'm going to try some colloidal oatmeal to see if that helps. I haven't had any flushing or GI issues (knock on wood) and I'm hoping this itching goes away soon. Sooner than later would be awesome!

[0inone]

Itching and prickly feeling

I'm on day two of the 240mg dose. All last week I had flushing and minor itching. Now I have a little stomach pain, Still flusging, but the itching and prickly feeling on my face, neck, arms, torso and legs is crazy. It happens about an hour after I take the dose, and lasts a few hours. But last night I woke up itching like crazy. I took a cool shower at 3am. It did help, and I have aveno lotion for itching, that seems to help too, but I feel so oversentive to touch, its wierd. Not totally unbearable, but I hope this goes away. Scratch marks are not Attractive.

[meburnett2004]

Hello. YOu are not alone. I have been on Tecfidera for about 3 months now and I still get the redness (like a bad sunburn) and get itchy. My arms sometimes feels like i am going to scratch my skin off. But it doesnt happen everyday. And it lasts for only about 2-3 hours. My symptom that I can't stand is the redness/sunburn feeling. It feels like my face is on fire and lasts a couple hours. I make sure to eat with the med and it doesn't help. Oh well i guess its better than shots i've heard about. BTW Tecfidera is the only med ive been on.

[TheBeans]

Up to full-dose now and the itching has subsided only a little. A new thing is that my face is breaking out as if I were a teen again and that only adds to the itching. I noticed that if I swipe a cotton ball soaked with an stringent over the itchiest areas that it soothes the need to itch. I don't have any idea why, but it works for me. Plus, the astringent is starting to help heal the breaking-out areas.

No lower GI issues (knock on wood) other than I am having some slight constipation, for which I am staying extra hydrated and eating more yogurt.

The headaches are still come-and-go and usually can be kicked with some caffeine and/or Aleve.

[penny70]

Which

I noticed that if I swipe a cotton ball soaked with an stringent over the itchiest areas that it soothes the need to itch. I don't have any idea why, but it works for me. Plus, the astringent is starting to help heal the breaking-out areas.

astringent do you use? In used to use Sea Breeze years ago. Didn't see it in Wal Mart the other day. Was thinking of that for sweat glow treatment too.

Thanks

Penny

[Rsqwyr]

Had to discontinue

I had severe nausea and vomiting. I thought it was a stomach virus but it was so bad I skipped most of my meds for a couple of days. Felt much better but still didn't connect it to the Tecfidera until I restarted it. Ughhhhh. I had to restart at the higher dose since that's all I had but I don't think that made any difference. Sick is sick. Cannot function like that. I did have the flushing and horrible itching for the first few days but Benedryl helped a lot and it subsided after a few days.

[tracibk]

my head itches........sometimes not at all and sometimes it drives me crazy!!