Promethazine for Anxiety: Benefits, Side Effects, and Interactions - Healthline
Promethazine is a drug used to treat allergies, dizziness, nausea, and vomiting. Doctors sometimes prescribe it to help people relax or fall asleep in hospital settings. Doctors may also prescribe it off-label to treat anxiety. This article explores how promethazine works, as well as current research into its safety and effectiveness in treating anxiety. Promethazine is an antihistamine. That means it blocks the effects of histamine, a chemical involved in allergic reactions. Your immune system makes and releases histamine when it detects an allergen like pollen or pet dander. By blocking the effects of histamine, promethazine helps relieve allergy symptoms such as nasal congestion and itchy eyes. Promethazine also has several other effects throughout the body. For example, it helps with motion sickness by blocking specific receptors in the medulla oblongata, a part of the brain involved in nausea and vomiting. It also targets other brain receptors involved in blood pressure, sleep, an