Before taking promethazine,
tell your doctor and pharmacist if you are allergic to promethazine, other phenothiazines (certain medications used to treat mental illness, nausea, vomiting, severe hiccups, and other conditions) or any other medications. Also tell your doctor and pharmacist if you have ever had an unusual or unexpected reaction when you took promethazine, another phenothiazine, or any other medication. Ask your doctor or pharmacist if you do not know if a medication you are allergic to is a phenothiazine.
tell your doctor and pharmacist what prescription and nonprescription medications, vitamins, nutritional supplements and herbal products you are taking or plan to take. Be sure to mention any of the following: antidepressants ('mood elevators') such as amitriptyline (Elavil), amoxapine (Asendin), clomipramine (Anafranil), desipramine (Norpramin), doxepin (Adapin, Sinequan), imipramine (Tofranil), nortriptyline (Aventyl, Pamelor), protriptyline (Vivactil), and trimipramine (Surmontil); antihistamines; azathioprine (Imuran);barbiturates such as phenobarbital (Luminal); cancer chemotherapy; epinephrine (Epipen); ipratropium (Atrovent)medications for anxiety, irritable bowel disease, mental illness, motion sickness, Parkinson's disease, seizures, ulcers, or urinary problems; monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors such as isocarboxazid (Marplan), phenelzine (Nardil), tranylcypromine (Parnate), and selegiline (Eldepryl, Emsam, Zelapar); narcotics and other pain medication; sedatives; sleeping pills;and tranquilizers. Your doctor may need to change the doses of your medications or monitor you carefully for side effects.
tell your doctor if you have or have ever had an enlarged prostate (a male reproductive gland); glaucoma (a condition in which increased pressure in the eye can lead to gradual loss of vision); seizures; ulcers; blockage in the passage between the stomach and intestine; blockage in the bladder; asthma or other lung disease; sleep apnea; cancer;any condition that affects the production of blood cells in your bone marrow; or heart or liver disease. If you will be giving promethazine to a child, also tell the child's doctor if the child has any of the following symptoms before he or she receives the medication: vomiting, listlessness, drowsiness, confusion, aggression, seizures, yellowing of the skin or eyes, weakness, or flu-like symptoms. Also tell the child's doctor if the child has not been drinking normally, has had excessive vomiting or diarrhea, or appears dehydrated.
tell your doctor if you are pregnant, plan to become pregnant, or are breast-feeding. If you become pregnant while taking promethazine, call your doctor.
talk to your doctor about the risks and benefits of taking promethazine if you are 65 years of age or older. Older adults should not usually take promethazine because it is not as safe as other medications that can be used to treat the same conditions.
if you are having surgery, including dental surgery, tell the doctor or dentist that you are taking promethazine.
you should know that this medication may make you drowsy. Do not drive a car or operate machinery until you know how this medication affects you. If you are giving promethazine to a child, watch the child to be sure he or she does not get hurt while riding a bike or participating in other activities that could be dangerous.
ask your doctor about the safe use of alcohol while you are taking this medication. Alcohol can make the side effects of promethazine worse.
plan to avoid unnecessary or prolonged exposure to sunlight and to wear protective clothing, sunglasses, and sunscreen. Promethazine may make your skin sensitive to sunlight.