Valtrex (Valacyclovir)
Valtrex is an antiviral drug that is supposed to be taken orally. It should treat most types of herpes. It usually targets their ability to reproduce, letting your immune system finish off the rest of them. It also helps some ulcers to heal more quickly, but not all herpes traces can be healed with Valtrex.
It also reduces discomfort caused by the ulcers, shingles, and scabs caused by herpes and related conditions. However, if you want to get rid of all of them, you might consider looking for additional remedies to do that job. In fact, Valtrex is often taken with other medication if it’s used to treat other viral infections.
It can be used with a variety of other products, but not Acyclovir remedies. They are often used to treat cold sores, and it’s a bad idea to take them as a sort of combo punch. They are incompatible. You can take it after all the Valtrex has left your body. There are some other drugs that don’t go well with Valtrex, but more on that in a minute.
Method of Taking
Now, how much Valtrex you’ll want to take depends on your goal. Different types of herpes need different doses, other infections like post-herpes skin infections will need a bigger dose, and so forth. It typically varies from 500mg to 4000mg a day (but not more than that).
The fact of the matter is that there is no set dose for everyone. It’s calculated for each particular situation based on the person’s weight. The usual estimation is that you need 20mg of Valtrex per kilogram of weight, taken twice or thrice every day for several days. However, the number is often skewed to just 1000mg, unless it far exceeds it.
You don’t really need to take it with food, although it is necessary to take copious amounts of it every day – two or three times every day, usually for 5-10 days. You essentially should take up to 4g of it daily for about a week. It is no joke, and it’s obvious why its side effects can occur so often.
Side Effects
There are some unsavory side effects, which can manifest relatively often in people who take this drug. After all, you need to take a lot of it over the course of the several days you’re prescribed to take it.
The most common ones are nausea and vomiting. It’s also normal to have occasional headaches with Valtrex. Less usual symptoms are confusion, shakiness, as well as issues with your nervous system, such as anxiety, hallucinations, trouble speaking, and aggressiveness. It typically happens to older people or people with kidney issues.
Speaking of kidney issues, it’s also a fairly usual problem connected to Valtrex. It’s typically more severe and intense than all the issues mentioned above. If you have kidney problems, they might be worsened by this drug, which is the primary thing you should look out for.
Taking more than the maximum daily dosage (over 4000mg, usually) will result in an overdose. Overdose symptoms can be even scarier. They are mostly nervous system issues and psychological problems, such as poor muscle control, harsher hallucinations, harsher confusion, and lethargy. An overdose can be fatal, which means you can stick to your daily norm tightly and immediately seek help if you feel adverse effects creeping in.