crhawk: severe adverse reactions to only ONE 50 mg Zoloft - three months later

[crhawk]

On 6/19/2019 at 10:25 AM, Floss said:

Hi I’m new to this site but have had a bad adverse reaction to these drugs prescribed quite a lot in 11 weeks unfortunately so feeling totally helpless , my symptoms are similar to yours how are you feeling now? It’s been 4 months since I stopped and still really struggling 😞 I had burning , prickling, sore skin all the awful sensory symptoms, curious if yours have improved at all? Thanks 

 

Hi Floss - I'm sorry for the delayed 

 response,  but I was one of those who was trying to not be triggered into any stress by avoiding thinking about all this while I could. I came back tonight because I'm now dealing with something else and am looking for advice. 

 

HOWEVER.... the answer to your question is YES.  And you WILL get better, and I'd imagine that by now you have improved! So many of the things I experienced did improve. It took me a long time, and other things developed. And for me, I am not back to who I was before. However, due to my micro taper of the diazepam, I'm still on a very low dose. So a different situation. But I'm very hopeful you will get much better in time. 

[crhawk]

Hi friends...

 

Long time...

 

I'm back hoping for help. I really thought I was at least partially closing this nightmare chapter of my life... so many things were better. 

 

Without making this a super long post, here's what's going on. I'm down to about .35 mg/day diazepam. Need to update sig.

 

First off...I did a cruise spring 2019 and got MDDS. That did seem to improve, but it makes what has happened next a bit more complicated. 

 

Late last winter, I got two bad viral illnesses. One was the flu. I suspect I may have had covid. I also had a concussion from my son headbutting right above my left ear. It was all very rough. 

 

About two weeks after these events, I developed a 3-4 week period of occasional dizziness. It got better. I went to the neurologist, family doctor, etc. They thought probably from the concussion. 

 

To be safe, I also stopped tapering my diazepam. I think I was around .5 mg or had just gotten there at the time. This was maybe February. 

 

Fast forward to the end of May. The dizziness had gotten better, but I was noticing that I just felt totally disconnected most of the time. And off. And was having what seemed like vision issues. Like things were bugged out or something. Really hard to explain. But vision checked out fine. 

 

End of May, I get a severe episode of dizziness while driving. Out of nowhere.  Lasts only 30 seconds or so, but then stays at a low level most of the time along with a headache. I keep getting these short more severe episodes every few days. Then accompanying brain fog (which I'd certainly dealt with before, but this was a little different and it'd gotten so much better). The more severe episodes became further in between. But I was left feeling more mildly dizzy and off, and bad brain fog and vision just doesn't feel right. 

 

For a while it seemed better when driving or moving. But I'm totally unable to drive at night now, I just get a completely zoned out feeling which also feels a bit dizzy. I can't drive on the highway either. But it still does seem not to bother me as much when I'm in motion. 

 

So now I'm going through these days where I'm feeling either totally dazed/zoned out and/or dizzy and/or brain fog and vision feeling off. Cognitive ability also greatly diminished. 

 

MRI again clear. However, I did have vestibular testing at ENT and the caloric test showed a bilateral vestibular dysfunction/weakness.  I've been doing vestibular therapy. Doesn't seem to help substantially. This possibility of this disorder is scary, as it's usually permanent. 

 

However, the listed symptoms with this disorder don't seem to fit. It sounds like more of a balance condition, and my balance isn't affected much. It also says it's worse when in motion, which doesn't seem to be the case for me. 

 

I'm wondering ... is this another step of my waves? Or part of my taper?

 

I'm aware that diazepam can affect the vestibular system, so it could fit. It also could've maybe affected my testing since it suppresses the vestibular system?

 

My doctors are CLUELESS. But I truly have so much at play.

 

I'm unsure what to do... do I updose, though it seems a little late for that. Do I continue taper? (I'll post in benzos too)

 

Will this just get better as other things have? Guess I'm just looking to see if others have experienced this. I'm feeling so so so low right now. I just can't take much more let downs. My quality of life is back to being nearly nonexistent. 

 

It's been FIVE YEARS and I think I deserve a freaking break. Just one thing after the next with me it feels like. (Thanks for letting me vent)

 

 

[ChessieCat]

Antibiotics?  If yes, was sort?

[crhawk]

22 minutes ago, ChessieCat said:

Antibiotics?  If yes, was sort?

 

We were diagnosed with walking pneumonia in January and given the zpak at that time. I surprisingly seemed to do ok with it at the time (was nervous taking it). 

 

ETA: I do know that the gentamicin drugs can cause the bilateral vestibular weakness, and I didn't have that one or any in the same class... and I'd never allow any flox drugs.

[ChessieCat]

Never heard of mild pneumonia called walking pneumonia.  For others that haven't:  "This non-medical term has become a popular description because you may feel well enough to be walking around, carrying out your daily tasks and not even realize you have pneumonia."

 

It might be worth doing some research on the antibiotic you took, especially combined with a benzo.

 

Glad about the flox drugs.  I refused to take them when prescribed earlier this year and I have been on a benzo but I am an older person and read the FDA warnings.  I was only aware of them thanks to SA.

 

Q:  The next question is have you been drinking alcohol?

[ChessieCat]

I found this:

 

The study is created by eHealthMe based on reports of 262 people who take Azithromycin and Diazepam from the FDA, and is updated regularly.

 

https://www.ehealthme.com/drug-interaction/azithromycin/diazepam/

 

EDITED to add: And this:

 

https://www.ehealthme.com/drug/azithromycin/side-effects/

 

 

Edited November 10, 2020 by ChessieCat

[crhawk]

37 minutes ago, ChessieCat said:

The next question is have you been drinking alcohol?

 

Never. Haven't had a sip in years. I don't even drink caffeine. I'm much too sensitive to want to even attempt it. 

[crhawk]

33 minutes ago, ChessieCat said:

I found this:

 

The study is created by eHealthMe based on reports of 262 people who take Azithromycin and Diazepam from the FDA, and is updated regularly.

 

https://www.ehealthme.com/drug-interaction/azithromycin/diazepam/

 

EDITED to add: And this:

 

https://www.ehealthme.com/drug/azithromycin/side-effects/

 

 

 

Surprisingly, out of the hundreds of things listed, my issues above aren't. So it seems that possibility could be ruled out. 

[ChessieCat]

The second one, < 1 month, #9 dizziness.

[crhawk]

15 minutes ago, ChessieCat said:

The second one, < 1 month, #9 dizziness.

 

The first bout of dizziness started more than a month after I took the antibiotic. And it's now been 10 months since the antibiotic. 

[Farout]

Hi @crhawk I had a horrible reaction to erythromycin in my 20s. I ended up in the ER, full of morphine for the pain. 

 

18 months after my antidepressant reaction, a GP prescribed clarithromycin for a sinus infection and it threw me a complete loop (prompting my first post on this forum). It felt like I was back in the early stages of my AR to pristiq. I spent several weeks like that and one side of my face went completely numb - not a noted side effect.  
 

The 2 antibiotics that I can’t take are in the same family as azythromycin.  It sounds like they might be your culprit.

 

I do much better on amoxicillin and clavulanic or doxycycline.