Metronidazole Lasting Side Effects (Page 8) (Top voted first)

I have been taking this medication for 7 days and off of it since a week and still have severe side effects, abdominal cramps, severe headaches, dizziness, unsteadiness... How long is it expected to last? It was prescribed with Ciprofloxacin to me and I take Entrophen on a regular basis...

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Karol, if your diver acts up again, ask for something else besides cipro/flagyl. After having a diverticulitis flare up, you may develop IBS. I had three diver attacks all 8 weeks apart. The third time I asked for something else.... can't remember what they gave me. I really think the third bout was just IBS-C. The ER gave me a shot of ibuprofen and 90 days worth of bentyl. I've been taking citrucel and miralax once daily and a probiotic every other day. I've felt pretty good now for about 22 weeks with the exception of a few cramps after eating spicy foods. I know I still worry about it returning. Try and relax and take it day by day.

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Anybody have problems with memory too besides everything else?

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Thank you so much Erin for explaining this to me. Flagyl (Metronidazole) ruined me in so many ways. I have short term memory loss from after taking Metronidazole. My other psychiatric symptoms seemed to have calmed down but this is the one that is bothering me the most. I have to keep up with the date using a calendar and I usually lose track of the time. Is anybody else going through this or am I the only one?

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Thanks Karol, I went back through your posts and holy cow! Our issues are very similar. I've kept a log. I too started off with some severe reflux. i got that under control then the diver. The otc's that have helped me the most are miralax, citrucel, a probiotic that's 1/2 lacto 1/2 bacilliccus and slippery elm. This stuff helps soothe your entire digestive track. I like to mix it with tea in the afternoons. It really tamps down the heartburn and is supposed to help protect your colon against diver infections. I take a multi vitamin. An ER doctor prescribed me two years of bentyl. I usually only take it when I get cramps in my lower colon area. It seems a lot of the same foods that can give me reflux, can give me colon cramps too. Keep on with the food log. I do three sets of 15 second planks everyday too. This is supposed to help strengthen your diaphram. Yes. It is a lot to keep track of but very affordable. I've dropped a few pounds and it all seems to work together.

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This is pretty serious... what is your doctors response to this? Have you seen a neurologist? Action must be taken now to help you. If your doc doesn't take it serious can you request a second opinion? What kind of insurance do you have?

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Deb, I'd suggest stopping the metronidazole and asking for something else. The thing about this drug is it gets EVERYWHERE--all across all parts of your body. So the side effects are, of course, everywhere. I have neck pain due to this drug--nerve damage is a common adverse reaction. "Burning" pain is a sign of damaged nerves and can take some time to recover from. So instead of further damaging the nerves, I'd suggest switching meds.

Just no Cipro, Levequin or Avelox--they can be just as bad, if not worse than, metronidazole. Other antibiotics have a less chance of causing these types of problems. No guarantee but it's less common with other drugs.

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Insist on seeing your doctor and take a list of side effects with you and mark the ones you are experiencing and request a different med.. When I was taking it I also needed other attention and had a few more days of the med to take but my dr insisted I try to "get through it". Afterward my eye doctor asked who my reg. doc was and said she knew her and was going to call her about the change she had seen in me in 30 days time....I took the meds in between eye doc appts... she did call and told them to get me into the office now!! that was probably what actually made my dr pay attention and she ordered tests and sent me to a neurologist for treatment before I got a lot worse. It was a great help...physical therapy, then I did tai chi on my own... then later added deep tissue massage and now getting dry needle acupuncture treatment which is really helping everything else like the neuropathy...

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Lyka: I don't know if this will help you but it has helped me a lot. I feel less off balanced and dizzy and less stress and anxiety. In a study of metronidazole toxicity in animals they were given diazepam which improved their symptoms. Diazepam facilitates GABA so I purchased a GABA supplement and taurine which assists with GABA functioning as well. I only take the GABA at night because it makes me tired. I take 2000 mg of fish oil a day. I also take phosphatidyl serine which assists in cognitive decline. Acupuncture and exercise will do you good. My homeopathic doctor prescribed me MitoPQQ which assists with mitochondria but I haven't purchased it yet. It's like $50. I hope this helps all you. If you guys take any supplements or anything that has improved your state please share.

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Most people do make a full recovery--there's no reason for them to be on here if they are all better. Just something to keep in mind.

I'm doing very well. Yes, I do have a few lingering problems but they are minor compared to before.

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BJH, yes, I absolutely agree with you. People who have recovered completely aren't on these forums (or if they are, they don't stay long). Most people recover completely from metronidazole toxicity, or at least greatly improve. It's hard to predict who will have what outcome, but the odds are in our favor.

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Thank you BJH and Erin for giving somebody like me hope, I'm glad to know most people recover completely from this drug. I hope my recovery won't be interrupted or slowed down just because I'm not taking any supplements to help myself.
I decided to eat only cooked greens and yogurts, hope this helps.

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Hi there,
How long did you experience these side effects for? If you can remember.

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For about 3 days try eating a high protein diet and no sugars and carbs to see if that helps with the brain fog.

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Hi, Karol. You're having a flare up. They happen with this. I have them and so do a lot of people who have a bad reaction to this drug. I don't know exactly what's happening that's causing these, but it feels like something is "cycling through" (like something on a molecular level) is being replicated and it's being replicated with the damage. This is all speculative but flare up's seem to pass after a few days to a few weeks, and are usually never as bad as the initial reaction. My flare up's were pretty bad the first few times but they're not as bad now. More annoying than debilitating, and the anxiety issues are completely gone. It stinks, I know, but it's your body healing.

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Vanessa I took it in February and didn't realize that the anxiety, and crying about things, and other things like headache, and facial tingling and numbness was from the medication. My doctor did blood work and all was fine...he never mentioned the possibility of side effects and I haven't talked to him since all my test results were normal, but I found this forum and saw that others have had the same experience. I am finally having more good days than bad days, but I thought it would never get better. I only took the drug for one course, and it seems like you took two. I will echo what others told me....hang on and give it time. Read back in this forum because you will be encouraged to see others' progression from hopelessness to finally feeling better. I found this forum when I was really in despair and it helped me a lot.

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Thanks Karol for your reply. It has been very long few weeks.

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I just want to say thank you to all of you for posting your experiences, you have no idea how much you've helped others struggling to get their lives back after this awful drug. I usually don't post replies- but I also have had my life on hold since January. The metro is the main cause, but it started from being over prescribed dental antibiotics for a root canal back in december. So I'm 6 months out, still having major waves of depression & my short term memory is nonexistant, joint aches, but the balance issues & visual issues are mostly gone, my neck only hurts a little & this week I actually had some energy to exercise again. I talked to someone who is dealing w/ floxie side effects and she said the only thing thats helped her is celery juice- she drinks up to 16 oz per day when she can. I started feeling a shift after 2 days of it, then I started juicing the celery & adding cucumber, spinach, blueberries, any super food to help w/ detoxing. I also add in a green powder that has all the major vitamins and supplements you can find it at any local healthy market. I'm hoping I don't have to go thru another low episode like the last one, at least I have my husband to help me thru this. But thanks again to all of you, it really has helped so much.

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keep us posted as to your progress... because if some kind of detox works all can benefit from the community knowledge.

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Thanks Karol for sharing your reply. I am also having a cycling of symptoms. 3 good days and 7 bad days. I am getting so frustrated and depressed.

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My symptoms have cycled as well. Good days and then bad ones. I talked to a neurologist about it, and he said that's normal for central nervous system issues. Ironically, he didn't believe me about the metronidazole doing this, but that was one bit of info that was helpful.

My symptoms slowly improved over time, but it followed that same cycle. I still have some lingering things but they are no longer disabling.

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