Metronidazole Lasting Side Effects (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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I was on Metronidazole 500mg 3Xday for 4 days over a month ago. I had to stop on the fourth day because of severe symptoms, weakness, dizziness, lightheadedness, imbalance and confusion. I called my pharmacist after my first dose on the third day and he told me to continue. I did and the next morning after the first dose I started to have tingling in my hands and feet with a weird awful feeling in my legs and feet. If I would have known this could happen, I would have stopped them earlier. It's now been 3 weeks since I stopped and although I've gone to my doctor and have been told that my symptoms should go away in time, I'm not sure this is true. I wake up feeling druged (swimming head) etc. and my balance is way off. I'm very afraid and know a little about periheral neuropathy. Why does my brain still feel not right? I have to hold on to things when I am standing still and walking I often reach out to hold on to chairs, walls etc. What is happening to me and will I really get better? Each day I hope to feel better to give me some hope but not much has changed. I can't even drive my car anymore. Please if you have gone through this and can offer me some help, I'd appreciate it very much.

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I started flagyl on 3/5/12 I'm so sick now, but I stopped it 3 days ago when these symptoms started yet they have only gotten worse. My throat is covered in sores and blisters. It also has a yellow type puss that runs down the back of my throat. I Itch like crazy my stomach is so bloated i look 5 months pregnentl!! My feet and fingers twitch uncontrollably. Is this from taking flagyl? If so what do I do? My doc is currently on vacation. Is this serious should I go to the ER or what? Anyone else experience this problem?

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hi my son stopped taking this drug 2months ago but his side effects are still continuing he keeps being sick how are you doing

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I have a bad headache from this has anyone else just had the headach

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Hi just a brief update on my son.It has been 10 weeks since he stopped taking the drug.They have seemed very long and traumatic weeks this has NOT been minor but I feel he is starting to improve so there is light at the end of a long tunnel.

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I've been off of Metronizadole since July 02 and here it is August 19th and my symptoms are worse. I am experiencing symptoms of peripheral neuropathy in my hands and feet especially. My feet are very painful and the weakness in my arms and legs make it hard to walk and to stand for long. I have other symptoms as well such as imbalance and dizziness at times. My doctor says he's sorry and is not offering any solutions. I still can't believe this has happened to me! :(

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Regarding side effects of Metronidazole,I would suggest any Probiotic preperation or Lacto-Bacillus prepration and Cynocobalamine-Methylecobalamine preperation should be given along with Metronidazole which will reduce the side effects mentioned by the patients on Metronidazole.I personally find this very effective in patients with Oral-infections where in sometimes I have to give this drug for 10 days. Umesh Sahgal

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Hi Dawn, I'm sorry to hear about what your son is going through. I've never had such a severe reaction to an antibiotic either. To me this is poison and it makes me wonder about the drugs they give us. From now on I will never take anything without doing extensive research! If you don't mind I will say a prayer for your son for a complete healing. Hugs

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Thank you, Dawn, for your update on your son's progress. I'm glad to hear he is doing much better. It also gives me hope. I have 4 children and I know how heartbreaking and helpless it feels to see one of them suffering. I wish the drug hadn't affected my nerve endings, that's what scared me. My feet still burn and pain quite bad, especially my toes. However, with faith nothing is impossible with God so I'm believing for a complete recovery(healing). I will keep you posted on my progress if you'd like. God Bless!

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Hi, I had the headache too but that was only one of many side effects I experienced and am still experiencing 2 months later.

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I'm going through it too. Took metronidazole 500mg 3x daily for six days. I took it for diarrhea that was slowly increasing (3x a day), on the flagyl I had diarrhea 15x a day. Stopped when I started experiencing numbness and tingling in hands and feet. It's been a month and a half. The diarrhea is long gone, replaced with semi constipation. Most of the tingling is gone, but it still comes and goes at times. Was also having numbness and tingling on my chin, face and side of head. Have a daily headache in one or both temples. Stomach is a mess. I switched to a paleo type diet, that helps. Eat lots of salmon and other cold water wild caught fish. Lots of steamed vegetables. Probiotics might help, I react to most if I take too much. The flagyl definitely gave me horrible anxiety, and a bunch of other weird symptoms too. Seems like it's something new every day. For some (like me) I'm pretty sure the majority of symptoms is due to the flagyl wiping out a huge percentage of natural gut flora. I have a ton of reactions to foods that I never had before this antibiotic, so this theory makes sense. For some, all that may be needed is a good probiotic. Natural flora synthesize a number of the b vitamins so those will probably be low if flora was pooped out. This has been a very trying experience to say the least. Try to minimize your stress, go for walks, meditate, pray, do what you have to do. Look up heart math, keep a gratitude journal. These things will help to a certain extent. Stay positive. You will get through it. I'm not there yet, but I know I will be. I didn't come this far to be taken down by an antibiotic!

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Hi i am sorry you are not feeling better the dosage of 1500mg over 4 days does seem high my son took 1200mg per day over 6 days he should have continued for 14 days but the side effects were so bad i stopped it he stopped on 18th june he was exceptionally anxious to an extreme degree so i can understand it affecting your nervous system since then his nerves seem better but its now affecting his stomach and he is bringing up lots of acid.Its as if the drug has started in his head and is now working down his body he has never had such a bad reaction to an antibiotic or any other drug before.The only crumb of comfort i can give you is that he is very slowly improving but like you i wonder when it will go away for good.Good Luck

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This is the exact same thing that happened to me. I was prescribed 1500 mg of Flagyl + 1000 mg of Cipro daily for an attack of colitis. I took the Flagyl for 10 days and thought I was going to die if I continued the 3-week dose I was prescribed. About a week into the medicine, I became extremely dizzy and had brain fog. I didn't feel like the room was spinning but like I was moving all the time. Four months later, it's still the same. I have been treated with a large dose of Valium, which allowed me to go back to work. The Valium keeps the dizziness bearable, and if it weren't for that, I probably would have lost my job. I don't have any hope for recovery right now and believe it was the flagyl that has caused brain damage. 2 physicians have agreed b/c flagyl can easily break the blood-brain barrier. Please share your experiences with me. I am terrified every day and don't know where to turn.

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Hi Pat,
All I can say is I wish I had stopped as soon as my dizziness and lightheadedness started. It just took 4 days before I started having symptoms of peripheral neuropathy and this is a seriously debilitating condition. I would not take any more if I were you. Even if you don't get PN from what I've read from others the other side effects are long lasting. The imbalance could be a sign of nerve damage starting. Please let me know how you make out. I wish I could tell you that I'm doing much better but I can't. Although the imbalance has improved some and the dizziness too. I'm not giving up hope though. I would take a good probiotic if I were you and speak with someone who knows their stuff about ridding your body of this med. I've been taking milk thistle to detoxify my liver and fish oil, vitamin E. Other antioxidants for the PN etc. Hope this helps you!

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This is what it says:

WARNINGS
Central and Peripheral Nervous System Effects: Convulsive seizures, encephalopathy,
aseptic meningitis, optic and peripheral neuropathy, the latter characterized mainly by
numbness or paresthesia of an extremity, have been reported in patients treated with
metronidazole. The appearance of abnormal neurologic signs demands the prompt
discontinuation of FLAGYL (metronidazole) therapy. FLAGYL should be administered
with caution to patients with central nervous system diseases.

Central Nervous System: Encephalopathy, aseptic meningitis, convulsive seizures, optic
neuropathy, peripheral neuropathy, dizziness, vertigo, incoordination, ataxia, confusion,
dysarthria, irritability, depression, weakness, and insomnia.

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Hey there,
I'm sorry you have had to ingest this horrific poison! It is absolutely horrible. Well, I took a 10-day course starting June 6th of this year, ending June 16th. I started having your exact symptoms on day 9 (minus the vomiting). It is now September 3rd (nearly 3 months since the last dose,) and I am about 60% better. I still get waves of depression and panic, but they are not NEARLY as bad as when this all first happened...and they are gradually and fading. I did a ton of research, and found that what we are actually experiencing is similar to mold toxicity (same exact symptoms) but it's biotoxin illness/chemical toxicity. My mom and I consult with a world-renowned nutritionist who helped me get off all psych meds years ago (I used to suffer from clinical depression and anxiety but was completely and totally 100% cured years ago with natural food-derived vitamins and supplements). Our nutritionist is a certified doctor of nutirtion and a genius. Anyway, he sent me a link to a famous natural doctor who pioneered in the area of mold detoxification. Did you know that 90% of antibiotics are made from mold?? And 1/3 of the population has a gene that cannot process mold...funny because it is MEDICALLY DOCUMENTED that 1/3 of the population has the potential to suffer from Central Nervous System toxicity (what you and I are experiencing) as a side effect of these HORRIFIC antibiotics. Strange coincidence, huh? The doctor who pioneered in mold detoxification uses a substance called cholestyramine to detoxify people that are highly toxified by mold, biotoxins, and other neurotoxic chemicals... It is a medication in powder form that is used to lower cholesterol...it is not absorbed so it is pretty benign. The side effect is that it detoxifies the liver of neurotoxins. Cholestyramine is also used to detoxify Vietnam vets of agent orange...a highly neurotoxic chemical. Neurotoxins (derived from chemical toxicity) are lipophilic, meaning they hide in our body fat...mainly our brain, which is mostly fat....which is why they are extremely hard to detox. When we eat, our gallbladder releases bile, which contains the neurotoxins. The neurotoxins travel to the small intenstine where they are reabsorbed and continue to toxify us. Our small intenstine has an affinity for neurotoxins. What the cholestyramine does is bind the bile so that none of the neurotoxins are reabsorbed...then you when you defecate you excrete them. Anyway, to make a long story short, I went to this clinic that specializes in mold detoxification here in my area. I started taking cholestyramine and whithin one week I jumped from being about 15% better to nearly 60% better...when before the cholestyramine I was barely better after a month and a half. I even started having some days where I was feeling 100% normal! Our nutritionist explained that this is a process and that detoxification takes awhile. Regular medical doctors will not believe you when you tell them that this poison caused these symptoms...Don't even try to explain it to them because you will be wasting your breath. Id love to connect with you and offer you support. You can email me at {edited for privacy}

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Thank you i will say a prayer for you to.My feelings are exactly as yours its as if i am dealing with a poison which is why i feel that drinking plenty of fluids especially water to dilute and flush it out would seem like a good idea.I am not at all surprised your doctor couldnt help and like you i will undertake extensive research before i ever administer another drug which is what the doctors ought to be doing.Please stay in touch.

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As I have only 2 more days I am going to stick it out and have started taking a probiotic, I find if I haven't slept well symptoms are worse. Today I making myself keep going which seems to help rather than lie around(which my husband)tells me to do.

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Pat to give you some hope I felt the symptoms you are experiencing for about 5 and a half weeks and gradually got better. I thought that the dizziness and lightheadedness was causing me anxiety which was making it worse. I'm not sure but I know it wasn't normal for me. I know the drug was involved. If you could get yourself some natural supplements to help relax you that might help. I suggest a natural food store, they are very helpful. I didn't do this until much later but it did help. I hope this is of help. I agree with you about what you said about pharmaceutical company doing something about this. They say the symptoms are rare as in PN and some others but this isn't true judging from all of the post from others. Please let us know what your Dr. says.

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Hi, I am so sorry to hear that you are experiencing all of this. I took Metronidazole at the end of last June for 4 days. I had the same symptoms you describe. For me it slowly got better about after 3 months. I still have some symptoms of PN mostly the nerves in my lower back. I spent a lot of money on light lazor treatments done at a Chiropracter's office. I had 18 treatments in all. I couldn't afford anymore. I do believe they helped. If I were you since you are early in this ordeal I would go to see a good Naturopathic Dr. I didn't but wish I had. You should be taking something to detox your body from this poison/med. I forget the name but it was like some kind of clay a person could take to pull the toxins out of the body. Hang in there and don't give up. Doctors will try to tell you that it is out of your system by now but I don't believe that is true. It is incredibly scary, I can still remember it so well. The nerve damage (PN) will not get worse because you are no longer taking the medication. This is what I've been told by a neurologist. I wish I would have known this earlier. I was so afraid when I read up on PN and how progressive it was. I couldn't even wear shoes but now I can and the weird crawly feeling in my legs is mild and not frequent compared to what it was like before. I hope this gives you hope. In my opinion this poison shouldn't be prescribed to anyone.

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