Side Effects Of Bactrim (Page 4)
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I need to know of any side effects that may occur while taking this medication.

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Re: Kurt (# 418)

Kurt, Scott again. Sorry I didn't completely answer your question. As far as moving fingers, I can move them quickly and have never tried to move them until failure. My hands started out being very swollen and felt tight when I closed them. At this point they are not nearly as tight which is a sign of progress and that the inflammation is receding. Also forgot to say that fatigue is still a factor but better if I keep myself busy doing things around the house or go into town. Mobility overall is good, just hard getting up and down, even from a sitting position. Knees, hips and all joints are sore. Crazy thing is I have had several blood tests and the CRP test (test for inflammation in body?) always comes back with normal numbers. Another example of what I am going thru....hard to reach forward from sitting position to grab something off of the table. Thanks for all your posts and input. I will try the sauna as you suggested for the joint pain. It's been a while since I read all your posts. Can you remind me if your symptoms included major weight loss and abdominal pain? Thanks again KURT for all your help.

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Re: Kurt (# 418)

Hey Kurt, sorry for the delay in response. First want to say that I am off all of the drugs (mostly prescription antihistamines and ranitidine and singulair....which I guess is an antihistamine). Last thing I went off of was singulair about a week ago. I saw a GI and an allergy immunologist and both said probably should get off of all these and let my body heal. The Ent who put me on this stuff had good intentions and thought it might make me heal faster....It Did Not!!! Where I am right now is I seem to be getting better slowly, but very slowly. It's like it has been said before on this site, 2 steps forward, 1 step back. After getting off all the above medication, I do have a new issue and that is moderate abdominal pain "all the time". I have lost 40 Lbs since finishing the Bactrim. I thought it had settled in at 180lbs.....but hit 174 in the last 3-4 days. Right now back up to 178. GI wants to do a colonoscopy but not sure I want it done. Weight loss is concerning but if I can't get it to stabilize I might go ahead and have it done. Pretty sure it is just the Gut very messed up from Bactrim and all the meds. Started off eating good but have now slipped a little and might need to go back to 3/4 paleo or full paleo. KURT to answer your question about my fingers, don't really know if they tire quickly because I honestly don't use them much. I am retired and have the luxury of sitting home most days and reading and watching golf (as opposed to actually golfing 3-4 days per week like I did pre-Bactrim). I think Kurt also asked about fingers tingling? I will say that when I type messages or emails like this, I do feel a little tingly at the tips. But as soon as I stop it stops tingling. I have tried going to the gym a few times since the problem occurred (5 months ago) but it's hard for my body to do much because of soreness. I know I need to start slow and increase slowly. Pain gets in the way a lot. As an example, most days, if I get down on the floor, I cannot get up without help from a table or person. I may have already posted this but that was probably a month ago so thought I would report it is still the same. My prayers are that all who are affected by this bad drug will see full healing and come out stronger on the other side. I am going to try to start getting to the gym more starting tomorrow. Sounds like it is one of the things that helps cure mind and body. Thanks to all of you for posting your experiences, it is a help to all of us. I will end by saying that all of the doctors I have seen tell me they have never seen this stuff last forever. Hang on to that, take care of yourselves, stay positive and keep the faith. Will post as improvement occurs.

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Re: Kurt (# 421)

Kurt, that's great that some of your symptoms seem to be subsiding. As far as loss of sensation goes, I do have some of that. I had numbness for a while that caused pretty bad incontinence and constipation for about 6 weeks. This has resolved for the most part over the last 2-3 years. I still don't get a strong urge to urinate. I wake up a few mornings a week with numb fingers and sometimes a fingertip will remain numb for the day. My hands are blue/purple quite often, whether they are numb or not. I assume my kidneys are ok. The only thing i notice is a fluctuation in urine quantity at night. Sometimes i don't go, other times i go 4 times. Not sure if I'm just paying too much attention to things. I have tried many diets over the last 3 years. I went one year with no milk, sugar, low carbs, and lots of omega 3's. It did seem to help but i still had flares. I was always a runner but since this happened I get lightheaded during a 25 minute walk. I do work and try to stay active though. Thanks for your response. Hopefully it resolves for us all..

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Re: Kurt (# 423)

Prescript assist and VSL #3 are both pretty popular probiotics. Oh, forgot to mention there is a guy in town that sells kraut, so I was also eating a lot of kraut.

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Re: Brant (# 422)

Hey Brant. Thanks for the uplifting hopeful response. Yes i agree, that this has to due to the gut microbiome out of balance - I'm so glad to hear that your approach worked! The more I read about it the more it makes sense. over 90% or your neurotransmitters are produced in the gut and there are over 500 different bacteria strains living in there. Taking the bactrim was like clear cutting large swaths of the "rainforest" living in our guts.

Anyway, like you I am also focusing on a heavy pre-biotic diet. I started a few weeks ago and i definitely noticed some improvements in my dizziness. Like you said it takes time and patience. They say its not uncommon for it to take a year to get your gut back into balance. And if you keep feeding your gut foods that feed the bad bacteria (sugars, etc) or contribute to the negative balance, things will never improve.
If you do a google search on pre-biotic foods, you will come up with a lot of the foods you put in your salad. kale, onion, garlic, acacia, citrus pectin, etc... yes the key is raw foods. I've also been eating salads but not enough and not the right pre-botics. I also am drinking sever pre-biotic shakes every day (Genesistoday, Fiber, Garden of life Raw Fiber) which have a lot of the stuff you mentioned. I also eat a lot of sauerkraut, kimchi, kimchi juice (gut shots). I think i need to up the garlic though. I'm single so i won't have to worry about offending anyone :)
What is "assist" and VSL #3?
And yes being active and getting your sweat on is key too. The boxing class sounds like a very good full body routine.

Its interesting that you had problems with your eyes (blurryness, etc) too. That seems to be a common problem with many of us. Mine came on several months later.

Wishing you continued improvement.

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Re: Kurt (# 421)

I will chime and tell you what I did to get over it. It took about 3-4 months to get over 95 percent of the symptoms. Some days I still feel a little off and lethargic. About a week after finishing Bactrim I had a dull buzzing headache, blurred vision, severe anxiety and depression.

I basically treated it like the Bactrim had wrecked my gut biome. I did some research online as to what would help restore my gut biome. I followed the following protocol for sixty days.

Every day - 1 tbs psyllium husk, 1 tps acacia fiber, 1 tbs inulin, and I then alternated modified citrus pectin and glucomannan, 1 prescript assist and 1 VSL #3, 1 serving amazing grass green powder.

In addition to this, I got over my fear of having a cardiac arrest, even (anxiety) and started taking some boxing classes. As for diet, I was eating two large raw salads a day. Kale, beets, peppers, onions, tomatoes, three types of sprouts, oregano, s*** tons of garlic (my wife hated me for this), broccoli, cauliflower, whatever I could find that was raw. The dressing was a good olive oil and Bragg's apple cider vinegar. Eventually, the headaches went away, the anxiety went away, the vision became normal and I feel pretty good again.

Now, as everybody on here. I have zero way to prove it was the Bactrim that caused my symptoms. BUT.... it was the only thing that was changed in life prior to having the symptoms. I think restoring the gut biome, eating the raw salads, and sweating profusely through the boxing classes "cured" me. But, there were times I wondered if this is how I would feel the rest of my life. So I get peoples concerns.

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Re: Chris (# 420)

My heart goes out to you. Sounds like we have had a similar reaction and we were on it for about the same time. Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I would have actually completed the whole course instead of stopping half way into it. I wonder that would have at least preserved the gut microbiome distribution.

Question for you. How are your kidneys? Mine happen to he on borderline stage 3 I wonder if I had some kind of toxic shock and my kidneys couldn't have cleared it in time. I wonder if there is some correlation with that.

Yes, It is very frustrating and I have had the same responses from doctors saying that it cant have been the Bactrim. Yet is is well known that antibiotics mess wiht your very complex gut microbiome and yet no one except for the naturopathic community talks about that. My next step is to focus on that. Im even considering FMT but its not approved by the FDA for other than C. Diff, so I will have to do that on my own. I'm going to go to a naturopathic doctor in about a month to have my gut microbiota analyzed.

Another question. Do you have loss of sensation too? Or is your neuropathy only pain and tingling? It feels like the brain fog and tiredness are coupled to the neuropathy. I do feel like my dizziness has gotten better and is on a positive trajectory. The loss of feeling is so depressing. I have also developed ED because of the loss of sensation which of course also contributes to the depression even more. This whole thing really broke me.

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Re: Kurt (# 414)

Kurt, I can sympathize and relate to your experience and the experience of a few others here. I took Bactrim for 10 days. After day 1 my legs were buckling and i was suddenly so weak it was truly unbelievable. This was in 2014. The doctor told me to "tough it out." I quickly had slow heartrate, brain fog, incontinence, dizziness, pins and needles, nerve pain everywhere, and felt lightheaded with ringing ears. I failed autonomic nerve testing (tilt test/sweat test). Doctors agreed that i had neuropathy but 3 neurologists say it was not from the Bactrim. I guess there are a lot of coincidences in the medical field... My symptoms may be slightly better now. There is a lot of trial and error as far as diet. Certain foods seem to be triggers. It's interesting to hear other people's similar stories. Every day I kick myself for staying on that stuff. I should have stopped it on day 1. I should know better than to have listened to a doctor. They must know what this stuff does to people. When I tell them that other people have had similar experiences, the tell me to "stay off line." Very frustrating. Good luck to everyone. God bless and don't give up!

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Annie, how are you progressing? we sound like we have a lot of similar symptoms.

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Scott, thanks for the post. Have you tired a dry sauna? I know its helped take a lot of joint discomfort away for me. But yes if you're in pain don't push through it. It can take months before you feel better. I'm curious how this has affected your mobility? Specifically rapid unloaded movement like wiggling your fingers or any other muscles? Do yours tire out quickly too?

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Hi all, I have a question for any of you that have experienced phototoxicity from using Bactrim. I was on it for 4 days and stops when I had a severe allergic reaction to being in sunlight. Got symptoms of a bad sunburn including sun damage spots, and a sort of hives on the neck. It worsened to the point where I had to go to the ER because my body was shutting down: IV, steroids saved me. I have been off the Bactrim for 3 days and am really nervous about going outside at all (I am fair skinned and live in a high altitude area - Colorado Springs CO), and it's still summer. Any advice on how long I need to sit this out before going out in the sunshine is appreciated. I know every case is different, but would be interested in hearing your stories. Thanks.

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I took bactrim two times and have bloodshot eyes and they are really irritated. How long did you suffer this. And is there any kind of relief for it, i tried eyedrops, it took the red out but my eyes are still irritated :(

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Kurt, thanks for the response. Glad to hear that you are sort of feeling better. Been 4 months for me and I understand everything you are saying. I have had had a relatively healthy diet for the past 30 years but slipped into unhealthy a lot (if that makes sense?). Anyway, I have been concentrating on eating anti inflammatory and pickeled foods and think that is helping? Lots of little issues but main thing with me is pain in all my muscles and joints. Have tried exercise and walking in pool a few times but just a little wears me out...mostly hurts my arms as I swim with them as I walk. Guess I shouldn't do that!!! It's been a month since last attempt and think it's time to try again!! Thanks for your response and I will be updating this blog/forum periodically as I have progress worth reporting and my healing continues. Sending out prayers to all who have been affected by this poison.

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Hi Scott,

Sorry it took me a while to respond. First off, I feel your agony and frustration. After reading your first posting, I was shocked at the multitude of meds your doctors where throwing at you in almost a shotgun approach to ease your discomfort. Personally after this experience, I refuse to take any drugs and fortunately none of my doctors prescribed anything to alleviate my constellation of symptoms. I’m adamant on healing the natural way by supporting my body to heal naturally with diet, exercise and lifestyle. Of course this takes time and there is so much trial and error.

I’ve had so many symptoms over these past 10 months, many of them went away but some of are still lingering, the extent and intensities of which vary. The main ones that bother me the most at this point are, dizziness, and loss of sensation (some tingling). Gone (For the most part) is the severe depression which I personally attribute to an aggressive probiotics/pickled vegetable regime. Also my chronic fatigue is pretty much gone and I have a lot more energy, still not 100% but much better. Also I had bad neck pain and strange sensations from that region for the longest time but that has finally been gone for about a month. I’ve been going to a special chiropractor who practices the ABC technique which has helped that considerably. I’m not holding my breath because anything can come back. It’s like playing whack a mole with my heath. I also still have the wide spread lack of sensation but that has improved slowly.

So regarding the neuropathic symptoms, like tingling, joint pain, etc., all of which I have had through this journey. It’s very difficult to put a percent improvement on that. It’s very nonlinear, and the symptoms can go up and down even in a single day. It was interesting because early on also noticed a very close connection with the dizziness, depression and the neuropathy. They all increased in intensity at the same time. It’s hard to actually describe what I’m feeling too. I would say, loss of sensation when i pinch myself, tingling, joint pain in specific joints (not wide spread), joint stiffness and pain which is centered in my feet and hands. Also I have these strange muscle issues where my rapid muscle movements like wiggling my fingers can get tired really quickly making my hands feel clumsy, but also recover quickly too. I got myself a lot of hand eerie gadgets and those have helped a lot. I don’t have wide spread pain. If anything its loss of pain which makes me feel really weird and rubbery. Lately it feels like I’m getting some sensation back and I’ve been feeling more itching sensations when I do. Hopefully this is a sign of the very slow nerve regrowth. I know Susan mentioned that in a another message, and so whenever things itch I feel a positive glimmer of hope?

So, I don’t know how to answer your question. I did have some strange biting pains early on both those went away. But yes, I still have symptoms, definitely after 10 months. Is it sill as bothersome? I would say no, but even that is complicated by the fact that I was extremely depressed making everything much more intense. I think the overall trajectory is one of improvement and not decline. It almost feels like my body is honing into some new homeostatic state but in a very very convoluted way. Really the things that has helped the most, have been exercise, weight lifting, swimming, probiotics, and time. In the beginning I was really sensitive to crappy foods but now I tolerate bad foods better. I still have always had a very good mainly non inflammatory paleo-ish diet which I try to enhance with antioxidants, Omega 3 and magnesium.

Also you mentioned something about your eyes, as did bfunk a while back. I have also been experiencing dry eyes at night. Has anyone else had this? I wake up in the morning and it feels like my eyelids are stuck to my eyeballs. I have some eye drops ready every morning when I wake up. I think that’s slowly getting better though. Also my vision in general on my left eye has been sketchy, and that seems to be improving too. I also noticed a very noticeable slowing down of rapid eye movement if I move my eyes back and forth rapidly, but see a slow improvement to that too.

Anyway, sorry for being so scattered. Sometimes I almost feel like I can write a book about this whole crazy experience! The medical community has not helped me one bit except for ruling out things like MS, lupus, etc. And like what a lot of others have said they all refuse to accept it was the Bactrim. Maybe it was, maybe not. I just know that I felt fine before I took Bactrim. Maybe we all have a genetic defect to where we can’t properly metabolize Bactrim and it causes a massive toxic shock or some kind of mitochondrial dysfunction? Another theory is that my gut microbiome was totally thrown out of whack. They say it can take years to get it back into balance. I now that my depression went away and it’s well known that the gut creates about 90% of your neurotransmitters. And there are lots of study’s that support the link between the gut and depression.

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Kurt, can you please tell me if after 7-8 months you are still feeling all of the inflammatory pain you had in the beginning or is it better? Can you place a percentage on the pain improvement if there is any. I have read all of your posts and I do see that you mention "7 months and I can't say that I am a whole lot better". I know that statement should be self explanatory but could you please reconfirm that most of your joints and muscles are still in pain as of today? Thank you. Scott

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Kurt, can you please tell me if after 7-8 months you are still feeling all of the inflammatory pain you had in the beginning or is it better? Can you place a percentage on the pain improvement if there is any. I have read all of your posts and I do see that you mention "7 months and I can't say that I am a whole lot bett

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Hello all, my name is Scott 57 year old retiree, mostly healthy. My experience has been very similar to a lot of you, especially Susan and Kurt. I was prescribed BACTRIM DS for a Sinus infection early April, 2017. I started having aches and pains throughout my body and small bumps mostly on my chest around day 4. I emailed my Dr. and she said these were normal side effects. Instructions given with the Bactrim say to call your Dr. if these symptoms occur which I did and she said to keep taking them. As of today I am just over 4 months from finishing the 10 day 2x per day dose Dr. prescribed. Biggest problem when I finished course was I had so much muscle/joint pain I could barely get out of a chair to walk. Also had a CLUNK IN MY THROAT STARTING AROUND DAY 4. My Dr admitted it was an allergic reaction but gave me nothing and said symptoms would go away within a week or 2. Dr ran normal blood panel including Thyroid....all normal. Symptoms did NOT go away within 2 weeks so I went to see an ENT on my own because in week 2 my throat started to swell ENT also said it was allergic reaction to BACTRIM AND GAVE ME 9 day course of oral prednisone. Prednisone helped immediately and took pain down by about 70-80%. At the same time he prescribed RANATADINE 150gm 2x per day and SINGULAIR 10mg for throat and allergic reaction. These helped my swollen throat issues. When I finished PRESNISONE my pain level came back to around 50-60% of what it was originally. On my 3rd visit to ENT (JUNE) he prescribed 2 additional antihistamines (DOXEPIN 10mg AND HYDROXYZINE 25mg) to try and reduce body swelling (he said to try and speed up the recovery time). Took all of these for past 2 months with minimal improvement in body pain which, in my eyes, my biggest problem. In early August I tried going off the RANATADINE and rash that was on my chest, that was somewhat dormant during 4 months, began to itch severely and I once or twice a day I get a feeling as if my chest is burning from the inside. Went in the See ENT again and told him about the rash and he said to go back on the RANATADINE. He also prescribed another course of steroids (12 days) which I have filled but have not taken yet and don't think I will unless rash starts to get out of conrol). Btw, I have had the rash since April but it did not bother me much until now.....first course of steroids did nothing to the rash. At this last appt. ENT told me he had never seen the allergic reaction last this long. He is ok continuing treatment but does not know what else to do....I give him an A for effort. Back up to end of June and my PC DR wanted to check blood again. All was normal except thyroid was High....hypothyroid. She put me on LEVOTHYROXINE to correct levels. In 1 month changed just a little and now on 2nd month at increased dose. Was hoping that was some of problem but I really don't think so at this point. Also, since mid April when I finished BACTRIM DS, I have had brain fog, trouble with words, slight burn in eyes, tingly nerves in legs when standing still for more than 10 seconds, strange shots of pain like pinprick off and on.....usually in legs. As of right now I can say that I am better than when I finished the BACTRIM DS. Maybe 40% better overall with new symptoms daily (example...knees hurt when I get out of a chair and then I can walk ok. If I get down on the ground, I usually can't get up without help. Fatigue is less but still there..seems I need a nap In The morning most days unless I am out and about keeping busy. Overall muscles and joins still very sore). I do take 2 aleve on days I leave house and they do help the pain.

Sorry this is so choppy but as a lot of you know, the fatigue and brain fog makes it hard to stay focused and on task. I do have an appointment with an ALLERGIC IMMUNOLOGIST on September 14 (unless they squeeze me in sooner). Not holding out a lot of hope but still hoping against hope. I am like a lot of you at this point who have had this stuff for months.......thinking it is mostly time and prayer that works best on this stuff.

Thanks and praying that everyone heals soon!! God Bless.

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Janet, I agree with you. I have lymphedema too and bactrim is a med that works for me. It upsets my stomach, but all antibiotics have some type of reaction with me.

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Your post made me laugh because for me, Bactrim actually causes what looks and feels like cellulitis, but is an allergic reaction. Every body is different.

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Folic acid might be reduced by bactrim.
Folic acid is a B vitamin needed by pregnant women..

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I am curious if anyone else has had any of these side effects from taking bactrim. My mouth is so swollen with blisters ...

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