This personal story was originally posted to the Quinolone Adverse Reaction Forum. If you are a victim of a quinolone antibiotic and need support or advice then please visit the Quinolone Adverse Reaction Forum (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/quinolones/).
 

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This personal story was originally posted to the Quinolone Adverse Reaction Forum. If you are a victim of a quinolone antibiotic and need support or advice then please visit the Quinolone Adverse Reaction Forum (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/quinolones/).

Levaquin
Posted on 28 March 2002
Hi, all …

I'm a newcomer to this forum, having become yet another fluoroquinolone statistic. I'm posting my story here because I need to do some major venting. Frankly, I hope to never lay eyes on another pompous M.D., or facsimile thereof, again in my life … unless, of course, my arms fall off or something. In any case, this tirade is probably going to make for a lengthy post, so my apologies in advance …

I am a 31-year-old male and I was referred to my doctor's "good urologist buddy" back in January for what was supposed to be some sort of low-level prostatitis. The symptoms I was experiencing from this were in no way debilitating and were, if anything, an annoyance. But in a decision that I now regret, I decided to take my doctor up on his referral. In late January, I paid a visit to this urologist who confirmed the suspicions of my PCP, saying that, yes indeedy-do, he was 95% certain that I had some "low-level prostatitis" going, so he prescribed Levaquin.

The regiment seemed extensive: 500 milligrams a day for 42 days. Having never had problems with antibiotics (or ANY prescribed medication, for that matter) before, I threw away the insert without even reading it, thinking that I had every reason to do exactly as the good doctor ordered: one capsule per day for 42 days—"the full dose every time." (Anybody ever seen "Wit"?)

After about the 10th day or so, I noticed my right eye twitching. This lasted about a week and I didn't associate it with the Levaquin. After about the 20th day, I started noticing some even stranger goings-on. I had begun an exercise and yoga regime just after Christmas, and by mid-February, I noticed that it was becoming more difficult to hold some of the yoga poses—my body would shake under the strain and my balance was worse than ever. I was also becoming tired a lot and when I tried to close my eyes to take naps, it would feel as if the room was spinning, similar to that feeling you get right after being shaken very, very hard. The thought still never crossed my mind that it could be the Levaquin—I mean, it was just some little harmless antibiotic, right?

So, I continued to brush off these oddities until later in February—after almost 30 days of taking the Levaquin. I was driving back to work from my lunch break when suddenly my right thumb started to twitch like it had a mind of its own. By the time I got to work, the quivering was running all the way up my right arm into the side of my head; I felt like I had palsy or something. Still not associating it with the Levaquin, I immediately turned to the internet in an impulsive and frantic attempt to figure out what was wrong with me. Well, this was Mistake #2. Instead of assuaging any anxiety, my search just made things worse: MS! ALS! MYASTHENIA GRAVIS! FIBROMYALGIA! BRAIN TUMOR! All sorts of fun NEUROPATHY! But the horror story I really became obsessed with was PARKINSON'S DISEASE! Yes, I really believed I had Parkinson's, and this led to a really fun two-day series of—you guessed it—PANIC ATTACKS.

That's right, for two days I lived in a nightmare. I was convinced I was going to die, and I thought I was going crazy to boot: pacing restlessly, shaking, quivering, feeling like I was going to jump out of my skin. I finally gave in and told a friend what was going on, and that helped a lot. Through all that haze, somehow I began to think a little more rationally. What I was feeling was completely out of the ordinary, almost chemical, like a drug trip or something. Could it be the antibiotic? The Levaquin? Still not entirely convinced that a simple antibiotic could cause such bizarre symptoms, I nevertheless returned to the internet for a search on this drug.

What I read was both a relief and yet another source for disturbance—to find that so many others were having similar, unrelenting reactions to this God-forsaken drug and that it is STILL being prescribed to unsuspecting saps like me was disconcerting. I stopped taking it immediately, and a couple weeks later I went back to the urologist for my six-week follow-up.

And it was after my second visit to the urologist that I decided I loathed the medical profession. After sitting in the waiting room for almost an hour with nothing to do but read a six-month-old copy of "People" and the "Good News" bible, after getting highly p.o.'d at the receptionist who not only yelled my name across the waiting room but asked personal questions in full earshot of the other waiting patients, after finally making it in and telling the urologist about what this medicine had done to me, what does he do? He cuts me off and holds up his finger and says, "One percent. Just one percentof patients have side effects from this drug and it's usually the elderly. I wouldn't have prescribed it if I thought it would do that."

I didn't even argue with him. I could see that he was just protecting himself and trying to make me think I was just a hypochondriac. I did tell him I was going homeopathic all the way from now on, to which he replied snidely, "Well maybe you can educate me on that." Truth be told, I'm sure he really does believeme, but he had to protect himself. The era of people helping people is gone. Doctors have been reduced to soulless androids.

So where am I now, a month after taking my last dose of Levaquin? I'm somewhat better, but it comes and goes. I still have a lot of problems with twitching and shaking all over. I don't have as much anxiety as before and the panic attacks are gone, but I still tire very easily which isn't much of a motivator to engage in all the activities I once enjoyed. In any case, I'm glad this group is here (although I bewail the fact that it's necessary), and I feel better having posted this story. Thanks to all who listened! Mark

Originally posted on the Quinolone Adverse Reaction Forum at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/quinolones/message/7252