Why You Can’t Detoxify from Levaquin and Cipro
Many people have been asking if it is possible to Detoxify from Levaquin, Cipro, Avelox, and any other Quinolone and Fluoroquinlone drug reactions. Unfortunately, the answer is no, unless you happen to have taken the drug within hours or days of your reaction. If you are new to the Fluoroquinolones, please see the page on Introduction to Fluoroquinolones here. You can also see a List of Quinolone and Fluoroquinolone Drugs here.
Detoxify from Levaquin and the Fluoroquinolones?
As soon as people find out they have been poisoned from the Fluoroquinolones, they almost always want to do some sort of ‘cleanse’ that might include fasting, juice fasting, the Master Cleanse, or drink green smoothies. But without the proper information and nutrients, these routines can actually PREVENT detoxification and cause a build-up of toxic by-products that can lead to WORSE oxidative stress and damage than what was caused by the Fluoroquinolones. Additionally, these raw vegetables, such as kale and spinach, that most people use in green smoothies and other ‘cleanses’, have high amounts of anti-nutrients, such as oxalates, that can lead to worsening of symptoms and lead to the phenomenon of blocking nutrient absorption.
Most people are unaware that detoxification requires several steps, each step requiring proper nutrients and enzymes. In the first step of detoxification, you can LIBERATE toxins from the body cells easily, but if you do not have the proper nutrients to bind and excrete them, they can continue to circulate in the bloodstream where they can cause worse damage than if you had simply done nothing. You can see more about this on the What You Need to Know to Detoxify Safely page.
Also, in my experience, most people suffering from Fluoroquinolone toxicity have moderate to severe nutrient deficiencies that prevent them from both healing and detoxifying from the Fluoroquinolones, and these nutrient deficiencies were potentially what caused them to get damaged from the Fluoroquinolones to begin with; and they desperately need to build UP their bodies rather than risk tearing them down and becoming even more nutrient deficient with a detox that is often deficient in needed fats, proteins, and micronutrients. Detoxification from the Fluoroquinolones under these circumstances and for most people is just simply not safe. And it’s not effective either… as you’ll see next.
You Detoxify from Levaquin Without Doing Anything Special
Moreover, the Fluoroquinolones do not stay in your system long after the last dose. The half-life of Levaquin, what is considered one of the ‘long-acting’ Fluoroquinolone drugs, is 8 hours at the longest 1. That means that every 8 hours, one-half of the dose in the body has been excreted from the body through the urine and feces. So, after 16 hours, only 1/4 of the drug is still in your system. After 24 hours, only 1/8; 32 hours, 1/16; 48 hours, 1/32, and so on to infinity. By the time most people even discover that they have been injured by this drug, it’s already long been detoxified and fasting will likely do nothing, or worse.
The continuing effects of the Fluoroquinolones are from damage that is already done, and not because the drug is still in your system. Remember, this is not ‘just’ a drug, it is a chemotherapy agent that causes:
- DNA Damage
- Mitochondrial Disorder
- Tendon Damage
- Aortic Aneurysm from collagen damage
- Neurologic Damage, and many more problems
- Binding of minerals, leading to nutrient deficiencies
Just like people who take chemotherapy, they can experience similar problems to Fluoroquinolone toxicity long after they take their last dose of chemotherapy. This is not because of the toxicity of the chemotherapy drugs still in their system causing problems, but from the damage to the body’s cells that cause their fatigue, hair loss, nausea, Peripheral Neuropathy and other side effects. Therefore, in most cases, trying to detoxify from the Fluoroquinolones is futile, and could actually be worse than worthless!
You Can Detoxify from Levaquin and Cipro
Quickly After Taking the Drug
However, if one realizes that they have been poisoned within hours after taking the Fluoroquinolones, magnesium and calcium could actually help with detoxification of the Fluoroquinolones. This is because magnesium can bind to, and inactivate the remaining drugs. Almost no one tries this because few people realize they have been poisoned so soon after taking the drugs, and it is not known if this is even safe. For instance, the chelated complex might be even more toxic than the quinolone itself, if this is the case, taking these minerals could make things worse.
Another possible solution to EARLY stage toxicity for those with the drug still in their system is a supplement called N-acetylcysteine, or NAC. A derivative of NAC, a drug called Acetylcysteine, could also be used to detoxify an early stage toxicity. This drug/supplement is extremely effective for use in detoxifying Tylenol and is the ‘standard of care’ in hospitals for those having a Tylenol overdose.
You detoxify from Levaquin along the same physiologic pathways as Tylenol, which is one of the reasons why taking Tylenol with any of the Fluoroquinolones can increase the risk of a Fluoroquinolone reaction by an order of magnitude. Because of this, no one should EVER take Tylenol, Ibuprofen, other NSAID drugs, or steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like Prednisone when taking the Fluoroquinolones. Ironically, these ‘NSAID’ drugs are almost universally prescribed with the Fluoroquinolones. If doctors WANTED to cause bad reactions, they couldn’t choose a better combination.
What is known is that quinolones tend to form these chelation complexes with magnesium or calcium within the stomach. Therefore, if someone takes a quinolone tablet, and then takes magnesium supplements, much of the quinolone will be prevented from entering the bloodstream. It has been shown that magnesium and calcium interfere with oral quinolone absorption, but it is not known if the magnesium can bind with the Fluoroquinolone drugs so that you can detoxify from Levaquin, once the drug is in their bloodstream
Bringing this logic forward, if som
eone overdoses on a quinolone such as Levaquin or Cipro, they may want to quickly ingest antacids or magnesium supplements (in appropriate amounts), in order to prevent some of the quinolones from entering the bloodstream. Alternatively, or in addition to the magnesium or calcium, they could also try taking NAC (in appropriate doses) every 6 to 8 hours for several doses.
In any case, to detoxify from Levaquin and Cipro is not hard, it happens naturally and easily and the drugs are gone in days, up to a week from the body, but to HEAL from the damage the medication does to the body is the difficult part. If you are suffering from Fluoroquinolone Toxicity, we suggest you get and follow the protocol in the ebook The Fluoroquinolone Toxicity Solution.
The members of our staff were all poisoned from using these drugs and have all followed the protocol in the book and agree that it gave us our best improvements in our condition than from anything else that we had done. We all highly recommend it and have found the personal attention the authors give invaluable to our recovery.
While being treated for an injured knee, the result of a fall, my annual physical revealed a jump in my psa level from 5 to 10. In a routine way, my doctor prescribed a twice a day, six weeks course of Cipro, so as to preclude a prostate infection as the source of my psa rise. Having heard the word “cancer” mentioned in this connection, and having read about the barbaric surgery often involved in treating prostate cancer, I was only too happy to agree to this Cipro therapy.
Part way through, I started to experience a noticeable loss of appetite, weight loss (feeding our fears of cancer) and increasing joint pain. I tried to medicate this pain using ibupropen. Mentioning the joint pain to my doctor, it was suggested to me that depression might be its cause. I did not believe this, but like a fool, and afraid of cancer and surgery, I continued to ingest Cipro for the whole six weeks. I should mention that, following the Cipro, my psa jumped from 10 to 14, in six weeks! One week prior to a scheduled prostate biopsy, I had to quit the ibupropen, when the joint pain seemed to really become noticeable. Ironically, the biopsy showed my prostate to be cancer free. It was all for nothing!!!!!
Now, more than five weeks since taking the last Cipro, my joint pain is no better and seems to be getting worse. I have been trying to cleanse with a tumeric solution, milk thistle, taking vitamin C, and the cartilage supplement glucosomine, chondroitin and msn. My health is undermined, my outlook grim. I fault my doctor for not giving me any warnings regarding the hazards of Cipro. Turns out, other than the possibility of torn ligaments, he was unaware of the hazards. Most of all, I fault myself for not researching the possible side effects before poisoning myself this way.
This article contains a lot of inaccurate info. There is a reason someone who has been healed for SIX years, “fully healed” (so they thought) has a full on relapse out of the blue while exercising, an activity known to cause detox. This happens ALL THE TIME, I did extensive research on the Quins and have a 10 year background in Health and seen all the patterns when looking through all past and present Floxies
Exercise is also known to cause things like:
So, the fact that you and others have relapses during times of stress on your body, increased mitochondrial workload, increased magnesium usage, and increased cortisol production doesn’t imply that the article is inaccurate, or that your problems are from ‘detoxing’.
Your statement implies that the Fluoroquinolones were stored and harbored in your body somewhere for the past 6 years and that upon exercising they were liberated into your bloodstream to cause damage all over again. Do you have some research on how and where they are stored in the body? I have never seen such research in the 15 years that I have been studying the Fluoroquinolones and have been reading the thousands of research studies on it.
For instance, the reason that I say that it’s already been detoxed is due to the studies that are done on all drugs before they get FDA approval. For instance, this study entitled Pharmacodynamics of a Fluoroquinolone Antimicrobial Agent discusses the half-life of Lomafloxacin as being only 2 hours. The study Chemical evolution of the fluoroquinolone antimicrobial agents describes the half-life of Ofloxacin at 7-8 hours, and the study Levofloxacin A Review of its Antibacterial Activity, Pharmacokinetics and Therapeutic Efficacy shows the half-life of Levofloxacin at 4-7 hours.
The study Pharmacokinetics and Tolerance of DU-6859a, a New Fluoroquinolone, after Single and Multiple Oral Doses in Healthy Volunteers showed that the FQ in question had a half-life of around 5 hours. Additionally, they actually recovered approximately 75% of the drug in the urine and stool in the first 48 hours after dosing. So, it seems quite effectively and quickly detoxified in the urine; and half-lives of the drugs are well-established. After 6 years, with an 8 hour maximum half-life, an infinitesimally small amount of the drug, if any, would still remain to be liberated from some body store.
Do you have a reason why you believe that your relapse was due to this liberation of stored Fluoroquinolones from somewhere in your body and not, instead, some of the above problems and a predisposition to other problems, for instance, a mitochondrial disorder that was worsened when you began making your mitochondria work harder by exercising?
Do you have any ideas on why I do not feel alcohol anymore? My worst damage from cipro has been to my neurotransmitters and my blood sugar is messed up. (among tons of other things I won’t go into) I can have 2 or 3 drinks now and I do NOT feel a thing. It has affected my Gaba so I have no way to feel at peace anymore. Occasionally I try to relax with alcohol but after 5 years of being poisoned, it has less and less effect. Could the neurons be dead? It’s just so weird and would like to have some idea of what has happened.
Also, I bought you e-book when it was called the “The Levaquin Tendonitis Solution. It said I could join the LTS members only forum “by clicking on the invitation link below”…but there never was a clickable link in my ebook. Could you please send me the link so I can ask some questions. It seems nobody addresses what this does to your CNS but it’s been awful to never have any joy anymore, nor any feelings of peace. Are my neurotransmitters dead, or gunked up with flouride? Or just all out of whack? My sense is I still produce the chemicals (like gaba, seratonin, dopamine, etc) but they do not fire across the synapse anymore. I think the death of the Gaba neurotransmitters (or the fluoride binding to it) tie into the inability to feel alcohol?
Thanks for any feedback.
Check your email for the newest version of the book and instructions on how to access the lifetime forums.
After reading many articles here about the horrible side effects of ciprofloxacin and other quinolones, I’m now concerned that I just finished a 10 day dose of Cipro 500mg BID for a chronic/recurrent sinus infection. I wish I would have researched this prior to taking the Cipro. I have mixed connective tissue disease, fibromyalgia and Gilbert’s syndrome. With all my other health concerns I’m now even more concerned I just took Cipro. I did have mild body/joint aches in the beginning of taking Cipro but hard to differentiate if it was from the Cipro or my other medical issues. How long does it actually take to get rid of the Cipro from my body and the lingering risks/side effects from taking it? I’m worried about what it has done to my body, which is already not healthy to begin with. This was my 3rd time taking Cipro in my lifetime and also have taken Levaquin once or twice. Wish these types of antibiotics were not prescribed for ordinary infections by physicians. Seems they only need to be used when there are no other options or the benefit outweighs the risks! I will never take quinolones again.
The effects of the Fluoroquinolones are cumulative and may not even manifest for very long periods of time. In fact, there is reason to believe that fibromyalgia and connective tissue disease may be Fluoroquinolone symptoms in the first place. The cipro is out of your body in just a few days, but the effects can linger on for many years and not even show up for many years, in some cases. It’s not that the drug is still IN your body, it’s that the drug caused damage and that damage doesn’t disappear because the drug is detoxified from your body.
Wow. I was prescribed this drug. Given a steroid shot as well and not even given options on antibiotics for a up of pnemonia. I’ve only had two doses, now into a 24 hour stretch. I believe I’ll risk it. Prayerfully the two doses kicked the pnemonia startup. I’m going heavy on vitamin c and minerals with garlic and tumeric.
Hi Mary,
vitamin C and minerals with garlic and turmeric will not help you if you get Levaquin toxicity. Please be sure to read the article ‘Introduction to Fluoroquinolones’ to see why we don’t recommend ‘risking it’, as it’s much like playing Russian Roulette. Many who ‘risked it’ have regretted it for the rest of their lives. In fact, the Fluoroquinolones are generally not the first line drugs against pneumonia, Zithromax is. And corticosteroids are absolutely contraindicated with the use of the Fluoroquinolones and make a risky drug far riskier.
So one idea behind why there is a potential for this drug could possibly still be in our system is that in many cases when a fluoroquinolone injured person relapses after exercise usually the relapses are not specific to a particular area of the body. So for example after 6 years of healing you would think that certain parts of the body for example your tendons and your eyesight would be relatively healed. But after exercise people tend to experience relapses on a total scale meaning that all body systems are affected just like they were Wynn the original poisoning took place. Furthermore I do not know of any studies that have been taken on injured patients that indicate whether or not their bodies have the same ability two clearance the drugs like a normal healthy patient would. Just things to consider.
Logically, even with ‘impaired’ clearance, it would literally make no sense to have the drug still in your body after 6 years. Lets say the half life is down to 1/10th. You’d have STILL cleared the drug from your system years before. And that some people get ‘total body’ problems is simply not evidence of a release of drugs into the system. As I pointed out, these drugs do damage to the mitochondria and create oxidative stress, things which exercise can then cause recurrence of problems.
Mitochondrial damage is not necessarily specific to whatever part of the body is having symptoms. For instance if you get mitochondrial damage, the FIRST problem you might have is tendon tears because the tendons don’t get a good blood supply. But years later, when more mitochondria have broken down in the heart, for instance, then you go to exercise, you might get heart palpitations.
Mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress are general, not specific, phenomenon. Different people merely experience symptoms in specific areas of weakness.
Plus, animal products contain Fluoroquinolones, and water contains fluoride and even some trace Fluoroquinolones. Did you completely eliminate these sources of FQ’s? Or are you ongoingly eating and drinking low level amounts of Fluoroquinolones? Are you eating ultra-nutritious foods to nourish your mitochondria? Or are you eating the same old things that got you to where you are in the first place?
So, unless you have actual evidence that these drugs are ‘harbored’ in the body ‘somewhere’ that you are unable to say, then you are just completely speculating because the actual evidence shows that they are out of your system in a short amount of time.
Again, I’m the biggest proponent of solving the problem of the FQ’s, what I’m saying is that your theory of relapses has no evidence, but that mitochondrial energy stores get weak over time (particularly if you do not get good nutrition, and that oxidative stress causes tissue breakdown over time are proven in decades of medical science.
Again, we promote science here, not speculation. So, if you can provide some science to back up your beliefs, then I might be able to believe your theory. Until then, it’s clear that many people with FQ’s already had damaged mitochondria before they got floxxed, and exercise triggers higher mitochondrial energy usage as well as more oxidative stress. Not a good combo for someone who’s been floxxed.
“Or are you eating the same old things that got you to where you are in the first place?”
Are you kidding me? You are blaming the damage the FQs cause on someone’s diet? And implying they brought this upon themselves?
Shame on you.
So, first of all, you have stopped addressing the point and are now attacking character. That’s called an ad hominem logical fallacy. It’s a technique used to avoid any actual discussion. I pointed out that you are using speculation to come to conclusions when science says that your speculation is wrong and you attack me personally? Please read the link below on how to recognize a logical fallacy and more importantly, why they are used.
http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Argumentum_ad_hominem
Second: there is a difference between blame and responsibility. You are conflating the two so that you can make a logical fallacy and not argue the point any longer. The drug makers are to blame for the Fluoruquinolones, and the doctors are to blame for giving them to us; however, WE, everyone, is responsible for what we put into our own bodies. Until we take 100% responsibility for our health, we will never get better.
In fact, we address this in one of our posts here:
https://fqresearch.org/blame-for-fluoroquinolones
“While the victim is never to blame for their own victimization, the tragedy that is the unrecognized problem of Fluoroquinolone toxicity should teach us that we all need to take absolute responsibility for our own health.”
What, specifically, do you disagree with about that?
Third, yes, if you are still putting things full of fluoroquinolones into your body, then you might relapse! Why is that such a shocking concept that you feel I should be ashamed of for pointing out?
I’m not sure why you are so indignant about me pointing out that what someone puts in their mouth, especially if it contains Fluoroquinolones, or contains inflammation producing substances, or is devoid of nutrition, or contributes to blood sugar issues, or contributes to constipation and poor detoxification, might be keeping them ill or contributing to their staying ill or becoming worse.
Are you that divorced from your body that you do not believe that our environment can contribute to our illness or our recovery? The science says otherwise. Even genetics are not ‘set in stone’, they are mere ‘suggestions’, and the ‘suggestion’ for genetic disease or wellness is due to environmental factors, not random chance. That the Fluoroquinolones damaged us and not others is due to environmental factors… and the choice to put the drug into our mouthes in the first place… not random chance.
You can call that ‘blame’ if you wish, I call it responsibility.
Hi, if I’m understanding correctly. Are you saying the reason that FQs shouldn’t be taken with NSAIDs or steroids, is because you detoxify from them all through the same pathways? So I guess this means if you took them together you’re body wouldn’t be able to get rid of them as quickly and there is more potential for harm??
But is there something else going on too? Lots of people report that taking a NSAID or steroid weeks after an FQ caused there initial reaction. And there are also people who recover but then take a steroid years later, and it causes a relapse. Is there an explanation for this? Thanks, Rich
Rich, these are just associations. There could be something else going on, but there is only so much science that we know. We know they detoxify down the same pathways. Plus, reports are just that, reports. That someone took a steroid and had a first reaction a week later does not mean that the drugs were not in there damaging them already. A lot of people who are floxed don’t even report a first reaction until a week later, or a month later even if they have not taken any other drugs. Some people have told me they didn’t get a first reaction until years later, and there was no precipatating event that they were aware of at all.
Or was the steroid or the NSAID the ‘straw that broke the camel’s’ back’ as they say. Both those drugs cause damage on their own and, from my experience, I believe that people who get floxxed, the FQ’s are just the ‘last straw’ from a lot of other problems that are going on, even if they did not know it. For instance, a lot of so-called ‘perfectly healthy’ athletes were overtrained and magnesium deficient. I see magnesium deficient athletes all the time, but they would still say they were ‘perfectly healthy’. Heck, I get people who’ve had heart surgery and take insulin for diabetes tell me they have no health problems at all! People’s perceptions of their health are funny, and there are problems that can go unnoticed for years without someone feeling particularly bad. I, personally, had an iron level that was almost undectable at one point and I really hardly felt bad. Did that mean I was ‘perfectly healthy’? Nope, I was a disaster waiting to happen. Had I not found it, I would have probably been diagnosed with chronic fatigue at any moment! Had I taken an FQ at that time, it would have probably been a disaster because the iron chelation would have severed that thin string that I was holding onto. Or maybe it would have been an NSAID or a steroid that did it.
I know that a lot of people will challenge me on this and say that they were ‘perfectly healthy’ (but then why were they going to a doctor and complaining of a health problem), but even many of the case studies show that, for instance, someone who was ‘healthy’ before they took an FQ had the FQ unmask a latent genetic disease. The FQ did not CAUSE the problem, but unmasked a problem that was waiting in the wings and the FQ was the ‘trigger’. Well, why couldn’t the NSAID or the steroid be the trigger that unmasks the problems that were just previously caused by the FQ’s? Why can’t it work both ways, considering that NSAIDS, for instance, decrease liver detoxification and irritate the stomach lining causing intestinal permability? Maybe that drug was just enough to have the ‘initial’ fluroquinolone problem.
Plus, NSAIDS also damage mitochondria, and steroids mess with blood sugar. Problems that the FQ’s cause too. So, couldn’t these problems be additive, cumulative, or even synergistic with each other. Maybe the initial FQ took down mitochondrial function by 5%, but that didn’t cause a loss in function. But the NSAID taken a week later took it down another 2% (I’m making up numbers), and that 7% was enough to push them over the edge to notice decreased function and called it the ‘initial’ FQ reaction. The same could be said with gut damage, with decreased liver function, with blood sugar issues, with microbiome damage, etc, etc.
The more people that I see, the more that this seems to be the case. I OFTEN find serious issues that just could not have been caused by a week’s damage of Fluoroquinolone like, for instance, almost undectable iron levels. These are problems that have simply gone undected and then ‘unmasked’ by the FQ’s. Relapses can be explained the same way. People can recover function, but not completely, they may ‘feel’ normal, but they are only back to ‘normal-10%’ and the steroid knocks them downn to ‘normal-12%’ and it pushes them over the edge again. I could say a lot more, but I’ll stop there.
Thanks for your detailed answer. What you are saying sounds perfectly reasonable and you may well be right. But I’m not 100% sure about everything. I get what you are saying that a lot of people have delayed reactions after taking FQs anyway. But there just seems to be such a high proportion of people who get these reactions after taking a NSAID or steroid. The number just seems too high for it to be a coincidence. And the number of people who report relapses after taking them just seems to high to be coincidence too.
I get what you are saying that it could be the straw that broke the camels back. And I’m sure what you are saying about detoxifying down the same pathway is correct.
Maybe there are other explanations. Maybe a small amount of the drug can remain in the body longer than we think? Although I think that is an unlikely suggestion. I just think there might be something else going on which we don’t fully understand. I certainly don’t know what the answer is and I don’t think anyone is really 100% sure
Less than a year out from being poisoned (initially severe but, now, somewhat relieved joint pain) by Cipro, am I inviting more trouble, do you think, by taking celecoxib 200mg daily, for relief of shoulder and knee pain? Thank you.
It’s an NSAID. I wouldn’t touch it with a 10 foot pole unless you really cannot find anything else for pain relief, and your pain does not allow you to function normally. NSAIDS are absolutely contraindicated with the fluoroquinolones. And there are many other pain relief techniques/systems/drugs/supplements out there.
So if your book is purchased and followed can it help with damage from cipro? How can I order it?
You can order it at the link below. But it’s not our book, we just promote it because it’s a great program that helped a lot of us here on FQResearch and we work closely with the authors on effectiveness of the protocol.
http://www.fqtoxicity.com/
Gail above described me – about losing joy after taking two rounds of Levaquin and steroids for double pneumonia. I had previously taken Levaquin after having a Loop heart monitor implanted and having an infection and then when I had it removed and had a pacemaker implanted and had an infection. I took several rounds. I started neuropathy in my hands, feet and legs then but thought it was due to pacemaker and lack of blood flow. I’ve not felt right since.
Turmeric may treat symptoms (e.g., reduce inflammation) but does not detoxify. After 7 months of intense and enduring pain, taking carbonized bamboo (Takesumi Supreme) bid (5 weeks and counting) is finally reducing the peripheral neuropathy and joint pain so that it’s almost gone. The active ingredient may be eliminated in hrs, but the entire drug is not.
I’m not sure why you mention Turmeric. We don’t in the article. And just because charcoal ‘worked’ for you does not mean that it is because it detoxified the drug. There is DAMAGE done from the Fluoroquinolones, and also nutrient deficiencies and many other issues. But the drug is very much out of your system long before. The trick is to heal the damage, which may be accomplished on many fronts, including eliminating toxins, such as mercury and lead, from your body, which may be the reason why charcoal worked for you. Or perhaps you simply healed on your own, as many do.
Too many people equate ‘symptoms’ to ‘drugs still in their system’, but that is not how the fluoroquinolones work any more than that is how your skin being burned after a fire works. If you get burned in a fire, you wouldn’t argue that the fire is still in your skin because you have pain, would you? Of course not, because the pain and symptoms are from injury. Just like the Fluoroquinolones.
My 92-year old mother was prescribed Levaquin (Levofloxacin) after 2 prescriptions of Clarithromycin had not cleared up a chest infection which started on 24 March.
The first tablet (500mg) was given to her on Wed 19 April p.m., 2nd tab a.m. on Thu 20 April. By Thurs pm she was complaining of a pain in her right Achilles tendon which worsened daily as she was given the 3rd tab Thu 20 April p.m.; 4th tab Fri 21 April a.m.; 5th tab Fri 21 April p.m.; 6th tab Sat 22 April a.m. Then it occurred to me to check the leaflet of the ‘new’ antibiotic … what I read horrified me. I rang the emergency doctor who told us to go to the nearest on-call doctor 15 miles away. This doctor did not react apart from acknowledge the symptoms and change the antibiotic. She said the 5-day course of Prednisolone (prescribed at the same time as Levofloxacin) was unlikely to cause problems and for my mother to continue the course.
By Sunday evening, my mother was crying as she climbed stairs she had, only 4 days earlier, climbed up unaided. She said she thought she was dying she was in so much pain.
At no time was I or my mother advised about the side effects of this drug. If we had just been alerted to the side effect of tendonitis, as soon as my mother reported pain i.e. after 2 tabs, she could have stopped the drug.
She is now virtually bed-bound which, at 92 and previously living independently with the help of care provision, is what amounts to a death-sentence.
Why was the drug not box labelled with a warning as I have seen suggested in journal articles?
Why did her GP prescribe this toxic drug – AND Prednisolone – when all the alerts advise against this combination of drugs for a woman of my mother’s advanced age?
I acknowledge the chest infection appears to have been knocked on the head but – at what cost? Time will tell.
i.e.Therefore, FDA is notifying the makers of the fluoroquinolones of the need to add a Boxed Warning to the prescribing information for fluoroquinolones to highlight and strengthen the existing warning about the increased risk of fluoroquinolone-associated tendinitis and tendon rupture. FDA is also notifying the makers of fluoroquinolones of the need to develop and distribute a Medication Guide to alert patients about these possible side effects. [https://www.fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/PostmarketDrugSafetyInformationforPatientsandProviders/ucm126085.htm]
My mother keeps asking when is the pain going to go? I am trying to keep her positive. From what I’ve read, it is possible the pain will never go. Will we ever get my mother downstairs again? I am trying to remain positive but everything I read online only confirms there is no knowing how long the pain will last.
After writing this, I’m writing to the drug’s manufacturer … I believe they have a responsibility to label the product clearly with a warning akin to that on cigarette packs. ‘Take this drug at your peril.’ I want to know why the drug is not labelled in this way.
Any feedback welcome.
Flashback to March 2011, Dr gave me Levaquin for my umpteenth sinus infection, age then 61, After 6-8 days of taking medicine (aka poison) upon waking literally every joint in my body was popping! Now at age 67 I am still suffering effects & damage from Levaquin. Initially the worst issue I had was tiny under the skin movement from my Achilles up each of my calves, and within a short period of time lumps on BOTH of my Achilles. I called then twitches Orthopedic Dr said tears…and that it would take a long time to heal. That was that, since then going from Dr to Dr, Its amazing that everyone basically told me they couldn’t help…I reported to FDA what happened which was a really good thing to do since 6 years later memory’s are not 100% Cut to present – I’m in really bad shape, just realized that I had taken Cipro a number of times 15-20 years previous for said repeat sinus infections, which I’m pretty sure was cause of bilateral Achilles lumps back then. Lumps on both Achilles tho pain was minor just didn’t run & watched the shoes I wore. ( Took years to return to normal) I now have Hasimotos Thyroid (DX 2014) peripheral neuropathy (DX 2017) and really bad Achilles Tendinosis, and lots of pain which started worsening in 2013 and continues. In this past year I have had extended PT got better then worse 2 months more PT worse again, thanks to a kind and gentle Podiatrist that has helped me mentally just by trying to help. I have no idea what came first chicken or the egg, but what I DO KNOW is that flouroquinolone usage IS INVOLVED in taking away my life & very probably shortening my life expectancy. I believe fluoroquinolone goes to your DNA, damage that cannot be repaired. It’s a shame that working 4 children and then 7 grandchildren interfered with my seeking or thinking to look for information (worked on computer never touched it at home) that may have helped me – it is what it is, no need to continue with everything thats going on with my body, we’ve been retired for 5 years my husband, God love him & I do too, puts up with all my issues. i feel that my Achilles will rupture at any moment & pray that I’m not beyond help.
Are you saying even days after drug is out of system don’t take NSAIDs.
I wouldn’t take NSAID’s with the Fluoroquinolones. I don’t know the exact amount of time that it MIGHT be ‘safe’ to take NSAID’s if you’ve taken Fluoroquinolones and didn’t get Floxxed. If you HAVE been floxxed, it may never be safe to take NSAID’s, as you may be predisposed to their damaging effects.
Wow after reading these comments I’m in awe at the ignorance and indifference of the medical profession. On Sunday June 18th, I went to the emergency room for an SVT (increase heart rate that can be converted by certain breathing exercise). I’ve had SVTs for three years now (just turned 65) and can usually control them. I was coming off of a 2 week cold/deep cough also slight fever and vomiting. I thought I had the flu but the SVT brought me to the hospital. Turned out I had mild upper lobe pneumonia. They kept me overnight, mainly because of the SVT. In the hospital they put me on IV with Leviquin. Sent me home with 750mg of the poison. I slept three hours in the hospital and could not sleep after that. Shoulder ached and my body was exhausted but my mind wouldn’t quit, probably what a meth addict feels. I e mailed my regular doctor and told her I was not comfortable with the Levaquin and that by then I had not slept for 48 hours. I only took the one pill after getting out of the hospital. I’ve since researched this drug and another of it’s wonders is extending the QT interval—-as in sudden death. After much insistence she put me on 5 days of Azithroymycin (500mg). I am not like these youngsters that have every STD in the book and have been raised on antibiotics. I haven’t had an antibiotic in 35 plus years. Do you think the two doses I had could leave residual affects? I was able to sleep the night I stopped the Levaquin.
Hello, Connie. Have you recovered from your symptoms?
Are there any Doctors that know anything about how to treat this toxin? I am at a loss at finding one for my sister who was given Cipro for UTI in March. She definitely has symptons of this toxin, mostly blurred vision, anxiety, brain fog. I am not sure what to do.
There are almost no doctors who can help this. Doctors give drugs and do surgery. And this condition cannot be treated with drugs and surgery, so how is a doctor going to help? That’s why we recommend the Fluoroquinolone Toxicity Solution. It helped us and MANY MANY others, and it’s a great program. We hope you look into it.
PS. The book does not ‘treat the toxin’, it helps PEOPLE to heal from it.
http://www.fqtoxicity.com/
What can you do it these antibiotics are prescribed to prevent or treat infections ? How do you treat infections safely?
It depends upon the infection. Each infection is unique and needs to be treated differently. In some cases, a different antibiotic is appropriate. In some cases, there are effective herbal remedies.
I had two, six week rounds of Levaquin by pic-line for a serious bone infection. The good news is that it saved my leg. The bad news is that it has left me with some extremely serious side effects with nerve and tendon damage. They are wanting to do cortisone injections in my neck to help with the pain and numbness down my arms and hands. I am quite nervous about this. I am, or should I say, was, a very active 54 year old woman but this has become very debilitating for me. Are these injections recommended or will they do more harm than good? I am trying to avoid surgery. I had four on my leg within a 14 month period so no more…please.
At this point, I just need to be able to move and function again.
Cortisone is ‘contraindicated’ with the Fluoroquinolone drugs. And cortisone decreases inflammation, but it does not ‘heal nerve and tendon damage’. There are many ways to decrease inflammation, but if cortisone can help, then it’s not actually nerve and tendon damage. Please understand that nerve and tendon PAIN is not necessarily DAMAGE. I don’t know what the doctors told you, but you should clarify if you actually have nerve and tendon DAMAGE, ask how they KNOW you have actual damage, and ask them how cortisone would help to heal the damage.
Can you vouch for the http://www.fqtoxicity.com/ “solution”? Meaning personal improvement from it? Are you affiliated in any way with them? I don’t mean to be distrustful, I just like to inquire before buying anything (I sure wish I’d inquired before taking cipro…)
Yes, all of our staff have had problems with Fluoroquinolones and we either got the most improvement we saw from using the book, or from using the principles in the book. We highly recommend it. We do get a small commission if we make a sale from our site, but we recommend it because we love it, and the extra money if you happen to purchase from us helps us keep this site in operation.
I took one 500 mg cipro 10 days ago. I stopped immediatly after feeling as if I were experiencing side effects. I now have pain in both ankles. Could just one cipro cause this? Thank you
Yes there are many people who were disabled permanently after just a single dose of these powerful antibiotics.
Travsformer…I am not affiliated with this site or the the authors of the book they recommend. I suffered severe tendon, joint, bone, muscle and connective tissue damage after 7 doses of levaquin. I bought the book and it did help me. I was floxed in Aug 2016, and it took many months for me to see improvements, but I finally did. Highly recommended. Provides best explanation I’ve seen for FQ toxicity, and provides hope that your body can heal.
Thank you for this information! I was prescribed 500mg of Cipro twice a day for an ear infection. I took only one dose 12 hours ago and was suspicious of it. After researching, I will not take any more doses. I haven’t had side effects but am still afraid.
2 days ago I was prescribed cipro for suspected uti. After 2 pills, my eye feels it’s being squeezed, ankle pain, foot, toe joints pain, fingers, wrists, now stiff neck. My dt. Told me to stop taking. , yea, yah think…and prescribed Bactrim. They told me to take ibuprofen and offered me steroids. I declined. And am taking calcium and magnesium sups. I’m appalled at the drug co. Aka no soul scumbags who just line their pockets at our expense. I’m hoping these symptoms go away, if not I would like more info on how to heal please.
I am 60 years old and dying from my first sinus infection. I had the bacteria DNA sequenced at the Pathogenius Lab in Texas last year and went to Russia where they grow the bacteria in dishes and sprinkle antibiotics on it. Levaquin is the only antibiotic which will kill the bacteria. This is true of a huge number of bacterial infections. No physician will prescribe it in Atlanta. I had to fly to San Diego and drive down to Tijuana to get it. For $200 a physician can DNA sequence your bacteria and know your antibiotic choices. This is standard in Europe.
A friend of mine who is almost 60 yrs old was put on ciprofloxacin in July since then his health has went down hill quick and couldn’t figure out why till It dawned on me to look this new med up since his bad health started about the same time and low and behold he’s got a LOT of the side affects of this med. Can’t believe his doctor never thought of this at all
So…I already had a tendon in my ankle rupture 6″ in 2010 after taking cipro..but not right away. My ankle did start hurting, I had to go to Japan for my sons wedding, had no idea about he antibiotic and its dangers, and got a cordisone shot. I was great, until it wore off in Sept. and I had been squatting alot, an I stood up and it ripped. NOW after being on 500mg. of Levaguin for ten days, after the tenth day, I woke up crying for no reason. I got very ill, and was crying the first week. That part has improved but I can’t walk..BOTH legs and calves are in tremendous pain, and Ive already had one rupture seven years ago. This time I got sick, and went on line and loked up Levaquin, and BOOM..everything came together when I saw the words: TENDON RUPTURE. Unfortunately this time I have had brain fog and other things listed.
I am following most everything on the FQ Toxicity Solution, and bought these very helpful braces with ice, and another that gives heat and blood circulation to the tendons.. I do each calf and ankle three time a day and have seen a lot of improvement, (KING BRAND) but I also know I probably wont be able to walk for another month or more. I have a question…should I not exercise ever again because of this? Will I always be in fear of rupturing a tendon? What about Pilates? I haven’t exercised in 12 years because of a neck surgery where the surgeon permanently damaged my nerve root..but I had been planning on doing pilates before this nightmare began. Is there any exercise I can do when and if the flexibility and pain are gone. I did recover from many symptoms in 2010, but had a major surgery that took six months to walk again. ANYBODY OUT THERE WHO KNOWS? what kind of doctor to go to for advise on how to treat these tendons..both leg and ankles! And if I should never exercise them or not? HELP PLEASE! I am 62. I was a very atheletic person before..but that was 12 years ago. I don’t know where to start.
Please ask any questions you might have about the Fluoroquinolone Toxicity solution on the free forum they offer that is noted at the front and the back of the book. We promote their book because it helped us, but that’s the extent of our involvement in their book. Good luck! I’m sure the authors will help you out and answer your questions. That’s what they have the forum FOR!
I have used Levaquin for 5 weeks (April 2017) to fight a Bartonella infection.
Even during the use of the antibiotics, I detected several strange symptoms and muscle aches.
At first I thought those were due to redecorating and repainting some rooms in my house.
I also have a history using an antidepressant (Paxil) which I used for 18! Years. I stopped using them three years ago, but I still have (prolonged) withdrawal symptoms.
With this in the back of my mind, I tried to finish the antibiotics treatment (4 weeks and another 2 weeks) , but I became very anxious, nervous and my legs (muscles) no longer performed as they should.
I was hoping this all was a side effect from the antibiotics, a surge in the Bartonella and the prolonged withdrawal syndrome by Paxil and that the complaints would reduce and disappear after quitting the Levaquin treatment.
Unfortunately, in a cycles of ups and downs, I am experiencing enormous difficulties.
• I have muscle aches in my arms and legs and sometimes shoulder.
• Beside this complaint, there is now also loss of function in my right leg every now and then… no pain, just no power and I can barely keep myself from falling.
• I have tremendous hair loss. Luckily I had a lot, but it is depressing to see what stays behind in my brush every time..
• I also have itches on my head
• Pain in the chest (like my heart is giving out) and when I have this pain, I have to burp so much, it is really absurd.
• I walk with difficulty and very unstably
• I feel exhausted and like I am burning up from the inside all over my body
• I suffer from dizziness ( have balance problems and feel like can topple over anytime
• I become forgetful and I have trouble concentrating
• And at this moment, I am becoming more and more depressed. (I am not sure if this is a symptom, or due to all the effects that I am experiencing.
Point of attention…
After quitting Paxil, I discovered that I have much more difficulty in using medication or supplements of any kind. My body seems to either reject, or react to them in an extreme measure. So everything I use now to help my body, only seems to increase the already bad symptoms.
I have yearlong experience with the lack of vitamin B12 acceptance of my body, so every few weeks I get an injection for hat. My folic acid levels are also low, but if I take the supplement for that, I become dazed and even absent minded.
I want nothing more than getting/ finding myself back and I am desperately looking for treatments of any sort for my problems. The general doctors here have no idea about what is wrong with me and think I am exaggerating, since normal blood tests all come up negative. It seems impossible for them to consider medication they subscribe daily, to have such devastating effects on someone.
Compared to the USA, here in the Netherlands, there is little to find about Levaquin.
Can you be of any help?
What I would like to know:
Do you consider the abovementioned symptoms effects of having used Levaquin?
What can I do about them?
Is there a doctor/treatment for this?
Maybe there are a few additional tests possible to find out about the adverse effects or extreme reaction to medication or supplements
I hope you can find the time to consider my mail and questions and I hope to get a reply from you.
Did you get solutions for your questions?
Dr put me on 500mg levaquin 3x per day. I now have swelling and joint pain. Is this dose way to high?
I was on ciprofloxacin for 3 days , on the third day I woke up and could barely walk. I started reading up on this medicine and it’s the devil. Don’t know how long I’ll be down, but I sure won’t try this stuff again.dont know how bad it would have been if I would have kept taking it.
Dr put me on ciprofloxacin 500. I took one pill 3 hours ago and now scared lol. I took 2 high strength vitamins, 2 calcium carbonate tums, trying to detox. Suggestions on anything else? Can one pill do damage? I can tell you that it only took one pill and 3 hours to give me amazing relief of my painful uti. I’ll take the crying pain over these long term disabling symptoms.
I actually want to thank you for your advise about the magnesium. I have the blessing and curse of being sensitive to everything and I felt the adverse effects immediately. It only took two doses for me to be shaking, hallucinating, vomiting uncontrollably, having suicidal thoughts, experiencing severe paranoia, experiencing rapid heartbeat, and experiencing excruciating pain.
I tried magnesium capsules to try to get it to stop when I was coherent enought to realize I had been poisoned and searched the web for a remedy. I was pretty desperate. I took 400 mg of magnesium and it got me to calm down. It didn’t eradicate anything super significant at first, it took me about a day to function again, but it helped me get the anxiety low enough for me to drive to the hospital.
I am still in a ton of pain mostly in my abdomen. It feels like it burned holes through my gut but I now realize how much danger I was in and I feel greatful to be alive and that I caught it in time.
Much love and light.
(PS my anxiety levels are at a consistent mild level. It’s been two days)
I’ve taken Cipro and Levaquin off and on (over 20+ yrs) and never had a problem. Good luck to all with symptoms, hopefully some psychosomatic. In my research I’m seeing much hysteria.
I can hope I am wrong but your turn is coming. I have taken Cipro since it was in clinical trials but it has just been the past few years that things are no longer going right.
Well, bully for you, George. And your “psychosomatic” and “hysteria” comments are Victorian-era and are cliche for people who are ignorant and don’t have a medical answer. Now, go find another site to troll. If your game of Russian roulette finds you in need of support, you’re welcome to come back and commiserate with some earned empathy.
Pretty sure my brother died from Levaquin on November 20th. He was non verbal, had 2 doses for pneumonia. Took to the ER for breathing issues. He wasnt even sick enough to be in bed. Early in the day he collapsed while walking. He suffered agrand mall seizure and HORRIBLE, HORRIBLE pain. His face and eyes looked like they were rupturing! I am sickened and how he suffered! What can we do about this horrible drug? Joel was 49.
Doctor prescribed me Levaquin and I took one pill 500mg about 3 hours ago. After reading all the info online it is damn near impossible to find anything besides all of the horrible results. No reaction yet but within an hour after taking it I wanted to induce vomiting because of the great risks I read about. I am an athlete so my life is being able to move. I would not have taken this AB had I known how much of a risk it seems. The person giving me the pills said “it’s rare but tendon ruptures can occur”. Okay if something is rare I wouldn’t expect everything about it to be so negative when looking it up online. I guess to calm myself down, I figure if I hadn’t had a violent reaction by the end of the day, and if I stop taking it entirely, then I should be okay. I’d rather deal with my resistant form of Chlamydia than risk any of what i read. Hell, I’d rather have Herpes type 2 than any of that shit. Jesus Christ almighty help us all.
So can the mithocondria be healed? If the connective tissue issues are recurrent, even following the protocol. magnesium for ever? Isn’t too much ubiquinol gonna mess up things even more? Is there any hope? How about plane flights? Does it trigger it again?
Thanks
I’m so angry about this drug. My husband has had Parkinson’s for 17 years and we managed his symptoms relatively successfully, then….he was given Cipro I tab a day for 4 days and since then 4 months of his life ihas been a living hell. He can no longer stand, has periods of time he grimaces and is unable to communicate his discomfort, his hemoglobin and hematocrit and platelets dropped very low. He lost about 35 pounds in a matter of 3 weeks, he is skeletal, he has areas on his arm of what appear to be ruptured blood vessels, his appetite was wonderful all these years and now he can hardly eat. He developed a large sac of fluid on his back maybe 4 inches by 10 inches. Likely lymphatic fluid( I’m a nurse). He can’t open his mouth very wide almost like his TMJ is affected. He can’t tell us now. When I told the Dr he had had an adverse reaction to the Cipro they have blown it off. I asked the nurse what was in his chart regarding it. They have it listed as Cipro allergy. This is not an allergy this is poison. I told her it wasnt an allergy and she said they could only list it as an allergy. This is quackery in the least. And malpractice because Drs have been warned. For anyone taking it is Russian Roulette. Not worth the risk ever. Look it up Fluorine (fluoride) poisoning. My husband has been given a death sentence. He is 78 and at least was living a quality of life despite his Parkinson’s. I can’t believe this was done to him.
Hi, I just wanted to say that I got floxxed 2 years ago. I am ok now! When I read about these things, I never hear about people who made it. Both achilles were trashed and I had to do physical therapy to rebuild them from scratch, to make sure they didn’t rupture. Magnesium, turmeric, omega 3’s, it was slow going. it was terrifying. do not lose hope, different people respond to different things…
Just a comment….from one who has been floxed…… Fluoride laced drugs, cosmetics, public drinking water, toothpaste and too many other things to list are everywhere. Trying to avoid them is a real task in reading labels. I have been diagnosed with “wet macular degeneration”. For this I have to get an eye injection regularly. The injected drug is “Avastin”. Avastin is a chemotherapy drug that is used “off label” to treat macular degeneration. I can’t find whether Avistan contains fluoride or not. Being a cancer drug it most likely does. After the injection the assistant always wants to add an “antibiotic” to my eye. I asked what the name of the antibiotic was. I was told OFLOXACIN. I refused the addition of this antibiotic eye drop. I repeat……….. fluoride laced products are everywhere. It takes a lot of investigation to eliminate them from from being consumed from stealthy sources.
I was prescribed Cipro XL 1000 mg yesterday for a urinary tract infection. I woke up in the middle of the night with severe upper back muscle pain. I had to get a heating pad. And then while trying to fall back to sleep,my body started having random twitches. I got up this morning feeling like I was hit by a mac truck. While getting ready for work I felt so dizzy and had a feeling like I was going to faint. I went to work but as I was at the computer and trying to type the letter O, but I kept typing the number 1 instead, I knew it was time to leave work. As I lied on my couch, with not enough strength to get up to the bathroom, I got to thinking, it feels like I have been drugged. Then it hit me and I started googling. Needless to say, I didn’t take another dose. I am feeling quite a bit better and am hoping because I only took one, I will recover. This is a nasty class of drugs. I think that even if I had anthrax, I would not take this drug.
Urinary tract infections should not even have fluooroquinolones prescribed for them unless there are no other alternatives. Your doctor is extremely negligent and not up on the FDA recommendations for his prescribing practices (unless it was a last resort prescription and you’d already tried everything else first). Also, I’d highly recommend you get the Fluoroquinolone Toxicity Solution and follow the instructions until you are feeling better. Being so early after your taking the drug and onset of symptoms, you MAY be able to detoxify it to cause less harm.
https://www.fqtoxicity.com/
So angry that I took this drug for UTI. Pain in lower back but not sure from drug or playing pickle ball as my lower back can act up occasionally but it usually goes away. The hopefully good news is that the dosage was only 250 and I took only two. My concern is getting out and playing golf and more pickle ball. Am I at risk for causing damage? So far I’ve not had any other noticeable side effects but I’m now afraid to do anything physical. I’m in my late 60’s so a few aches & pains are not uncommon. I’m glad I looked up taking ibuprofen for my back pain….that would have been nasty. This forum has been a wonderful source of info. Thank you.
I was visiting my daughter in NYC and went to Urgent Care for a sinus infection. I asked twice for a ZPack and was refused. The Dr. said it will not work. He perscribed Levaquin which I took for 8 days with no results but I was getting sicker and developed several other problems so I discontinued it. One morning I got up and could not walk, the pain was awful. I went to Urgent Care where I was given steroids a chest X-ray and a urinalysis. Results were negative for pneumonia and the Dr said I had bronchitis and bursitis. He referred me to the bone and joint center. When I left I went directly to the hospital knowing something was definitely wrong. My chest hurt my legs did not want to move, I was extremely fatigued and things were going downhill quickly. My cough was very impressive and the Dr. sent me down for a cat scan which showed I had two nodules on my lungs, I was told they were not cancerous but I have to do another scan in 6 months to keep an eye on it and I was told that sometimes when your are Ill you can develop them. They did an ultrasound on my legs looking for blood clots, again negative. I left and came home and the next day I went to the bone and joint center. I was told it was not bursitis and from there I have had several X-rays, two MRI’s, one with contrast. I have had a test where they go through your groin with a needle looking for a tear in my tendon. I have seen a spine Dr., a hip Dr., a knee DR., a rheumatologist, I have had acupuncture and then finally I was sent to a sports therapy DR. Where he asked me to start from the beginning and explain what has been going on. When I mentioned Levaquin he looked up and said there’s your problem. He explained the drug to me and told me he has written papers on the drug and has other patients that will never be right. He did an ultra sound and my hip was very inflamed. He injected me with a steroid which did give me relief but lasted only two weeks. My problems only continued to get worse. Three months later the knee DR. I jected my knee with another steroid which did nothing. 6 months in I walk with a limp, I have trouble standing after sitting, I cannot climb the stairs only one leg. I cannot put any pressure on my hip. My knee swells from time to time. It has traveled into my jaw. I could not open my mouth do I thought I had a problem with my teeth but was assured that it was inflammation preventing me from opening my mouth. It traveled to my shoulder and I could not raise my arm. It will affect my wrists and thumbs from time to time. I developed a fungus on my big toe nail. I can only walk around for a couple of hrs. Before I am exhausted and in pain. The doctors would not give me anything for pain because they said it would mask my symptoms. All I wanted was IB profin and I was told no. Finally 5 months in I was given Naproxin which I do get a little relief from. I have brain fog, I have trouble concentrating and have become forgetful. My balance is off and I am afraid of falling because I may cause more damage. I have gained 40 pounds not being able to do anything. It has affected my sleep pattern, given me anxiety from time to time and literally taken me from a sharp minded individual who was very active at 61 to feeling like an 81 yr old. My daughters are very concerned that I seem to have gone from a person doing everything to a person who has aged and missed the in between.
Oh, and it has affected my eye sight as well. My husband has spoken with two pharmacists who asked why would they give her that drug for a sinus infection. There are so many other antibiotics. I am so angry that not one person spoke to me about the side effects of this drug. I am angry because the drug company and some Drs. Feel that the reward outways the risk for some. Well, not for me. I am told there is no cure and if it does not work it’s way out of your body on its own in a year then it is Permenant. I am mostly angry that the Dr. who perscribed this medication knew the side effects because he asked me if I had any heart problems. (That is all he said) This drug can cause death, do not take it. I am told that Drs. Have been told not to prescribe it unless there is no other option and then my daughter last month went to the dentist who asked, how is your mother doing? She said not to good and he told her he went to a conference and was told not to Perscribe it because it is a bad drug and may be taken off the mkt.
A very, very interesting read. I’m 84. I’ll have to say that nearly all the things you mention I can relate to. I do consider myself one of the more fortunate ones because on a scale of 1 to 10 most of the problems, though still there, would be classed at from 3 to maybe a 7. I am still independent and ambulatory although constantly hurting. What concerns me most is that instead of being on a plateau things may get worse. I started with Cipro while it was in the clinical trials in 1986. I have taken it (literally dozens of times) for a (doctor induced and perpetuated) very chronic urinary infection that would not respond to other antibiotics. For years I have asked my doctor why I was so fatigued and felt like I was half drunk all the time. Various answers but no real diagnosis. Since finding the various Fluroquinolone sites I now understand why I have felt like I do. My latest episode and what is now causing exacerbation of my issues was because I went to the ER in December 2017 and was given an IV of Leviquin and then came home and did a 10 day session of Cipro. It appears that this has pushed me over the edge and I am now really “floxed”.
From here forward I can only hope things do not get worse.
There’s preliminary, observational and experiential evidence that FQs are sometimes stored in adipose tissue and then released back into the rest of the body during mobilization of body fat. This should be considered clinically and then also investigated further in studies.
Let me add that it’s undeniable some have more difficulty detoxifying/excreting FQs than others do (much of the explanation for the various levels of adverse effects), and some probably have such difficulty that their bodies sequester remaining toxin in adipose tissue.
I have researched several times a day in the last 9 mos. to get every source of info. on fluoroquinolone damage, however I do not know if after fluoroquinolone toxicity you should not take fluoxetine,or prozac. I do not know if all floxed may not take prednisone. As most here, I have neurological problems which makes me forget all I read. I would love to have accurate information. Also, is pqq okay for mitochondria regeneration? I appreciate all help or a new source.
So I was given a 500mg/ twice a day for 10 days of Cipro. After the 6th day I quit because the side effects were too intense. I’m now stuck in panic mode, high anxiety and depression. Unable to eat. Lost 20 pounds. Is there any hope for me? I had to take a leave from work and start a program through Behavioral Health
I believe FQs cause considerable permanent damage to connective tissues which do not regenerate and therefore cause and effect may be difficult to prove as the damaged tissue will fail after some time but for me I took four doses of cipro and now the dental injury is permanent and I fear more damage in future. The gums pulled away from my teeth and tooth split and a chronic headaches that I experience periodically is unexplained although it goes away without medication it comes back. Sincerely I haven’t done a research but it’s my desire that those privileged to undertake one share the findings and recommendations that will improve the lives of those floxed . I got floxed last November and I have no idea what I can do to Improve my health I’m only waiting for what fate gas in store for me.
For the sake of faith in humanity, please tell me I have this all wrong but…..
This website and the one that sells the ebook seem to have pretty much the same hosting address and are both hosted by the same hosting company, what are the chances of that?
The site claims on it’s “about” page that…..
“We are passionate about the support of those who have been damaged or injured by these and other drugs. We have been tirelessly collecting research and helping sufferers of Fluoroquinolone Damage for many years and we’re rebuilding our site to make it better than ever. We offer this information freely in hopes that this information will prevent anyone from being damaged, and support those who already have been”
If so much research has been done by the site author over such a large time period, why is a summary of a path to healing not offered on one of it’s pages and requests for info about it frequently referred to a $40 book hosted at the same provider?
Perhaps it’s a little too naiive to expect the author to humanely provide this info for free and ask that the people who’ve suffered so badly and found healing as a result of the information in the free ebook, donate a suggested amount to maintain the site?
I highly doubt this post will even be published to the site but if it is, I’d ask that the site author detail exactly what their relationship is to the author of the book? Names, dates, amounts etc….
The elephant in the room is that the site contains tons of info about the disease but almost nothing about the cure, for that the reader must buy the ebook.
I’m sure this comment won’t endear you to us or restore your ‘faith in humanity’, since justifying making a bit of money to cover your time and expenses of performing a public service to someone who strangely thinks you should work for free never does, but we feel quite comfortable with the ethical means by which we make the money to keep this site running, it gives us a bit of compensation for our time, and we are incredibly happy we are able to refer sick people to the only solution we know that actually helps people overcome their Fluoroquinolone toxicity and that provides continual FREE follow up, unlike any other book for any other health solution out there.
We started this site before learning about Kerri’s book, but began using the book and asked Kerri if she had an affiliate program. Kerri was hosting her book on another hosting company she was having trouble with, and we suggested she move it to the one we were using as we like them so much. We get an affiliate fee from books sold to help to keep us running. I can assure you the amounts that we make from these sales do not have us buying a beach house in the French Riviera. LOL. It’s quite small and doesn’t effectively compensate us for even close to the time we spend researching and writing for this site.
Kerri’s book helped the authors of this site IMMENSELY and we both want to give her the traffic to her site that she so deserves, AND we financially benefit from getting a commission from the sale to help keep this site running. Why don’t we offer a summary for free? Because we like to give a COMPLETE solution to the problem of Fluoroquinolone toxicity, rather than a piecemeal one, AND we like to make some money to offset our time and costs of running this website through the commissions generated when we refer to the complete solution.
Note, we aren’t selling anything on this site, not supplements, not consultations, NOTHING. We chose to make a little bit of money using Google ads and to refer to a solution that we know works because we use it. We provide an IMMENSE amount of information for free on this site. I’m a bit puzzled why you are so indignant that you are getting so much great information for free, and are demanding even more free information that we have already given you. No one has ever demanded we work for free for them before.
Did you ask your doctor who poisoned you to work for free? Or did he get paid to disable you? Did he offer a refund for his services like the book does, or did he financially benefit from disabling you? So you paid your doctor to disable you, but you demand the people to help you recover from your disability and pain to work for free, and beg for donations afterwards? I find this quite a bizarre request.
Did you ever have a job? Is that how you performed your job? You went to work everyday for free and then simply asked for donations from your employer to help you pay your expenses? How much do you think you would have earned with that business model? It seems to me that getting an agreement for payment PRIOR to services ensures your payment much better than begging later after services are rendered.
My name is Patricia, and I’m 31 years old. I took 2 doses of Cipro XR 1000mg when I started feeling extreme weakness in muscle and joints, tingling sensation in my hands, as well as cold fire in my feet. I was prescribed the drug to avoid bacterial infection in a wound I had during a traumatic accident. Prior to that I was on a 1200 calorie weight loss diet… needless to say, between the traumatic event and diet, I had magnesium deficiency for sure when I took the drug. After taking the second dose and feeling awful, I knew it wasn’t normal and was sure it wasn’t caused by the trauma I had experienced. I immediately began investigating and found Kerri and Joshua’s ebook, The Fluoroquinolone Toxicity Solution.
I started their protocol less than 24 hours after my last Cipro dosage. Today, I am feeling much better. Anxiety is gone, weakness is much better, I would say I’m at 90% of what I was before the drug. But I have some questions about the protocol.
You can go to the free forums that are included in the book to ask about their protocol that is in the book. Sorry, we can’t help you with their protocol.
Took one Cipro nine months ago before checking the web and stopping. Got floxed anyway. Went from 52 years old to 90 y.o. in one year. Damaged for life. Don’t ever take it for anything, period. Latest Gallup poll shows pharma is now the most hated industry, so their jig is up. Collectively the human race just took down Purdue, maker of OxyContin. They’re the first domino to fall. Join a lawsuit against whichever manufacturer made the FQ you were poisoned with. It took 2000 simultaneous lawsuits to bring down Purdue. This is a new kind of war, and it will be won this way. Purdue is the first of many victories to come.
Meanwhile, try to stay alive for as long as possible, no matter how much you suffer, because human knowledge is doubling every year and going exponential. Repairs to our mitochondrial DNA will inevitably be invented, probably within the next two decades.
Horror and curiosity are the twin engines of evolution. Treat this horror as an evolutionary event. Use it to propel yourself toward science and bioengineering where you can help with the chore of fixing what’s been broken.
I took 2 doses of 500 mg of Levofloxacin in June 2016 for possible UTI and started experiencing severe weakness, muscle/tendon weakness and pain, peripheral neuropathy and fatigue throughout my body. I was 44 yrs old at that time. Fatigue has reduced with proper diet and water therapy, but the nerve and muscle pain is not going away. Pain medication does not seem to help. Taking tumaric with black pepper for better absorption, protein shake with vitamins and minerals, vitamin B6 and magnesium.
We suggest going to:
https://www.fqtoxicity.com/
And getting the comprehensive program designed for this issue.
I took levofloxacin for 5 days 500 Mg (UTI) on the 5th day my right knee and left hand were swollen and sore as hades, my hand had shooting pains needle like stabbing pain on fire thought i was going to die- paralized could not even move thank god for my wife. Barely walk limped with a cane arm, in a sling etc. I took Naperson for the pain before I reseached it and found the negative effects when detoxing. horrible thing is that it seems that this drugs negative effects- never seems to leave you all your life. Sad as hell that this drug is allowed to be out on the market- ruining peoples lives.Day # 4 of coming off of it now. Sorry for the bad typing-chicken pick with one hand.
God bless everyone suffering with this lets get the wold out and stop it .
I should have been more clear said on the 6th day I woke up struck down, I took the poison for 5 days should not have taken it for 1.
Warn everyone- help get the word out- thank you for this blog, with all the helpful info.
It’s been 7 years life ruined. Pain is so bad
Cipro pills 10 days with fluconozole
IV cipro.
Nasal spray cipro fluconozole
Can’t take it anymore.
It’s been a year and a half for me. I am a 47 year old male. I was diagnosed with Prostatitis and prescribed a 30 day treatment of Cipro from my urologist. I got to 19 days and had to stop due to joint pain, fatigue, and mouth sores. Taking Cipro was the worst mistake of my life so far. I was a competitive cyclist and life long athlete. That has all pretty much ended. Going for a walk with the dog is all that I am mostly capable of. After any kind of physical excursion, even just stretching, my knees, shoulders and wrists will ache for days and sometimes weeks. Just two years ago I was doing 100 mile bike rides in the mountains, now a walk around my neighborhood is all that I’m capable of. It’s incredible that a drug has done this much long term damage, and all it has is a black box warning. Most doctors don’t really believe me, and insist that the effects would only be short term. I’m learning that I’m on my own. Medical science has nothing for me. I eat a plant based diet with a lot of whole grains and fruits and vegetables. All I can hope for is that with time this will improve. I try and stay positive, but unfortunately after a year and a half, my aches and pains have gotten worse not better.
From everything I’ve read, there really isn’t any cure for fluoroquinolone toxicity . Everything is just guesswork I’m sorry to say. Heck, the very medical science that put me here doesn’t even recognize this as a problem. Some day they will. I believe in science, and I am certainly not of the Anti Vaxer anti medicine clan. With that said, the fluoroquinolones sure carry a high risk that is not being emphasized enough. From what I’ve read, antibiotics production/ R and D is not that profitable, and we are running out of effective antibiotics as bacteria adapts and becomes resistant. I realize, sadly, that removing the fluoroquinolones from the medical quiver will also have a cost. Obviously, the fluoroquinolones are being over prescribed because too many of us are suffering dire consequences from their use
I just took my first dose 5 hours ago. 250 mg. For a UTI.
As I took the first pill I was reading the side effects. I am scared to death! I do not want to take another one and I am scared what this one will will do to me?
I am scared of going to sleep now. I am scared and making myself a nervous wreck. How would anyone guess that an antibiotic would be so bad. Please someone talk to me. I am 5 hours into taking this medicine. I do not want these side effects. What are the chances of having these side effects? Please anyone? I am counting down the hours that it is out of my system. Will I be out of danger within 22 hours?