In a survey of 94 people who experienced adverse reactions to Levaquin/levofloxacin, a fluoroquinolone antibiotic, 72% reported experiencing anxiety, 62% reported depression, 48% reported insomnia, 37% reported panic attacks, 33% reported brain fog and/or cognitive impairment, 29% reported depersonalization and/or derealization, 24% reported thoughts of suicide and 22% reported psychosis.
Psychiatric side-effects of fluoroquinolones are common. Though many of the psychiatric adverse effects of fluoroquinolones are listed on the warning label, they are buried in the “Central Nervous System Effects” section. Dr. Charles Bennett of the Southern Network on Adverse Reactions (SONAR), has submitted a petition to the FDA requesting that a black box warning about serious psychiatric adverse events be added to the Levaquin/levofloxacin warning label.
More information about the serious psychiatric adverse effects of fluoroquinolones can be found in this post –
PSYCHIATRIC SIDE EFFECTS OF FLUOROQUINOLONE ANTIBIOTICS
Please spread the word about the psychiatric problems that fluoroquinolones can cause. The serious psychiatric adverse effects of fluoroquinolones are under-recognized.
People are suffering because they are not adequately warned about the dangers of fluoroquinolones.
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I briefly had thoughts of suicide about 3-5 days after stopping Cipro. It was never strong enough that I would actually go through with it, and I am certainly not suicidal now, but it sure is there. I also remember confusion and the insomnia… oh the insomnia. Of course I was having my cup of coffee a day during and post-flox until I read about that.
It took me about 2 months to be able to sleep through the night, and even over a year post I still have nights where I don’t feel tired and struggle to fall asleep. This was a huge change from before where I could fall asleep without effort and sleep like a baby for 8-10hrs (depending on weekday/weekend).
What helped me the most was time, followed by better sleep practices (strict sleep cycles), stopping all caffeine intake, and low-dose melatonin when absolutely necessary.