In July of 2014, I took a course of Cipro – a drug that belongs to the class known as fluoroquinolones. I knew I had sensitivities to medications in the past like complete fatigue and muscle pain from Metformin, and various allergies to other medications. Cipro was one I could tolerate in the past for a UTI. I am a pharmacist. I had been led to believe, by the warnings on fluoroquinolones, that the risk of toxicity was reserved for those over the age of 65 with impaired kidney function. That wasn’t me. I would be safe….So I thought…
Backing up a little – prior to this course of antibiotics, I was teaching 5 power spinning classes a week, boot camps and yoga. I had run the Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco, and the Big Sur Marathon 6 months later. I had run several half marathons and little races just for the heck of it. I had just gotten back from a trip out West where my four children and I climbed mountains, and rocks, and ran and hiked – I was at the top of the world and on top of my game.
So by day 5 of this antibiotic, I started feeling a twinge of something in my right elbow. It seemed peculiar because I was very conditioned and very strong. Over the course of the next week or so, all the other tendons, muscles, joints, vision, hearing and nerves became involved. Slowly but surely, whatever was happening was progressing to the point that I was in immense pain. I could not walk, I could not lay down, I could not sit without pain. My brain function started declining. I was adding up my Pharmacist Continuing Education credits to turn in that year, and I could not add 1 plus 1.5. I was adding out loud, so when my daughter heard me and I could not put this together, she had to help guide me through what the answer might be. My heart sank – how could I possibly be a functioning adult, single mom, and competent pharmacist if I couldn’t add 1 plus 1.5? I could not walk up the stairs. I crawled. I could not squeeze a sponge or open the top of a milk jug. I couldn’t unscrew the tops of my supplements. I ended up in a wheelchair, basically requiring the assistance of someone all the time.
I had to quit working as a pharmacist because 1. I couldn’t stand. And 2. I couldn’t think. I found myself looking at medications, numbers, prescriptions, and not knowing what I was looking at. Prior to this, I was a whiz at math. All of a sudden, numbers confused me. It was like all of them were being thrown at me all at once and I couldn’t make sense of them. It was completely overwhelming. I didn’t hesitate to stop working because I did not want to harm anyone. At that point, in addition to all the other stress, financial stress set in as well.
I became severely sensitive to light and sound. If there was too much of anything around, my brain couldn’t process it. It would make me want to crawl out of my skin.
I wore wrist and ankle braces day and night, I slept with pillows propping me up and taking pressure off of certain sensitive parts of my body – which of course migrated all night and day. That didn’t make for restful sleep. I might have had 10 or 15 minutes in between sleep episodes which were interrupted by immense nerve pain. I remember one night thinking I was going to die. All of my muscles were cramping up, including my chest and back and fingers and legs and arms – I thought for sure my heart would be the next thing to go.
As I researched online for reversal of Cipro toxicity, all I found were countless recollections of people’s stories about devastation because of their reactions to fluoroquinolones. I read about people who had committed suicide because they couldn’t bear the pain. I read about people who had endured pain for the last 10 years and still had no hope. Back then, there wasn’t as much information as there is now.
I was 45 and had 4 children, for whom I am their only parent. I could not believe my life was going to transform from the most fit and active and strong I had ever been to being crippled, in a wheelchair and in chronic pain. Not only could I not believe it, but after a complete breakdown, I could not accept it. And this is where I began to rise.
Instead of searching for reversal of Cipro toxicity, I started thinking biochemistry and how things work at a cellular level. Thank goodness biochemistry and medicinal chemistry were my strong subjects in pharmacy school. And thank goodness I have a strong understanding of holistic healing. Everything was slightly slower because of my cognitive decline, but I was motivated. I couldn’t let this be the life my children grew up with. Through my research, I started finding basic things I thought would help – my focus was
How do I get rid of the poison in my body
How do I prevent further damage
How do I heal the damage that has been done
As I dove in, I got deeper and deeper into the toxicity of this medication – the mitochondrial damage that takes place, the neurotoxicity, the muscle damage, tendon ruptures, brain fog…everything. And slowly but surely I started finding solutions and healing myself. Not with the help of western medicine who denied anything was happening to me because the blood work didn’t show abnormalities. And for some reason, the three doctors I went to did not know enough about fluoroquinolone toxicity so they had to deny this was a case of it. According to them, it was so rare and only affected one tendon at a time. They put the label of fibromyalgia on it because they couldn’t come up with a better diagnosis code. However, they were quick to offer antidepressants, pain meds, and anything else to attempt to appease me. I declined. I couldn’t fathom the thought of putting another medication into my body to supposedly counter the damage another medication created. With chronic pain and stress, I developed adrenal fatigue – or HPA axis dysfunction, diabetes and migraines through this journey, but I still relied on getting to the cause of these as opposed to Western Medicine to mask what was happening at a cellular level. Even with cognitive impairment, I knew better and I trusted my intuition. I knew I was in charge of healing myself. Thank goodness.
It became my full time job to heal myself. I went from a wheelchair to finally being able to walk down the stairs. I started walking – to the end of the driveway and back. Then to the first driveway over and back. Eventually, I walked all the way around the block. Of course with repercussions, but I did it. And I gained hope.
I did panchakarma, a detoxification process using Ayurvedic practices. I started massage therapy – where the therapist was initially afraid to even touch my tendons because they were so brittle. I did massage therapy 4 times a week. I bought an Infrared (IR) sauna to help me make more mitochondria, since I couldn’t get to aerobic activity to replenish my damaged mitochondria. I did countless detoxes and purifications to clear the poisons out of my liver and body. I changed my diet completely to minimize inflammation throughout my body. I meditated. I meditated. I meditated. It was one of the only things that would give me a reprieve from the immense pain for about 30 minutes. Many, many other things I did…
Along with the alternative practices I used to heal myself, therapeutic doses of supplements played a large role. Had it not been for knowing how my body was damaged, by what chemical components of the medication and probable scenarios of what was going on – I would not have been able to supplement with the things I needed to heal. Healing has been consistently assessing, fine tuning, figuring out what works and what doesn’t work, adjusting to my body’s changing status, and being patient.
I am still healing. I don’t think I will ever be back to 100%. I can go two weeks between massages now. I think it is becoming more of a relaxation and pampering activity for me more than therapy. I’ll keep up with that. I can propel my body and still have energy at the end of the day. I sometimes outlast my loved ones that haven’t been afflicted with this poisoning. I am also able to eat with a little more flexibility and enjoy some of the things I love to eat. In moderation of course. I was recently out of the country and walked 13 miles a day for 7 days straight. I still had energy at the end of the day. I am thankful when I can get out and mow my own lawn. Or hike. Or bike. Or carry groceries in from the car. A few weeks ago I completed the Akron Half Marathon – whether I ran or walked it did not matter – it is something I never thought I would be able to do again.
Also through the healing process, I have brought my fasting sugars down from 200 to low 100’s. It is amazing how the body handles itself when it is not in chronic pain. I am now able to navigate my day with great energy levels and don’t feel so anxious and depressed. My brain works. I feel smart again. Numbers still sometimes confuse me, but I have accepted that not everything is going to be as it was. There are many new normals. But those normals do not include my children having a crippled mom or me being in a wheelchair and for that I am ever so grateful.
Through my experience and research…and most importantly, my recovery…I simply cannot stand by and watch others live with no hope of a better life. I am more excited than ever to reach however many people I can and help them live again. I still read countless stories of pure and utter devastation. It is heartbreaking. If anything in life has pushed me to how I can use my unique gifts, talents, and experiences to serve others, then this is it.
It is a rough hand we’ve been dealt. But you have the ability to heal yourself, given the right tools. I have taken my practice and devoted it to helping those afflicted with fluoroquinolone toxicity or fibromyalgia reclaim their health, their lives, and their hope. Journeywithsujata.com will launch by November of 2017, using my experience and research to find solutions for all of our unique needs. I look forward to helping to be a part of the solution. I’m here. There is hope. Always hold on to that.
Sujata Patel, RPh, RYT
Registered Pharmacist
Certified Menopause Educator
Yoga Alliance Registered Yoga Teacher
Chopra Center Certified Meditation Instructor
** The story above is truthful, accurate and told to the best of the ability of the writer. It is not intended as medical advice. No person who submits his or her story, nor the people associated with Floxie Hope, diagnoses or treats any illness. The story above should not be substituted for professionally provided medical advice. Please consult your doctor before trying anything that has been mentioned in this story, or in any other story on this site. Please also note that people have varying responses to the treatments mentioned in each story. What helps one person may not help, and may even hurt, another person. It is important that you understand that supplements, IVs, essential oils, and all other treatments, effect people differently depending on the millions of variables that make each of us unique. Please use appropriate caution and prudence, and get professional medical advice.
Tara,
Sounds like you are doing better too!! This is a hard road. And there’s no support from the medical community. Good to hear from you.
Thanks, L.
You mentioned a lawsuit before. Did you file with an attorney or try to do it alone? I know you said it was very difficult to do and very taxing, personally. I am actually taking a medical leave at work to try a neuro rehab program. My whole nervous system was impacted by this experience so I am going to try a program that focuses on rehab exercises for several hours a day and eye exercises are a part of that… of course it is probably not covered by insurance, but what is, really? I was reluctant to bring a lawsuit before because, as you know, it is difficult to medically document the fallout when not a lot shows up on tests, and the doctors make you seem like you are crazy. I’ve had a few who believed me, but still crafted their documentation to make it look like it could be other reasons- age, etc. I recently had a bunch of assessments for that rehab program and it is clearly documented that I have a lot of neurological issues, particularly with the ANS dysfunction. My pressure rose 30 points when I stood up, which is indicative of POTS, which I never had before. I guess it wouldn’t hurt to at least consult an attorney. It is hard to find a good one, though. It seems it has to be advantageous for them in some way. I will continue with the eye drops 4x/day to see if that helps with anything. I am waiting for the second box to arrive in the mail, so I’m currently out. The neuropathy in my hands and feet comes and goes. I am always preoccupied with what is left to come after taking these pills, like what could show up in the next few months to years that might never have showed up if it weren’t for this poison. Sometimes ignorance is bliss.
Thanks, Deb:
I had taken a few weeks offline because I felt I was getting too consumed with it, again, and it wasn’t good for my morale/psyche. I go in spurts where it is immensely helpful to be connected to others who understand and then it’s not so helpful at times because I get “stuck” on how terrible this experience has been for me and I start to worry about my future again and the “what ifs.” Even when I start to regain some physical aspect of my life again, it’s like the psychological piece rears up even harder then. Even if I could consider myself marginally “healed” physically from this experience (minus the vision issues), I still have a ways to go with the psychological aspect of this experience. As you know, it’s like you’re always waiting for the next thing to hit. Even when I have a few better days in a row, there’s still something that keeps me from feeling like my “old self” psychologically. I never wanted a “new normal”- I was just fine the way I was and my imperfections could be laughed at and not cause me anxiety like they do now. I have a hard time separating what is a “normal” thing to happen (like if I forget a word) versus what is still fallout from this experience (I had difficulty with word retrieval). Even in bright light, I still panic because I was so light sensitive for a long time. I probably was before because I’m fair with blond hair and blue eyes, but it never caused a panic response like it does now.
I hit the “year mark” this month. I’m thankful to be alive and to have made as much progress as I’ve made. I’ve still been able to work; although, I’m taking a LOA soon to focus on vision therapy and other neuro. rehab for the ANS dysfunction. I am not the most patient person and if there is something that I can be doing to support the healing process, I will try it. I do notice that when I seem to have rough periods (i.e., the last three weeks), I seem to be stronger after them. Last night I was able to do several things in a hurried manner for a few hours whereas just a few weeks ago, I was still at the point where I could only handle one thing at a time and for not very long before becoming dizzy and feeling like I could fall over, so it’s a slow go. My daughter had to dress as a scarecrow for school today for her party, so I was throwing together a costume that required a fair amount of detail. I would not have been able to do that last week, but I could last night. I was not able to put her hair in pony tails for a long time (due to eye focusing issues, nervous system issues), and this morning I could even braid her pigtails, so it’s the little things like that where I feel like I’m coming out the other side…slowly… I’m just ready for it to all go away.
So, how are you, Deb?
Hi Tara,
I have some days where I feel better. There aren’t a lot yet. I had a great Tuesday where I felt like I was healing. I don’t have many of those days. But I still have all the symptoms. But some days the symptoms are less. And on those days when I feel better physically, I feel better psychologically–like I really will get through this health crisis. Truly feeling hopeful helps a lot. Having support helps too. But I think people can’t understand how adverse effects from an antibiotic can last so long. I would think the same thing if I hadn’t been through it.
The shaking does seem to be better. I still have some muscle weakness and the head pressure. I went to the neurologist with the head pressure, etc. and he didn’t have much to say about it. He said he didn’t know much about Levaquin toxicity. All I’ve heard from the doctors I’ve been too is they don’t know anything about Levaquin toxicity. So that’s a waste of time to mention it. I have to watch the supplements–some can cause the anxiety. I have done a couple of acupuncture sessions, and I don’t know yet if it’s helping or not. I thought it was after the first one. I think I need to give it more of a chance.
More power to you for a lawsuit. I don’t understand why the drug companies can continue to dispense the medicines when they can be extremely damaging to some.
Part of this battle is mental and I work on that, but it’s a tough battle too. I do the thought changing and replace negative with positive, and I pray a lot.
I’m so ready for it to be over too and get back to feeling good. It does seem like you are making a good bit of progress. Maybe your LOA will help a lot. I think we are both alike in that we want to be 100% better.
Hi Sujata! Amazing story and so happy you are recovered!! I am currently going into my 5th month of recovery and of course working through the maze of supplements to deal with this recovery!! My GABA receptors were hit hard so my most challenging issues are brain fog, anxiety, inner tension, severe tinnutus that was brought on by this poison and really bad insomnia!! I have some peripheral neuropathy but my main concern is healing my nervous system which I pray will heal in time! I read on another post about taking glutathione which I am taking acetyl glutathione pills and you suggested taking precursors along with the glutathione. What suggestions do you have for precursors and what dose etc did you feel was best? I don’t want to get the IVs as I have heard for some people they can be harmful do font want to take that risk! Did you have insomnia and CNS issues?? I would really appreciate some suggestions on those precursors. Blessings to you for helping all of us suffering with this nightmare!
Sujata, I actually grew up in the Bay Area (Oakland/Alameda) and now live in the Central Valley of CA. I would really like to talk with you! Is it possible that we could talk over the phone? I will give you my email address and you can let me know if we can arrange a conversation? I am currently starting into my 5th month of recovery. I have several questions I would like to ask you. Let me know through my email if that can be arranged! Thank you so much
Dee. deegilmore75@yahoo.com
Sujata,
I just sent you a private message…
I have been dealing with this since January of 2015 and it has been a daily struggle. I was 22 at the time and had a once very active lifestyle. At this point I deal more with fatigue and muscle weakness, but in the beginning I had alot of nurological pain, brain fog, and tendon pain. What has helped you the most with getting your strength back? I have tried almost everything I feel like at this point.
L,
Do you remember how long it was until your blurred vision went away? Was it after a year? I took my kids trick-or-treating last night and I could really tell my night vision was a lot different than pre-Cipro. I do know that I have a lot of ANS dysfunction, so some of it is probably related to pupil dilation. I was able to walk with them around several different neighborhoods, but I was somewhat dizzy at times and felt my vision getting wonky in different ways at times. I persevered, determined not to let everything interfere with my children having a good time, but it was a struggle compared to last year, which was right after I took the Cipro and just started having some side effects from it… and of course, I was still spinning from the steroids at that time and my GI system was healing from the diverticulitis…All of my health issues can be linked to Big Pharma these past two years, as I had 0 health issues prior. The floaters and visual snow are terrible today. It’s like they are out in masses. I think I have a mixture of scotomas and floaters. I also take Lutein daily and I can tell that this has helped with taking the edge off the brightness of the computer and cell phone screen for me. I use the Can-C drops. It’s been about 4 months for those.
That’s how mine is without my glasses now. It’s just like a dull haze and the colors aren’t vibrant. It was so long ago that I had nearsightedness and astigmatism so I don’t really remember what it was like. I couldn’t see a thing without my glasses, but then I didn’t have the visual snow and floaters to contend with either. Somehow, I don’t think it’s as easy as a “redo” of the LASIK to correct the problem. I think it’s nerve damage and probably at several places within my visual tract… or it’s mitochondrial related. When my eyes are tired or when I am stressed, the floaters are more prominent. When I was losing my vision, the eye doctor told me the LASIK flap was “perfect…” It’s been about 6 months and my follow up is next month, so I’ll see if anything shows up on the exam. This isn’t the same eye doctor who does the prism glasses. She has not done an internal eye exam. The picture that you showed me reminds me of how my right eye would get when I went into a store with fluorescent lighting, before I had my glasses. It was like it was on a “dimmer” switch. That has since lessened. I still hope to one day wake up with perfect vision again, but I am starting to think that is a hopeless cause. I should just keep praying to retain what vision I have left! I am going for the eye exercises next week, but that might be another “wishful” thinking venture where I deposit a large sum of money to wind up worse off than before. Is there a point in time where you started to really “turn the corner” and feel like you were making a lot of progress? A lot of the terrifying neurological things stopped- like being electrocuted and having a (literally) hot head… but I just feel so fatigued, cognitively impaired, of course the vision issues, and just like I’ve totally lost a sense of who I am… I can go through the motions each day, with some brief periods (maybe a day or two) of reprieve, but then it cycles around again and I feel like I’m back at the beginning of being Floxed. I think I’m still trying to come to terms with being poisoned, too… which doesn’t help.
I’m finding some reprieve with the lighting issues and I can use my cell phone again without feeling the EMF sensitivity- which is the oddest thing. I felt like there was a magnetic field around me and whenever I touched the cell phone, it was like a magnet in my fingertips and my eyes felt like I was looking at Kryptonite. I am just trying to keep the full-time job I have, which looks bleak if this cognitive decline continues… but if I had to find one in retail, I couldn’t do it. I am envious of the check-out clerks because I can’t even coordinate the mental efforts to scan an item, bag it, or give change when it is showing me how much to give back on the screen. Too many fluctuating cognitive limitations yet. I often joke to myself that I will know when I have recovered when I can feel comfortable getting a part-time job in retail! I still have many “one day forward, three days backward” kind of days. For example, at lunchtime today, I could barely hold a conversation with someone. It was like I totally forgot how to have a conversation and I couldn’t hold any interest. She would ask me questions and I would totally lose my train of thought mid-sentence and I’m sure it looked like I was totally disengaged, but it was that I had to try really hard to talk to her and connect with her. On Monday, I sat and talked with a group of co-workers for an hour and had no problem with the conversation. One of the most maddening things about this experience has been that things are just so random when they come and go. I had a lot of energy yesterday, and today I could spend all day in bed. I will always link any new health issue to having taken Cipro. Even if I had some genetic predisposition to something, I will always assume a link between that and Cipro and for that fear, I don’t know that a “full recovery” is ever possible, mentally. I think a lot about the ease of my old life sans health issues when I could just pick up and go and do anything I wanted to. I love to travel, garden, cook, etc. I can’t do any of those things right now. It’s just the basics of getting through the day. I used to take pleasure in checking off my calendar at the thought that I was one day closer to recovery, but at a year out, I just think maybe that was faulty thinking. This might just be my “new normal.” I have hope when I look at this site, but if I look at other stories on the internet, I lose hope very quickly. At 2+ years out, are there times when you don’t think about the Cipro poisoning and can have normal days? It is always on my mind, as hard as it is to block out. It’s probably part of the poisoning, I’m sure. I don’t have a hx of OCD, but I’ll wake up in the middle of the night and this is the first thought that pops into my head and then I start to cry and cry myself back to sleep. I still have waves of despair that come on all of a sudden even on “better” days. [Thanks for talking back and forth… it does help 🙂 ]
I’m hoping to get to a period of time when I “forget” that this happened to me and I can say, “Oh, yeah, remember when I was floxed and it was really awful for ___ and then all of a sudden I got better and was fine again?!? Yeah, I almost forgot how awful it was..” Not there yet… 🙂 I saw one of your posts on Ruth’s sites and I had to chuckle because I could so relate to the “hitman” idea… like I said before, it’s a saving grace for me that I have children. I can’t tell you the ideas that have crossed my toxic mind that would NEVER have done so otherwise. At one point I had to practice full restraint from giving into the random idea of running into oncoming traffic while getting my mail the one day… this was at the beginning of this ordeal and I was actually having an “OK” moment, but just that quickly the thought came in. I swear it’s like the devil being released in your brain. There are still times when I get down enough that the random thoughts come and go. Right now the “Cipro experience” is on pause in my brain and I try my hardest to deactivate it in some way. Hopefully this will just end in time.
Yes, I do seem to be better when I stay off the sites, but at the same time, misery loves company sometimes. When I am feeling better, I don’t come to the sites as often. When I am feeling terrible, and of course there is nothing that seems to trigger something at this point… it is all random malfunction of some system.. I think, “Oh, here we go again… time to commiserate with the others…”
Madge,
How many times were you floxed? My eye issues came a few months after taking the last pill and then deteriorated quickly. I have a lot of “clumpy” floaters… just maddening to look at all day… I just worry about the health of my eyes in general after this poisoning.
Madge,
It’s interesting that you mention diverticulitis. This is why I took Cipro last year and I woke up this morning with significant lower left quadrant pain and I was terrified that this meant the oncoming of diverticulitis again. I have been nursing it all morning and I think things have subsided for the most part, but you never know! I am so afraid of getting it again for many reasons. I know for sure that my symptoms are related to Cipro and Flagyl. There is no way that you can feel this bad, for this long, with crazy things that are indescribable without it being toxicity. The eye issues alone are things that just don’t happen naturally. My vision was really hit hard, sadly. I think at this point it is just wishful thinking that it will ever be the way it was. I’m only 41, so it is devastating to have so many sight-related issues. I’m just always afraid of what is to come and what is happening “under the hood” so to speak that I can’t yet determine and might not show up for years. I worry about my heart and all the tendon/cartilage issues. I think I have a lot of those issues re: my eyesight. I would have NEVER thought I would have gotten ocular tendonitis in my life. Do you have to wear glasses? I know have prism glasses. I was hoping that they would be temporary, but I fear not at this point in time. 🙁
Hi Madge,
I had so many eye issues at the first sign of being floxed last year- eye pain, EXTREME light sensitivity, feeling like my eyes were going to fall out, the sensation that they will “snap” at any moment at times; they are now misaligned, hence the prism glasses. They are always just really sore and “achy.” I had no issues of the kind prior. Re: the diverticulitis… I am living proof that doctors can screw people up! What started as a minor sinus issue evolved into overkill with steroids and antibiotics… I had a horrible reaction (severe sensory psychosis) to high dose prednisone (never took any meds before) that should have never been prescribed, especially at the high dose I took for two weeks) for a minor sinus infection… and then rather than deal with the psychosis, subsequent doctors kept giving me more antibiotics, refusing to render their opinions that I could have had such a bad reaction to steroids. Until it was all said and done, I had steroids, doxycycline for 25 days, 3x Augmentin… and that is when my GI tract went crazy. I had no history of any GI issues, but with all of those heavy medications, I probably had complete disruption. I had a very mild case, but because I was still so “out of it” from the steroids— it is like a reaction to Cipro— I was insanely anxious and thought I was dying (this is before I stopped going to the doctor because I found out they do more harm than good). This is when the young resident prescribed the cipro/flagyl combo. I even specified- since I had read so much about antibiotics after having a reaction to doxycycline- that I did not want anything very potent like the ones with fluoride. He snickered at me and said that they all have side effects and then ended up prescribing those to me. They gave me the first dose- with Tylenol- in the hospital. It wasn’t until about 4 doses into it that I read the pamphlet and about threw up with anxiety. I talked to the pharmacist at the hospital and she assured me that it is very uncommon to have a serious reaction if I am “under 65” and encouraged me to finish all of them “or I could have a perforation.” Well, that certainly isn’t true, because I’m a wreck after all these meds at 41! I think I’m OK as far as the diverticulitis goes. I increased some of my detoxing supplements, so it could be from that also- or nerve pain that migrates. I will still be very careful for the next few days. Things had really settled down for awhile. i do all kinds of probiotics.
Hi Sujata,
Are you familiar with P450 and it’s role in detoxing from fluoroquinolone toxicity? Thanks.
Hi Sujata
I’m 4 mounths out of Cipro my worst symptoms are:P.neuropathy on hands feets ,face eyes…very painfull.. ..do you have some advice for me?I ‘ve search for a doctor but here in Italy all deny this is a Cipro effect!
Thank you
Betty
I had significant issues after taking Cipro, including extremely low energy. I’m a lot better, but after addressing or getting over too many symptoms to mention, I started trying to figure out how to increase my energy levels. What really helped me was lifting weights and taking the supplement Creatine. I tried taking it when I was young, and lifting heavy, but quit because I couldn’t tell it did anything. But this time, it made a big difference. My energy is much better. The idea of trying creatine again came after reading articles on its effect on mitochondria … both creatine and weight lifting. Anyway, it seemed to work. On the negative side, I got really strong again, and started lifting heavy … and tore my pec (muscle/tendon?). I get an MRI this Friday to see exactly what’s wrong. While I had a little tendon pain after the Cipro, I was hoping it wouldn’t be that big a deal. I may have to change my exercising if my tendons can’t take it. Anyway, thought his my help someone.
Wow!