I'd been taking flagyl for about three weeks at 500 mgs twice a day (along with ~4 g Amoxicillin for a longer time). What is unusual is that in some ways I feel I've made an improvement while taking it while in other ways I feel worse symptoms or downright strange. I hope some of you can give me an idea whether (or how to determine...) this is from some kind of herx or a side effect of the drug?

First the good is that it feels like the scope of my consciousness has somewhat improved --if before my consciousness was like the light of day and the landscape of earth-reality, and at my worst my consciousness was like a crummy flashlight at the middle of the night, now it is at least more like headlights at night.

Also my memory seems to have also to a lesser extent, & my ability to learn and retrieve (I won't go so far as to say: reason from) concepts.

The bad is that my head all of a sudden over the last week or so has become really stuffy (which hurts my thinking, but differently from normal symptoms) and I felt like my mind is racing...

(I know it probably sounds weird that my mind has both improved and gotten worse, but I figure if anybody understands...)

... And it can't keep it focused on one concept, not even if I am really effortful about it, even though I might understand it, I can't stay focused on it. Also I've been getting irritated and frazzled really easy and at any little thing, (bad since my neighbors have like 5 kids that they just "set upon" our neighborhood for long periods of time).

I've also noticed a quiet, high pitched buzzing in my ear that makes it much harder to think and made me very nervous about this medication since this has never been one of my regular symptoms and also since my father has it really badly.

Lastly, sudden yeast overgrowth on my tongue and similar brown-looking plaques between teeth, ... I made a dentist appointment (they didn't tell me whether it was the yeast or because it causes dry mouth) and stopped taking the medication immediately a few days back (at about three weeks). Yes, I realize it was kinda dumb that it was the teeth effects that pushed me over the edge and not the other stuff, maybe proof it hasn't improved my thinking all too much...

Anyhow, I really was curious to know if anyone else has had something similar to this happen to them while taking flagyl. I found some old posts, but most of them didn't go into a whole lot of detail (or I forgot the one's which did). Do you think all these symptoms coming on near in time (~2nd week) had to do with a herx, the medication's side effects, sudden yeast overgrowth (I have been taking probiotics)? Some combination?

Some of the symptoms felt subjectively different than ever before (the irritation, mind-racing...) while others were totally new like the ear buzzing/tinnitus (which has lessened but not gone away). Can anyone give me advice on these symptoms with flagyl, whether your experience or second-hand? I'm concerned because the conclusions you'd come to depending on whether it was a herx or side-effects seem like they would be totally opposite...

Thanks for reading and any advice,

john

ps. also thank-you very much to the many people who responded to my previous post where I didn't respond back due to feeling really sick and being overwhelmed by school.

IMO, it's probably a herx. Flagyl helps me a lot but usually at the one week mark my head really becomes affected. I figure from the toxins.

I always show real improvement afterwards. When my head starts I usually stop the flagyl and continue with the zith. Wait three or four days and start it again after it clears. This is what works for me, some people ride it out and stay on flagyl.

I think what happened to me was a result of a buildup of the drug since I was taking a high dose for an extended period and the symptoms I was reporting were partially new and more or less consistent with some of the sideffects according to rxlist.

I'll probably to alternate it 1 week on /1 week off or something like that. Hopefully that will still give me the benefits without the bad effects. Surg I can understand the feeling like you described (or as much as my mind lets me )-- that thoughts don't drop off on you anymore but it feels like you have ADD... )

Since you are taking different drugs, maybe that argues my new symptoms were after all a sign of the treatment being successful.

john

I was on flagyl and zithromax for 10 mos nonstop. I got the stained teeth (brushing with baking soda and prof. cleanings help) and the white coated tongue (brushed tongue with hydrogen peroxide followed by opening a probiotic capsule on it helped).

I peaked at 7 mos. This combo helped get me to a whole new level of health but it took that long non stop for me.

I didn't have any mental stuff with it, bad or good, but I did experience neuropathy the last 3 months.