Peripheral Neuropathy, from Cipro, Returned; Not Good!

As many of you may already know, four and a half years ago, I suffered severe side effects from an antibiotic, in the floroquinolone family, called Cipro. The first time it happened, I suffered a ruptured tendon. I did not correlate the ruptured tendon to the antibiotic, Cipro.

Eleven months later, I was nearly crippled by the drug. I was given it a second time for a urinary tract infection; I took five pills and my body was destroyed. I mean literally destroyed; I suffered from the worst pain I have ever felt, in my entire life. It was mostly located in my hips, legs and feet. The pain was constant, excruciating, and never subsided. This time I DID realized that it was caused by Cipro.

I also suffered from light sensitivity and total brain fog. This is not something that you would wish upon any one, not even your worst enemy. There is no way to reverse these side effects and doctors simply shrug their shoulders when presented with a floxed patient.

Oddly enough, I suffered with this destruction and peripheral neuropathy, right up until I received chemotherapy treatments, after being diagnosed with CML. Oddly enough, there is something in the chemotherapy that can reduce symptoms in RA patients, and now I have experienced the same thing; pain relief. I was ecstatic and figured that this pain relief was the golden lining, in having leukemia.

Fast forward two and a half years; the peripheral neuropathy and the light sensitivity have improved drastically, although I cannot say the same thing about the brain fog. All was well until I developed pleural effusion and bronchitis last month; I had to go off of my Sprycel treatment, until my lungs were functioning properly, again.

 Within ten days of ceasing the Sprycel, the peripheral neuropathy began to return. I started getting extreme pain in the balls of my feet and toes, (my hardest hit area), skin sensitivity and the feeling that my Achilles and other tendons could rupture if I was not careful. I was horrified and angry. It really makes me ponder the correlation between the peripheral neuropathy and the TKI’s, as well as the chemotherapy; AND just how damaging this class of antibiotics, really are.

Moral to the story; I am actually blessed to have CML because living with that sort of pain is truly unbearable. It literally made me wish I would die; I would rather have cancer than the pain associated with the damage from those drugs. How sad it that?

In my opinion, unless it is an absolute, last resort, life or death situation, the floroquiolone, antibiotics Cipro, Levaquinn and Avelox, should be avoided like the plague!

Post Cipro Poisoning Regime

Below you will find a list of things that I have done to combat my Cipro Poisoning. It has been two and a half years since my last poisoning and while my feet and legs are much improved, I am currently having issues in my arms and hands.

Are these new issues relate? or not?

I am NOT a doctor, these are just what I am trying. A lot of what I will be eating and taking are to remove as much as the toxin as I can. He suggested that I eat 1 cup of mixed brussel sprouts and broccoli and 1 whole red beet everyday. These should be steamed and the red beet should be steamed whole. It is the "red" in the beet that is supposed to thin the bile from the liver that can become thicker after Cipro poisoning.

In addition to those veggies I am "drinking" Green Vibrance. It has 25 billion probiotics per dose. It is also used for detoxification.

I am taking 3-4 Magnesium Malate (1250mg) per day, 2000mg of Vitamin C per day, 1 tablet 4 times a day on an empty stomach (be sure to eventually wean yourself down to a normal dose if you take this much Vitamin C). Bromelain, 2 capsules, 4 times a day between meals. Fibrozym, 3 tablets in the morning. Vitamin D and Calcium. These are all in addition to my "regular" everyday vitamins!

By the time I am through sucking down all of these pills and eating those veggies, I think I might just explode!

He also suggested epsom salt baths and light massage. Movement , especially in a pool, and to not push to the point of damage. He also pressed on tendon connections and did something like spreading the muscle tissue. None of this was painful.

Today is day 12, since the side effects began. Last night was the first night that I did not wake up in the middle of the night an hour or two BEFORE I could take Ibuprofen. I actually woke up one hour AFTER I was supposed to take it. I am taking 600mg every 6 hours. My "other" Dr. recommended that as it IS an anti-inflammatory. It helps me tremendously. I seem to be moving a bit faster, at the moment! Hoping for a good day.

Floroquinolones; Bad News!

Antibiotics are important drugs, often restoring health and even saving lives. But like all drugs, they can have unwanted and serious side effects, some of which may not become apparent until many thousands of patients have been treated.

Such is the case with an important class of antibiotics known as fluoroquinolones. The best known are Cipro (ciprofloxacin), Levaquin (levofloxacin) and Avelox (moxifloxacin). In 2010, Levaquin was the best-selling antibiotic in the United States.

But by last year it was also the subject of more than 2,000 lawsuits from patients who had suffered severe reactions after taking it.

Part of the problem is that fluoroquinolones are often inappropriately prescribed. Instead of being reserved for use against serious, perhaps life-threatening bacterial infections like hospital-acquired pneumonia, these antibiotics are frequently prescribed for sinusitis, bronchitis, earaches and other ailments that may resolve on their own or can be treated with less potent drugs or nondrug remedies — or are caused by viruses, which are not susceptible to antibiotics.

In an interview, Mahyar Etminan, a pharmacological epidemiologist at the University of British Columbia, said the drugs were overused “by lazy doctors who are trying to kill a fly with an automatic weapon.”

Dr. Etminan directed a study published in April in The Journal of the American Medical Association showing that the risk of suffering a potentially blinding retinal detachment was nearly fivefold higher among current users of fluoroquinolones, compared with nonusers. In another study submitted for publication, he documented a significantly increased risk of acute kidney failure among users of these drugs.

The conditions Dr. Etminan has studied are relatively easy to research because they result in hospitalizations with diagnoses that are computerized and tracked in databases. Far more challenging to study are the array of diffuse, confusing symptoms suffered by fluoroquinolone users like Lloyd Balch, a 33-year-old Manhattan resident and Web site manager for City College of New York.

In an interview, Mr. Balch said he was healthy until April 20, when a fever and cough prompted him to see a doctor. Nothing was heard through a stethoscope, but a chest X-ray indicated a mild case of pneumonia, and he was given Levaquin. Although he had heard of problems with Levaquin and asked the doctor if he might take a different antibiotic, he was told Levaquin was the drug he needed.

After just one dose, he developed widespread pain and weakness. He called to report this reaction, but was told to take the next dose. But the next pill, he said, “eviscerated” him, causing pain in all his joints and vision problems.

Debilitating Side Effects

In addition to being unable to walk uphill, climb stairs or see clearly, his symptoms included dry eyes, mouth and skin; ringing in his ears; delayed urination; uncontrollable shaking; burning pain in his eyes and feet; occasional tingling in his hands and feet; heart palpitations; and muscle spasms in his back and around his eyes. Though Mr. Balch’s reaction is unusual, doctors who have studied the side effects of fluoroquinolones say others have suffered similar symptoms.

Three and a half months after he took that second pill, these symptoms persist, and none of the many doctors of different specialties he has consulted has been able to help. Mr. Balch is now working with a physical therapist, but in a phone consultation with Dr. David Flockhart, an expert in fluoroquinolone side effects at the Indiana University School of Medicine, he was told it could take a year for his symptoms to resolve, if they ever do disappear completely.

Guidelines by the American Thoracic Society state that fluoroquinolones should not be used as a first-line treatment for community-acquired pneumonia; it recommends that doxycycline or a macrolide be tried first. Mr. Balch didn’t know this, or he might have fought harder to get a different antibiotic.

Adverse reactions to fluoroquinolones may occur almost anywhere in the body. In addition to occasional unwanted effects on the musculoskeletal, visual and renal systems, the drugs in rare cases can seriously injure the central nervous system (causing “brain fog,” depression, hallucinations and psychotic reactions), the heart, liver, skin (painful, disfiguring rashes and phototoxicity), the gastrointestinal system (nausea and diarrhea), hearing and blood sugar metabolism.

The rising use of these potent drugs has also been blamed for increases in two very serious, hard-to-treat infections: antibiotic-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (known as MRSA) and severe diarrhea caused by Clostridium difficile. One study found that fluoroquinolones were responsible for 55 percent of C. difficile infections at one hospital in Quebec.

Fluoroquinolones carry a “black box” warning mandated by the Food and Drug Administration that tells doctors of the link to tendinitis and tendon rupture and, more recently, about the drugs’ ability to block neuromuscular activity. But consumers don’t see these highlighted alerts, and patients are rarely informed of the risks by prescribing doctors. Mr. Balch said he was never told about the black-box warnings.

Lack of Long-Term Studies

No one knows how often serious adverse reactions occur. The F.D.A.’s reporting system for adverse effects is believed to capture only about 10 percent of them. Complicating the problem is that, unlike retinal detachments that were linked only to current or very recent use of a fluoroquinolone, the drugs’ adverse effects on other systems can show up weeks or months after the treatment ends; in such cases, patients’ symptoms may never be associated with prior fluoroquinolone therapy.

No long-term studies have been done among former users of these antibiotics. Fibromyalgia-like symptoms have been associated with fluoroquinolones, and some experts suggest that some cases of fibromyalgia may result from treatment with a fluoroquinolone.

A half-dozen fluoroquinolones have been taken off the market because of unjustifiable risks of adverse effects. Those that remain are undeniably important drugs, when used appropriately. But doctors at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have expressed concern that too often fluoroquinolones are prescribed unnecessarily as a “one size fits all” remedy without considering their suitability for different patients.

Experts caution against giving these drugs to certain patients who face higher than average risks of bad reactions — children under age 18, adults over 60, and pregnant and nursing women — unless there is no effective alternative. The risk of adverse effects is also higher among people with liver disease and those taking corticosteroids or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

When an antibiotic is prescribed, it is wise to ask what the drug is and whether it is necessary, what side effects to be alert for, whether there are effective alternatives, when to expect the diagnosed condition to resolve, and when to call if something unexpected happens or recovery seems delayed.

At the same time, when an antibiotic is appropriately prescribed, it is extremely important to take the full prescription as directed and not to stop treatment when the patient simply begins to feel better.

A version of this article appeared in print on 09/11/2012, on page D7 of the NewYork edition with the headline: A Cure That Can Be Worse Than the Illness.

Cipro Encouraged Me to Have a Garden!

Two years ago I was poisoned by an antibiotic called Cipro. I took the antibiotic for a bladder infection, and with two days of taking Cipro, I was nearly crippled. The pain in the balls of my feet was excruciating and my hips, knees and ankles felt as though they would explode if I bent them. MY skin felt as if it was on fire, and my brain was so fogged that I could not even think.

I immediately sought medical advice, only to be told over and over again, that there was nothing that they could do for me, and they had no idea how long these “side effects” would last’ possibly forever. Two years ago dancing was my profession and my passion. After being poisoned by Cipro, walking was so painful that dancing was out of the question.

A dancing friend of mine, also a chiropractor and kinesiologist, offered me some advice in trying to rid my body of the dangerous floroquinolone, as well as advice on what to take and eat to help my body to repair the damage done by the antibiotic. After several months, I was able to get around better, and learn to dance on my heels. The hardest hit area for me was the balls of my feet. For eighteen months, I wore braces on my ankles and knees and walked and dance very carefully.

Since that time, I have been very mindful of what I eat and have even taken to growing, canning and freezing my own fruits and vegetables. Gusseted poly bags have been a great addition to my freezing practices because they are able to stand up, and stay open all on their own. I also like the Ball canning jars. Having home grown vegetable and fruit all year long is not only a treat, but a very healthy alternative to eating over processed food that is full of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers.

I also am eating eggs from chickens that belong to a friend; I can hardly believe how yellow the yolks are. Now, if I can only bring myself to raising my own poultry, meat and fish, you could call me a “real” farm girl!

Beware of the Antibiotic Cipro!

I am writing this article based on my own personal experience. I am hoping to bring awareness of the side effects of the antibiotic Cipro or Ciprofloxin. I understand that Levoquin and Avelox have the same side effects.

I will preface this article with the knowledge that I have been dancing regularly, 4-5 times a week for 3 years and that dancing is not a new activity for me.

On April 16th, 2010 I started taking Cipro for a bladder infection. On April 17th, 2010 we taught a 4 1/2 hour dance workshop, something we do every other weekend. On April 18th, 2010 I could barely walk. Upon getting out of bed, my feet felt as though I were walking on razor blades and the joints, muscles and tendon in my legs were in excruciating pain. As the day progressed, the pain remained and I was puzzled as to how the workshop could possibly be responsible for my inability to walk. I continued taking Cipro.
On April 19th, 2010 I awoke with the same pain, plus additional hip pain. I just kept thinking that something was really odd and that this leg pain could not possibly be from dancing. That evening I started getting sharp, stabbing pains in my left leg. I began to wonder if I could possibly have a blood clot, so I went to the internet to look up the side effects of Cipro. While I was pleased to realize I didn't have a blood clot, I was appalled that my muscle, joint and tendon pain was a side effect of Cipro. I stopped taking the drug immediately and contacted my doctor and two pharmacists.

My doctor was shocked and claims he has never seen this side effect and offers no management, treatment or prognosis. The pharmacists are more aware but have a "it might get better, it might not " attitude. After hours of research I have found that Cipro has landed many in wheelchairs and walking with canes. It can hit your body while taking it or months later. For some it seems that the side effects reverse themselves as soon as the medication is out of their bodies, for others the suffering lingers for years. You can develop symptoms months after you stop taking the drug. If you have or have had unexplained muscle, joint and tendon pain, or ruptured tendons or been diagnosed with fibromyalgia or rheumatoid arthritis and have taken Cipro, be sure to alert your Dr. and never take it again.

I believe that the percentage of incidences that the drug companies report are way understated. It occurred to me, after this episode, that one year ago I suffered from a popped tendon in my right foot. It took 7 months for that injury to heal. I confirmed the dates and sure enough, I was on Cipro when the injury occurred. I never put 2 and 2 together to make the correlation of the injury as a side effect to the antibiotic. I know know differently and have reported my side effects to the drug manufacturer and the FDA.

Floroquinolones Destroyed My Mother's Life!

My Beautiful Mother!

While recently reviewing my mother’s medical history, due to the ulcers on her leg, I am 100% convinced that floroquinlones have destroyed the past eighteen years of her life. Eighteen years ago my mother suffered from a torn rotator cuff. I thought that it was odd that she had a torn rotator cuff since she did not ever “overuse” her shoulders. She did not golf; play tennis or regularly life heavy objects. She was fit and in great shape. I chalked it up to a fluke. Shortly after she had surgery on her right shoulder, her left rotator cuff tore requiring a second surgery.

No one found this odd except for me. When she returned twice more for additional tears in each of her rotator cuffs, I was appalled at the lack of interest as to “why” my mother suffered from four torn rotator cuffs, which required surgery. I had no idea “why” it happened; I just knew that it was not “normal” and that there must be a “reason.”

As my mother’s shoulders continued to heal, she began to suffer from an all over the body pain and achiness that would not subside and could not be controlled with medication. She saw doctor after doctor and they treated her with many drugs including mass doses of cortisone. She was monitored closely while on the cortisone (prednisone) and was eventually weaned from mass doses, to a therapeutic dose after suffering from the side effects from the mass amounts of cortisone that she had been given.

Since she was in such chronic and excruciating pain, the doctors continued to try medications and remedies, including intravenous Remicade (Humira). She was “loosely diagnosed with first, Fibromyalgia and them poly-myalgia-rheumatic. Yes, they were convinced that she had an auto-immune disease and Rheumatic Arthritis. She was often in so much pain that I would hear here crying and chanting, in private, praying for relief from the pain.

I remember her trying to describe the pain, in her feet, to me. She said that they felt as though they were on fire; like she was walking on broken glass; that even the air hurt her feet so badly that she could hardly breathe. It wasn’t until I suffered the same pain in my feet ,that I realized that what she was describing was floroquinolone poisoning.

I immediately asked her if she had taken Cipro; of course she had, many, many times; and Levaquinn and Avelox, for years and years. I expressed my theory and of course was met with doubt. She cannot even fathom that it is possible that her entire condition was not only caused by floroquinolones, but exasperated by the continual usage of them, combined with her cortisone treatment.

It was the ulcers on leg that led me to her medical records and the confirmation that she has been prescribed all of these antibiotics throughout this slow and painful destruction of her life. I am 100% convinced that this has been the cause of all of her pain and suffering. I literally took 6 bottles of Levaquinn out of her medicine cabinet the last time that I was there. I have called her doctor and told him of my suspicions. After almost causing her death, from a near heart attack while on Avelox, they have finally listed floroquinolones as an “allergy” on her chart.

I do not know how I will ever “prove” all of this, but what I do know, is that it is a crime that not once, has a medical professional ever even considered that her rapid and painful deterioration might have been caused by one of their “cures.” The over use of these drugs, is criminal.

I was very lucky that it only took me one ruptured tendon in my foot and 15 months of rehabilitation from crippling pain to realize that my conditions were due to Cipro, so fortunately I will not suffer her fate. I am so infuriated that it has stolen my mother's life and I shall continue with my crusade to warn others. 

The World Wide Web!

Looking for a job today is certainly very different than it was when I was growing up. When I was young, the first place you looked for a job was either in the window of the place of employment or the newspaper.

Now to find a Technical Writer Jobs you can just simply fire up your iphone or computer and search the world wide web. Twenty years ago, if you had told me that this would have been a possibility, I would have told you that you were nuts!

Helpful Suggestions Post Cipro Poisoning

Yesterday I saw Dr Leland Carrol, he is a chiropractic Kinesiologist He has studied extensively to learn alternative healing techniques to help patients with their individual needs. My only and I say that in jest, problems are muscle, joint and tendon pain in my legs.

I will share the regimen that he has suggested to me. I am NOT a doctor, these are just what I am trying. A lot of what I will be eating and taking are to remove as much as the toxin as I can. He suggested that I eat 1 cup of mixed brussel sprouts and broccoli and 1 whole red beet everyday. These should be steamed and the red beet should be steamed whole. It is the "red" in the beet that is supposed to thin the bile from the liver that can become thicker after Cipro poisoning.

In addition to those veggies I am "drinking" Green Vibrance. It has 25 billion probiotics per dose. It is also used for detoxification.

I am taking 3-4 Magnesium Malate (1250mg) per day, 2000mg of Vitamin C per day, 1 tablet 4 times a day on an empty stomach (be sure to eventually wean yourself down to a normal dose if you take this much Vitamin C). Bromelain, 2 capsules, 4 times a day between meals. Fibrozym, 3 tablets in the morning. Vitamin D and Calcium. These are all in addition to my "regular" everyday vitamins!

By the time I am through sucking down all of these pills and eating those veggies, I think I might just explode!

He also suggested epsom salt baths and light massage. Movement , especially in a pool, and to not push to the point of damage. He also pressed on tendon connections and did something like spreading the muscle tissue. None of this was painful.

Today is day 12, since the side effects began. Last night was the first night that I did not wake up in the middle of the night an hour or two BEFORE I could take Ibuprofen. I actually woke up one hour AFTER I was supposed to take it. I am taking 600mg every 6 hours. My "other" Dr. recommended that as it IS an anti-inflammatory. It helps me tremendously. I seem to be moving a bit faster, at the moment! Hoping for a good day.

Dancers': Beware of the Antibiotic Cipro

I am writing this article based on my own personal experience. I am hoping to bring awareness of the side effects of the antibiotic Cipro or Ciprofloxin. I understand that Levoquin and Avelox have the same side effects.

I will preface this article with the knowledge that I have been dancing regularly, 4-5 times a week for 3 years and that dancing is not a new activity for me.

On April 16th, 2010 I started taking Cipro for a bladder infection. On April 17th, 2010 we taught a 4 1/2 hour dance workshop, something we do every other weekend. On April 18th, 2010 I could barely walk. Upon getting out of bed, my feet felt as though I were walking on razor blades and the joints, muscles and tendon in my legs were in excruciating pain. As the day progressed, the pain remained and I was puzzled as to how the workshop could possibly be responsible for my inability to walk. I continued taking Cipro.
On April 19th, 2010 I awoke with the same pain, plus additional hip pain. I just kept thinking that something was really odd and that this leg pain could not possibly be from dancing. That evening I started getting sharp, stabbing pains in my left leg. I began to wonder if I could possibly have a blood clot, so I went to the internet to look up the side effects of Cipro. While I was pleased to realize I didn't have a blood clot, I was appalled that my muscle, joint and tendon pain was a side effect of Cipro. I stopped taking the drug immediately and contacted my doctor and two pharmacists.

My doctor was shocked and claims he has never seen this side effect and offers no management, treatment or prognosis. The pharmacists are more aware but have a "it might get better, it might not " attitude. After hours of research I have found that Cipro has landed many in wheelchairs and walking with canes. It can hit your body while taking it or months later. For some it seems that the side effects reverse themselves as soon as the medication is out of their bodies, for others the suffering lingers for years. You can develop symptoms months after you stop taking the drug. If you have or have had unexplained muscle, joint and tendon pain, or ruptured tendons or been diagnosed with fibromyalgia or rheumatoid arthritis and have taken Cipro, be sure to alert your Dr. and never take it again.

I believe that the percentage of incidences that the drug companies report are way understated. It occurred to me, after this episode, that one year ago I suffered from a popped tendon in my right foot. It took 7 months for that injury to heal. I confirmed the dates and sure enough, I was on Cipro when the injury occurred. I never put 2 and 2 together to make the correlation of the injury as a side effect to the antibiotic. I know know differently and have reported my side effects to the drug manufacturer and the FDA.

Health Fairs

Recently I was dropping my son off at the mall when I noticed a sign for a Health Fair. Being that I have interest in the health industry as a whole, for a whole list of different reasons, I decided to go in and check it out. What I found were a bazillion different vendors; all peddling their wares. Of course, “their” wares were all better than their neighbors’.

My question to all of the different vendors is, “How do I know that your product really is better than the one further down the aisle?” I suppose that anytime that you visit a health fair, you can expect to be inundated with information and advice. My advice to you is to take information only on the products that you truly are interested in. Once you get home, review the information promptly; as if you do not, it will likely end up in that pile. You know the pile; it’s the one where we all put the “stuff” that we intend to get to “someday.” I hate that pile and I hate the clutter. I am relatively certain that I have some pretty great information in that pile, but just looking at it is so overwhelming that I rarely get to it.

Anyway, the health fair was interesting and since I refrained from dragging home a whole bunch of literature, I will consider it a success!

Healthy Living is a Plus!

When you live in chronic pain you may often be viewed as a whiner, complainer, or hypochondriac. Having lived through the excruciating pain caused by Cipro, I can totally relate with people that have and live with chronic pain. Being sympathetic to a person with intangible pain can often be a difficult task for family members, friends and co-workers. They seem to think if they cannot see it, then it must not hurt. Life for the person in chronic pain is not only difficult from the physical aspect, but the emotional one as well. Having your life stolen from you is frightening, devastating and frustrating. There are many reasons that people live in chronic pain, mine just happened to result from taking an antibiotic.

I think that regardless of the reason, one of the best things that you can do for yourself is to take care of yourself. Devise a health plan and stick to it. Exercise as much as you possibly can, eat well, get plenty of rest. Healthy living will probably not cure your pain, but it will help to prevent other health issues that may arise from an unhealthy lifestyle. There are many things that we all can do to improve our overall health.

Healthy living literally means taking care of yourself; body, mind and spirit. The last thing that any of us that live in chronic pain needs is to have any other health issue crop up and cause additional health issues.

Pain Killers Due To Cipro Side Effects

If it were only this simple!

For many of us that have been adversely affected by the side effects of a floroquinolone, (Cipro, Avelox or Levaquin), the muscle, joint and tendon pain can often lead to drug abuse. Drug abuse can occur in many different ways; one can take too many over the counter or prescription pain relievers or people in constant chronic pain may even turn to other illegal substances; desperately seeking relief. Living in so much pain that every step you take brings you to tears is physically and emotionally draining.

I remember the beginning of my second Cipro poisoning; the pain in my feet alone made me wish that I would just die. I did not want to live if I had to suffer that pain every day. Without any advice from medical doctors and no information as to whether or not the pain would ever go away, I was devastated and desperate. I was definitely on the borderline of over using Ibuprofen. I was taking 800 mg every six hours, around the clock. Occasionally, I just could not hold out and took them before the six hour mark approached. This over the counter medication has a plethora of its own side effects and I if am lucky I have not caused any permanent damage to any of my organs.

I can understand how chronic pain can often lead to drug abuse; whether it is an illegal substance or a prescribed medication, doesn’t really matter. Fortunately for me, my pain did begin to subside after several months, allowing me to see a small light, at the end of a very long tunnel, as opposed to the inside of a drug abuse rehab center. I am sure that many, many desperate people turn to addictive pain killers when they are faced with extreme, chronic pain, the question is if they are addicted to pain killers, how will they know if their pain has subsided and will they need drug abuse rehab?

What an utter and complete mess a federally approved antibiotic can cause.

Collagen And Cell Extracts; Could They Be An Answer To Our Prayers?

I believe my dear mothers' downward spiral began with Cipro!

There has been quite a lot of controversy over exactly just what Cipro does to damage a body’s muscles, joints and tendons. There seems to be even less known about what can be done to reverse the damage. I believe that all involved agree that floroquinolones can damage and destroy collagen. I also believe that Cipro may destroy the sheath that surrounds your muscles and tendons.

 I wholeheartedly believe that Cipro caused the padding on the balls of my feet to completely disintegrate and that at one time, I was literally walking with the bones of my feet directly against the floor. It was extremely painful to take even one step. After taking 2000 mg of Vitamin C every day for four to five months, I began to notice some improvement.  I understand that Vitamin C can promote collagen production and I often wonder if that has been what has helped to restore at least some of the padding on the balls of my feet.

While searching for more information on collagen production, I ran across this site that produces cell extract for a variety of uses. I have heard the term cell extract in the past, relating to laboratories actually growing skin from cells, to use on patients with extreme burns or other injuries. I do not know their effectiveness in rejuvenating the collagen, inside of our bodies, due to the damage sustained by the side effects of floroquinolones, but I certainly wish that someone would begin to research this avenue since no one in the medical field seems to have any suggestions, remedies or protocol on just how to handle the thousands of us that have been either permanently or temporarily crippled by this class of antibiotics.

Maybe someday, someone will have an answer for all of us that have been inadvertently damaged by antibiotics that are labeled as “not a first drug of choice”: oddly enough the two times that I was prescribed Cipro, it was not only a first drug of choice, it was the only choice given to me. I was not warned of the damaging side effects, despite the current black box warning attached to Cipro. Come on medical professionals, start abiding by the guidelines that have been given to you and stop handing out Cipro, Avelox and Levaquinn as though they were candy.

Cipro Damaged; Good Nutrition Cannot Hurt

Good nutrition is extremely important for those of us that have been “floxed,” “poisoned’” or whatever other term that the medical doctors choose to apply to our side effects from floroquinolones. While I am not very pleased with the fact that Cipro has caused me great pain for a total of 26 months, I DO count my blessings that I have seen quite an improvement over the past few months and am now able to walk and dance with much less pain. I know that there are others out there that are much less fortunate.

I do attribute a portion of my recovery upon the many suggestions from my chiropractor. He recommended probiotics and a plethora of supplements to me shortly after I was floxed. I am trying to use more organic products and am continually trying to eat a well-balanced diet while also supplementing the vitamins and minerals that may help me to regain what the Cipro destroyed.

I try to stay hydrated and nourished while traveling and competing at dance events. I always have a bottle of water, with minerals, and a protein bar with me. I am not sure whether the exercise, nutrition or just my plain old stubbornness has gotten me as far as I am in the healing process, but whatever it is, I am grateful to be walking again. Hobbling around like a 95 year old woman in excruciating pain is no fun. It is a crime that so many people suffer from the side effects of these antibiotics.  

Living with Chronic Pain, Sucks!

Living with chronic pain does not only affect your body where the pain is located, it affects you entire life and well-being. It causes you to be chronically fatigued and often short tempered. It affects your ability to think clearly and to stay on task. Chronic pain robs your quality of life and can make you wonder whether or not your life is worth living.

I often wonder if a Pain Care Center, such as Pain Management NJ, would be able to help those of us that have been poisoned by a floroquinolone. Cipro, Levaquinn and Avelox have left thousands of people in constant chronic pain. If Pain Management NJ were able to help those of us in pain through their therapeutic treatment options, they could educate others on their methods thus helping the thousands of us that suffer from the muscle, joint and tendon pain that we all live with on a daily basis.

Pain Management NJ has helped many patients with neck and back pain due to injuries resulting from injury, deformity or degenerative conditions. Do you suppose that our muscle, joint and tendon pain and ruptures would be classified under the “degenerative conditions” category? Or, do you suppose that our pain is simply categorized as “other” with no help at all? I would like to hope that someday, someone, somewhere will have an answer or regime that will help all of us to regain our previously healthy lives.

It truly amazes and disgusts me that taking an antibiotic for such a short period of time (3 days) can have such a long term effect on your body. It has now been 7 months since I was floxed by Cipro and I can honestly say that I am doing much better, however the continual up and down of the muscle and tendon inflammation and pain is really depressing.

As a competing dancer the foot issues are the most troublesome. Every time that I feel as though I am able to actually "Dance" I suffer for it for days. The balls of my feet and my toes still haven't recovered from my Trick or Treating escapade and I have another competition in three weeks! The big toe on my right foot just isn't happy. I felt a slight pop underneath it last night while I was dancing. Wonder how long this will last.

Ugh, how do you send your body from foot to foot when it is difficult to just put your foot on the floor and land on it.

My question and concern is: Just how far can I push myself through the pain and am I just how much risk am I taking by doing so. I can dance through the pain, but I am terrified of a tendon rupture. Damn those pharmaceutical companies that ignore all of the people that they have injured and just continue to do so!!

Cipro Victims Driven to Drastic Measures

I recently spoke to another Cipro victim; we were sharing war stories. We are both appalled at the lack of help and information that we have received from the medical profession. The most common response that both of us have received since being nearly crippled by this antibiotic is that we were unique. We were part of the extremely elite group of people that were unfortunately poisoned by an antibiotic that was designed to help us.

After sharing all of the remedies and supplements that we have tried, my friend admitted to me that he had been in so much pain that he began to use non-prescription drugs. It seemed as though the only relief that he got was from using illegal drugs. He now has a heroin addiction and will be entering drug rehabilitation. He is terrified of what will happen to him during his drug rehabilitation and wonders if he will be able to manage his chronic pain without the heroin.

I suppose that I am very fortunate in the fact that I do not have an addictive personality and that I am terrified of any and all drugs; prescribed or not. I am also fortunate that I have seen great improvement in my muscle, joint and tendon pain. The stories that I have heard since becoming aware of the dangers of florquinolones are mind boggling; these drugs have the ability to destroy lives and if they continue to prescribe them like candy then they damn well should figure out how to revers of treat the damage.

Excellent Video Exposing Floroquinolone Side Effects

Finally a report that recognizes the potential dangers of floroquinolones: Cipro, Avelox and Levaquinn  are among the front runners of this class of antibiotics. I have personally been floxed by Cipro on two occasions. I, like many, did not even have a clue the first time that i was floxed. I was given Ciprofloxcin for a urinary track infection. On the fourth day of my treatment, I ruptured a tendon in my big toe while dancing. I heard and felt the "Pop" and wondered what on earth had happened. I continued to take my prescription of Cipro without ever realizing that it was what had caused my tendon rupture.

Fast forward eleven months; my ruptured tendon was finally healed. I was "healthy" for exactly five weeks before I contracted another UTI. Once again I was prescribed Cipro. I willingly took the prescribed drug as it had alleviated my bladder infection the year before. On the second day of ingesting Cipro, upon awaking, I went to step out of bed and nearly collapsed onto the floor. My feet felt as though they were on fire and that I was stepping on broken glass. I could not bend my toes, ankles, knees or hips. The pain was excruciating and I needed assistance just to walk to the bathroom.

I did not know what was wrong with me and I continued taking the Cipro. It wasn't until the following day that the pain intensified so much that I began to wonder if the Cipro was causing blood clots or some other reason for the pain. This sent me to the internet where I saw the "Black Box Warning." I immediately stopped taking the Cipro and called my doctor.

I began a fifteen month journey full of pain and frustration. The amount of people that I have met who have suffered from the same symptoms as I have, are staggering. The most staggering realization of all is that very few of them correlated their pain and suffering to the antibiotic. It is my belief that the supposed 1% of people affected by these antibiotics is grossly under-reported simply do to the fact that affected people simply cannot even begin to imagine that they have been crippled by an antibiotic that was intended to cure them.
The below video is one of the first videos that I have seen that acknowledges the possible dangers of floroquinolones.

Watch the full episode. See more PBS NewsHour.

A Tragic Levaquin Story

In 2007 Cahan bought one share of Johnson & Johnson's (J&J) stock so that he could attend the shareholder meeting and ask shareholders to:

1. Have J&J sales representatives discontinue the incentive program for selling Levaquin and Floxin so they can tell the truth about its toxicity to doctors.
2. Add to the Levaquin label that permanent delayed reactions can lead to chronic pain and the medication must be stopped at the slightest sign of reaction.

At the end of his speech, Cahan (who was in a wheelchair) asked William Weldon, J&J CEO, to "stick with your company credo—to help people," and he was given a standing ovation. "At the reception, the chairman of their pharmaceutical group came up to me and said she wanted to help me," says Cahan. "She asked me to sign up as a research candidate and said, 'My people will get back to you; these drugs should never be used for common infections.' I wrote to the board of directors and phoned several times, but I heard nothing back from her or anyone else at J&J."

A few years ago Cahan bought more J&J shares so that he could file a Shareholder Proxy for Johnson & Johnson's next Annual Meeting for shareholders—in April 2011. "I want them to vote on forcing the company to put a warning on the Levaquin label, stating it can cause permanent tendon and nerve damage, with permanent pain, differentiating it from the type of tendon injury that can heal when brought about externally by way of a sports-type injury. Internal damage that causes this much cellular destruction is permanent, and shareholders will hopefully have a chance to force the company to be honest and upfront about this information…"

Since 1998, Cahan has suffered permanent damage from taking Floxin, Levaquin's predecessor, which he took for just 10 days. "My calves and ankles became increasingly swollen to the point where every step hurt," Cahan says. "I saw a number of doctors but no one was aware of these drug reactions, although one doctor admitted that the swelling was from Floxin and he prescribed anti-inflammatory meds. He also told me to avoid stairs.

"About a month later, both Achilles tendons ruptured—a complete fraying of the small tendons. I was on disability for about four months, at home in a cast. I returned to work on crutches but was still in so much pain that one day I broke down and cried. I didn’t want to lose my job; I didn't know what was going on with my body. I was given prednisone; I was going to physical therapy and taking lots of sick days. This went on for years. Instead of using stairs on the subway I had to take a taxi; I had to prop up my legs at meetings and during the day I had to elevate them. It was a desperate time of my life.

"The problem was that doctors didn't know how to stop the inflammatory process and pain. (Science doesn't know how this happened so there isn't a cure—so far.) Quite honestly, I became suicidal. I couldn't sleep from the pain. I got help online and found through discussion groups that many other Floxin and Levaquin users had the same problems. I met John Fratti online and then in person; like me, John also bought J&J shares and went to a shareholder meeting."

Levaquin sufferers are counting on people like Paul Cahan and John Fratti to help them take this dangerous drug off the market. And they may help others, including prescribing doctors, to only take quinolone antibiotics as a last resort.

"Once a label is changed, it opens up the statute of limitations," adds Cahan. "People who have fallen through the cracks like me could be eligible for compensation. If [the drug manufacturers] have to change the label, thousands and thousands of injured people will then be able to join a class action lawsuit."

Levaquin Legal Help

If you or a loved one have suffered losses in this case, please click the link below and your complaint will be sent to a drugs & medical lawyer who may evaluate your Levaquin claim at no cost or obligation. [Click here for a free lawsuit evaluation]

I Am Smiling Again; Foot Pain is to a Minimum

I am amazed at the length of time that it has taken me to recover from the muscle, joint and tendon pain that occurred after I took the antibiotic Cipro. Fifteen months have gone by, but now I am smiling again. A friend of mine from Texas recently came for a visit. I knew that something about her had changed, but I just couldn’t quite put my finger on it. Finally, I just had to ask her what was different. She told me that she had taken a trip into the San Antonio Texas Dentist office to have her teeth cleaned. After seeing several patients walk in and out of the office with beautiful smiles, she asked her dentist how all of those people had such beautiful smiles. He told her that they had veneers on their teeth. Before leaving that day, she made another appointment to have veneers put on her teeth. I must admit that the change in her appearance is staggering; her smile is dazzling!

Now that I am smiling again, I wonder if I should make a trip to the San Antonio Texas Dentist and see what he could do about my smile. I could literally kill two birds with one stone; visit my friend and come home with a whiter, brighter smile! The San Antonio Texas Dentist office offers many dental procedures; they have a full spectrum of services. They not only improve your smile, they ensure that you have healthy teeth as well.