Happened to me too- my joints are still messed up. Really wish doctors did a better job informing you before putting you on some random antibiotic that can cause so much damage in the body.
it's 9 years later if I jog for like 1 minute (which I can't really even do) I still have severe pain in my ankles and electric shock sensations in my feet. It never went away. Permanent damage.
I used to be able to just run forever and never have any pain. Just 1 week prior to Ciprofloxacin.
It's sad to hear these stories. There seem to be so many of them online, which you can find if you search for "floxies".
I wonder when medicine will catch up and recognise the danger of fluoroquinolones. I've heard that in the US they have a "black box warning" on them. In the UK where I live the only warning you get is from your GP that you might experience tendonitis, and if that happens to stop taking the medication. No warning of life altering and crippling illness.
I was given two courses of Ofloxacin back-to-back in 2019. After four years of being the most ill I hope I will ever be, I am now finally starting to feel normal again. My symptoms were chronic fatigue, chronic gastritis, inflamed liver, liver cirrhosis, crippling anxiety (including derealisation), and inability to eat most things without horrendous bloating and brain fog.
No doctor I spoke with would correlate my illnesses with Ofloxacin, and all considered the fact that my symptoms began with my prescription as nothing more than coincidence.
My advice is never, ever take a fluoroquinolone antibiotic unless absolutely necessary. I certainly will never touch them again unless I am in mortal danger and all other options have been exhausted. They should not be handed out so carelessly.
While mine was 'mild' it was still scary as I was prescribed Cipro along with an NSAID which is contradicted in the Cipro literature.
My issues were the joint and tendon pain to an extent, but mostly neuropathy related like tingling, feeling 'static' all over, twitching muscles/spasms, etc. I also had the anxiety, derealization and digestive issues.
Eventually I started feeling better (reading recovery stories online helped) and today only have minor issues such as occasional joint pain, inability to tolerate NSAIDs, on/off digestive issues, and rarely the nerve issues. I can walk long distances, but do find exercising to be a struggle still.
Like you, I tried with a doctor once and just gave up. I have a little warning note in my wallet not to administer any FQs outside of life saving requirements.
It's sad that to this date, they are still handed out like candy for the slightest suspected infection when there are plenty of better tolerated and less dangerous alternatives.
