Talk me down please - amoxicillin side effects tmi?

[AlpacaMeBags]

I've had an infected wisdom tooth (leaking pus) since last Tuesday. Dentist wouldn't do anything because I'm breastfeeding so gave me an appointment for 3 weeks time. Today my GP gave me an amoxicillin prescription. 3 500mg for 5 days.

I've taken 2 so far & woke up about an hour ago feeling horrendous. Threw up what felt like everything in me & diarrhoea. I'm now back in bed feeling sick and shivering.

I know realistically it's amoxicillin side effects but I've convinced myself it's sepsis. Please talk me down!

That sounds awful, you poor thing. Hopefully it is just a side effect but please ring 111 and let them decide

Please call 111 and mention sepsis. I think you're not wrong to be thinking about it. Hope you feel better soon!

I have this same reaction to amoxicillin. They will tell you to stop and it’ll be fine. Mine usually starts after second dose too - delay the next dose.

they will tell you to stop and you’ll have to go somewhere and collect a different antibiotic tmw x

Have you been dizzy or seeing double?

No, no dizziness or seeing double.

How long does it usually take to start feeling better? I've been throwing up pretty much constantly!

I’ve had this with Amoxicillin, diarrhoea especially, it actually says it’s a side affect on the leaflet.
if you took them in an empty stomach that’s probably why
its more tolerant taking with food and a full glass of water

gp will prescribe another

If you're constantly throwing up, it might mean the antibiotics aren't being sufficiently absorbed into your system so you need the contact the doctor anyway. Have you been taking it with some food?

It sounds like quite a severe reaction though. DH is dentist and prescribes amoxicillin regularly. Most patients only get a bit of diarrhea on 1000mg. I didn't have any side effects when taking it after a wisdom tooth removal.

Also, why would dentist refuse to treat you due to breastfeeding?? Dental xrays and extractions have no effect on BF.

Took the 2nd one on an empty stomach. Hurt too much to eat - definitely regretting that now!

I didn't take my 2nd one with anything as it was too painful to eat.

I've definitely had amoxicillin before but never had that reaction.

She said she couldn't give my antibiotics due to me breastfeeding. The gum was really swollen (only a tiny bit of tooth poking out) so she wanted to wait until the infection cleared before doing anything. I got a prescription for corsodyl instead.

Have you tried swilling with warm salt water - holding it in your mouth for a while?

I cannot tolerate amoxicillan at all. Had it once years ago - I'm fine with Penicillin though so if a doc or dentist tries to give me it I refuse and normally get Penicillin instead- amoxicillan gives me the most horrendous bad stomach/nausea. I swear it's the only thing I'm allergic to.

After stopping I feel better in maybe a day?

if I don’t stop I get dizzy, double vision and then pass out - there are no sepsis complications, it’s just one of the rarer reactions. If you get to that point they’ll rule out a whole group of antibiotics and say you probably say you cannot take those again. If you report it now they’ll call it a “sensitivity” rather than reaction.

Just to add too that a lot of people have gastro problems on antibiotics as well as thrush and these are somewhat to be expected.

I can’t believe you weren’t treated just due to BF. An infection is a serious matter. There are other ways to feed a baby but a dental infection can become very serious and treating it far trumps BF.
Hope you feel better soon.

Maybe have a read of https://www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk/factsheet/antibiotics/ so you're well informed for your next appointment.

There are of course, as poster above says, other ways to feed a baby, but there should be no need to stop breastfeeding (and in fact, stopping suddenly, especially if baby is young, carries some not insignificant risk to the mother of mastitis). There are plenty of antibiotics that are safe while breastfeeding.

Hope you feel much better soon.

Thank you for that link, it's really helpful. I've had antibiotics while breastfeeding older children but she was adamant. Actually, the one she said she would normally give me was on the link as "safe but anecdotally makes milk taste bad"

Felt a lot better about 8 hours after taking my last tablet which I think supports it being the amoxicillin. I'll phone the GP once they open & see if there's anything else I can try.

Thanks all for your help!