AIBU to stop taking my antibiotics early?

[namechangepig]

Yesterday I was prescribed Clarithromycin for a lingering bacterial chest infection, but I've only taken three pills so far (twice a day), and I feel horrible.

Yesterday I had painful stomach cramps and was incredibly nauseous so I could barely keep any food down. Today I haven't even managed to get out of bed/stay awake! I feel so overwhelmingly exhausted, and every time I try to stand up I get dizzy. My brain is just so foggy, I can't think straight, let alone drive or get any work done. I feel worse now than when I was just dealing with the infection!

Has anyone taken clarithromycin before? Is this normal?!

I know it's never a good idea to stop taking antibiotics partway through a course, but I'm really considering just stopping. I simply don't have the time to be sleeping 13 hours every day!!!

Try and speak to your g.p. to see if there's an alternative, are you allergic to penicillin. Some antibiotics make people feel awful but you need the doctor to discuss this with you.

you need to speak to your gp for something else not just stop

Have you checked the leaflet in the box, are they side effects?
I'd see your gp for a different antibiotic instead of just stopping though

As the others have said don't just stop without talking to your gp, that can lead to antibiotic resistance. Sounds like they don't sit well with you though so will probably be prescribed something else.

I felt like that on Tetracycline, Clarythemycin gives me hives. Speak to your doctor but i would say you probably need to stop taking it but will need something else

the ~mycin family make me feel like this, which is a shame cos I'm allergic to most other antibiotics

Consequently I've only taken antibiotics 3 times in the last 30 years. Last time was a few years ago and it was preferable to me to just deal with the infection myself so I stopped the course

Are you taking it with food but no dairy? Are you taking it with lots of water? I would try the food and water (but again no diary) and see if it helps. In the meantime, check with GP for an alternative med but just giving up the antibiotics isn't usually a good idea.

The horrible chest infections I'm prone to give me dizzyness & nausea at their peak, so are you sure it's the tablets? If you're sure it is, what anti b's have you had before for any illness that were ok, can ring surgery & explain & ask you get those instead?

Thanks everyone.

They are listed as fairly common side effects on the leaflet, which is why I wasn't thinking of contacting my GP - I assumed because they're not necessarily unusual or dangerous side effects, they wouldn't be that bothered.

THEsonofaBITCH Interesting- I have been eating dairy. How does this affect it? It didn't say anything about avoiding certain foods in the leaflet

Namechangepig I had a very similar reaction with Clarythramycin and ended up going to the emergency docs when i started hallucinating! They gave me a gastroresistant erythramycin instead and that worked to clear up the infection with no side effects

In some people the dairy and medicine combination can cause worse side-effects. It might not help but if you can avoid dairy one hour before and one hour after it might help, hopefully worth a try, Best of luck, I hate being ill!

Microbiologist here- please don’t stop taking your antibiotics early you run the risk of the infection coming straight back and being resistant to antibiotic treatment.

Sympathies, that antibiotic does that to me too, combined with gastritis, vertigo and horrific motion sickness.

I simply could not keep suffering like that despite understanding antibiotic resistance so I stopped taking them, the side effects were worse than the ear infection!

I suggest asking GP for an alternative.