I am normally a very physically fit specimen, working outside eve...

So sorry to hear that. It sounds like you also had an allergic reaction to the medication. I took Levaquin in April and I thought I was improving. Now--in July--I still have terrible side effects, including that I cannot walk when I get out of bed. My lower legs are extremely stiff and painful. It gets better after 15-20 minutes, but this is terrible. I'm also NOT litigious, but I wish I could be part of a lawsuit also. This medication is not safe. I hate to think that people out there are going to start taking it now and they have no way of knowing the potential damage. Let's hope we get better.

Chris, I have had similar symptoms. I started having a sore and swollen knees and can hardly walk up and down stairs. The pain in excrutating at night. The night sweatsa and nightmares arwe awful. I fell like and old women in a matter of two weeks. Hopefully my infection in the kidneys is gone but now I feel like hell!! Today was my last day on Levaquin so jopefully it will get better.

Chris, I know what you"re going through. I"ve been on it for two weeks and can hardly walk now. The pain at night is unbelieveable. The nightmares too. But mostly the excrutating pain in my bones. Marsh

Chris,
I think we should complain to BIG PHARMA about what these drugs do to innocent people. I was on 750mg of Levaquin for 5 days, and felt like a freight train hit me after the 5 days were over. And I'm just like you - at the top of fitness in the prime of my life. It really destroys the life-force that's inside of you and makes you feel pathetic. In the future, I think all of us should look to natural and alternative medicine when we need help. To recover from Levaquin, I took lots of garlic, a nice, strong antioxidant with Grape Seed Extract (a known natural antibiotic), and also took probiotics and ate high-biotic yogurt. Get yourself familiar with alternative medicine and high quality supplements by going to a REAL health food store, so that the next time your body is attacked by anything, you can give it high quality immune-boosting supplements that will build you up instead of tear you down.

I can understand .. I started this medication 5 days ago. By day 2 I started having terrible shoulder and neck pain and I could not sleep .. by day 3 I called the pharmacist and asked if its the Levaquin. They did not seem alarmed and told me to take a benadryl to help sleep. By day 4 I was in the emergency deparment because I woke up with the right side of my face droping and my eylid hanging. I thought I was having a stroke! I am a nurse .. so I know these things. The ED physician thinks it may be Bells Palsy.. I am telling you I think its the Levaquin and I am so upset, I am a preatty health active women and now I feel and look like old lady. Its only been a few days but I pray this gets better.. I am in for a law suit if this does not get better . I am sitting here crying

I had a severe intestinal infection in July and was hospitalized for intravenous antibiotics. They have me Cipro and Levaquin. While in the hospital, my knees starting swelling. I thought it was my arthritis which hadn't bothered me in over 10 years. My arm that the IV was in started swelling and itching. The nurse said I was having a reaction to the Levaquin and stopped it immediately. It is now October and my knees are still swollen like melons and very hard to bend. Some days I can hardly walk.
I have seen an orthopedic doctor and she drained the fluid and sent me to an internist. The internist ran all kinds of tests and xrays. No rheumatoid arthritis was found. She was suspecting the intestinal infection had something to do with it, but nothing has been determined. I got relief when she put me on Prednisone, but it made me feel so bad and tired. As soon as I came off of the Prednisone, the swelling would come back. I am so discouraged that they can't tell me what is causing this and fix it! I am looking for any ideas or advise.

Chris-

I know this is quite a time after your post, about the side effects of Levaquin, but I have just recently experienced mine and was looking on the internet to see if I could figure out if I will ever be back to normal again. I was given Levaquin for bronchitis. I took one dose and that night starting hallucinating, my husband was really scared. The next morning I could hardly swallow my own saliva. I attributed these symptoms to fever and my bronchitis getting worse, before it got better. I took another pill that day and by that night I had developed a rash on my stomach, arms and the top of my legs. I stopped the medication, went back to the doctor who informed me that I had a "severe allergic reaction" to the Levaquin, prescribed prednisone and Zyrtec. To make a long story short after two rounds of prednisone and another prescription for itching, it has been 8 weeks, the rash is now all over my stomach, back legs, arms chest and neck and seems to be getting worse each day. I have been to the allergist who insists it needs to work its way out of my system and if it continues for the next two weeks I need to go to a dermatologist. I have read some scary things about this medication and cannot for the life of me believe that they would keep this medication on the market. If you get this message, please let me know if you are planning any further action as I am interested in getting this medication off the market...

Deb