I was given Levaquin on February 14, 2001 for a sinus infection. ...

I was given Levaquin on February 14, 2001 for a sinus infection. I had taken a Claritin ready tab before I took the Levaquin. Within 5 minutes of taking Levaquin, I literally felt as if ants were crawling all over the inside of my skin. I was in the bathroom when this happened and I remember that I started to sneeze non-stop. It got to the point that every time I sneezed, I could feel my throat closing and blood would come out of my nose. I knew I was in trouble. I didn't have time to wait for an ambulance and my mom, who has epilepsy and doesn't drive went with me to the ER. By the time I got there, 5 min drive away from my house, I was covered in huge hives. My hands, feet and face were also blue and I couldn't speak! I had gotten there just in time. I got 3 shots of antihistamine (benadryl) and 3 of hydro cortisone. My doctor was in disbelief when I went to see him the next day to tell him what had happened. Apparently my reaction was "rare", but by the other stories on this page-I don't think it is. It was a horrible experience going into Anaphylaxis shock. I now watch everything that is an RX and ask a lot of questions. I found out a few years later that I was also allergic to sulfa based drugs, almost the same reaction (not as severe) but I was ready and I knew what to do. Thank God for Benadryl!!!