Doxycycline Hyclate and depression

I've been taking Doxy for only about a week now but since I've been taking it I have been experiencing a burning feeling in my stomach and extreme nausea. I came to this site today after throwing up my breakfast. Reading all these posts only to realize that Doxy not only caused my Nausea problem but problems in my relationship with my boyfriend! I had to apologize to him yesterday after blowing up (several times) crying for stupid reason and being extremely depressed. He thought I was unhappy with him and was about to break up but I told him that I thought my hormones were just not in synch. Now I realized that this drug caued my depression...eeesh! I am relieved to find out I am not crazy. I just got off the phone with him and he's relieved too. I'm going to continue my prescription because I only have a few more days left of it. I feel bad for those of you that were prescribed it for such a long period of time.

Hi I am a doctor practicing in Harley Street.

I would first like to point out how useful these message boards are. Many of these side effects such as depression were clearly NOT picked up in drug trials/testing. This is because of the very nature of the side effect, in the way that it may go unnoticed to a degree or not feel like a typical side effect one would receive from acne treatment.

However, this said i have heard of such side effects previous to this forum. Just recently i had an appointment with a young boy of 15 who reported his own noticeable mood changes after 2 months of using the drug.

I would strongly recommend any current users to visit their GP to discuss alternate options as not accepting depression as a side effect can lead to disastrous consequences.

Please get in touch if you have any more concerns - ******

Dr Mohinder F.

I have been taking 100mg Doxy twice a day for a week now. I'm really glad I found this site because I have been exhausted and I couldn't figure out why. I now know it must be the Doxy. I am taking it for an acne infection. I had been on birth control pills plus spironolactone for over two years- the combination of those two things had totally cleared my skin- so I foolishly decided to go off the birth control and spironolactone thinking my skin would be fine... well two months later my face started breaking out and by the third month I had severe cystic acne on my previously flawless skin! SO the dermatologist put me back on birth control pills and spironolactone, but since that would take at least a month to start working, he also prescribed the Doxy to clear up the infection faster. (I'm providing all of these details in case anyone else is taking Doxy for acne) so I started the Doxy and I think it was by the 4th day or so that I started feeling really tired. I've taken a nap every day for the past few days, AND slept all night. I was going to the gym daily but I could only do half my time on the treadmill last time I went and I haven't gone in two days. I'm also depressed- two days ago I cried three times that one day, yesterday I cried once. I'm just feeling sorry for myself etc- depression for no reason whatsoever. I had been feeling really good about myself all last month- going to the gym, feeling happy & high form the exercise endorphins, finally losing weight, etc, so I know there is NO reason for this tiredness and depression now other than the doxy. Just thought I'd share this because reading all of these posts has really helped me to see that it is just the drug. I will try very hard to force myself to go the gym, even if I can only do half as much. Also, my skin is SLOWLY getting better, but still have another week to go I think. The dermatologist said to take doxy for a month, but I will plan to stop as soon as my skin is clear- hopefully just one more week or two at the most. When my skin is clear I'll take it for one or two more days just to make sure the infection gets totally knocked out, but then that's it, so hopefully I can take it at least one week less than prescribed.

About feeling sick and the sore throat/ "stuck in throat" feeling- I cant stress enough to take it with lots of water and food, standing up, and don't lie down! First of all about feeling sick- I thought I was going to throw up for HOURS one time when I didn't take it with food- horrible feeling!! But this is even worse- about 15 years ago I took doxy and had to go to the hospital because I couldn't breathe, couldn't swallow, and had a splitting migraine headache etc... it had gotten stuck in my esophagus and took days for the symptoms to subside. It took the doctors forever to figure out it was the doxy. You would think I'd never take it again after that, but I know the throat symptom happened from taking it with very little water right before I lay down to go to bed, because I remembered doing that- and I woke up the next day with all of those problems. I still get a little bit of a feeling that I can't swallow as well as I normally can, but it's not that bad- sort of like when you are trying not to cry and feeling "choked up" or with "a lump in your throat"- that kind of a feeling. I think others have described this too, and it's unfortunately normal, to an extent. If it is truly annoying it might be as bad as it got for me 15 years ago, and you should see a doctor because when it was truly stuck in my throat it got worse before it got better.

Hope this helps others.

I was on Minocycline (a cousin to Doxycycline Hyclate) for years. I’m not sure how long exactly as I didn’t write down the date that I started, but I believe I have been on it around 3-4+ years. Well I went to a dermatologist and he instantly looked at the outer area of my arms (just above the elbow) and recognized I am suffering from skin discoloration, and prescribed Doxycycline, and told me to stop taking Minocycline right away. I also have this blue-gray skin discoloration on my back near my shoulder blades. I took my Minocycline for the next two weeks till the Doxycycline came in then stopped the minocycline, and started Doxycycline on Sunday. I take a 100mg pill twice daily with a meal, and thus far have had no issues. Keep in mind that I have been on Minocycline for the past 4 years or so and maybe I’ve been suffering similar side effects on that drug, thus I would be unable to see the difference with Minocycline’s cousin Doxycycline. I am pretty sure the first year or two that I was on Minocycline I was depressed (other things in life may have contributed to this depression, but now that I see all of these people saying they have had mood swings, I must state that I have had many more mood swings in recent years then I ever remember before being on these meds). I have also been extremely sleepy the past few years. I used to NEVER be able to fall asleep in public, but (I believe about the same time I started Minocycline) I gained the ability to sleep anywhere. Now I mean, anywhere. I can sleep even after I get anywhere between 6 and 14 hours of sleep. I have had approx 7-9 hours of sleep on average for the past 6 months, yet am always tired. I can’t remember the last time I haven’t been sleepy, and have had many doctor visits to attempt to discover the reason for this, but hadn’t read the side effects of Minocycline. I’ve still been pretty sleepy since Sunday, but I’ll hope that this Doxycycline isn’t as bad. Anyone else have a similar issue, where you used to be awake, but now you are always sleepy (wake up in the mornings a bit dizzy and confused), and have a hard time concentrating on one thing at a time?

I have a severe eye infection going on 2 years+ Combo dry eye,blepratis etc.my eye glands are all stopped up!
Vanderbilt Eye Dr. Put me on this for 90 days, plus antibotic drops,
warm compresses, systane drops, I'm afraid of the side effects,
been on it 1 day, 100mg twice daily. I'm on Zyban for depression,Zyrtec for allergies, BP meds so
hopefully it won't effect me. I feel hyper,but seem un-able to focus.
Any help, other people with eye problems, please e-mail me.
Thanks, Sue

I have been on Doxycycline for about a year now, and have had side effects.

I have had hot flushes, abdominal pain, chest pain, extreme mood swings, anxiety, depression which lasted a few days at a time and have felt dizzy and exhausted alot (I had never gotten these symptoms before taking the anti-biotic). I didn't get any side-effects while starting doxy, but about 2 weeks after, they began. My symptoms are becoming worse, as well as waking up with a headache for the past 2 weeks everyday. My Dr says it's perfectly fine for me to continue, but the side effects are becoming too much.

Also, i take my doxy before bed, and not necessarily after eating, and they go down perfectly fine! I have no problems with it through the night. I take it in conjunction with my pill, and all is well.

After having a break from Doxy (I've had a 2 week break about twice in the year I have been on them), I have gotten a severe flu, which has had me in bed for about 4 weeks at a time.

But my acne has cleared immensely, everyone comments how clear my skin is now. In my opinion, it's worth the side-effects. My confidence has improved so much!

wow and I thought it was just me.
I have been on doxycycline for 6 days and talk about nausea, headaches, tightness in the chest and throat I am also contending with sore limbs almost flu like, also lots pf frothy mucus and a racing heart.
I have severe reflux normally but this drug is making it a nightmare.
depression is normal for me but now I am worried that is going to get worse.

I took Adoxa for six months, and was so happy my skin cleared up, that it took me longer than it should have to come to terms with the other side effects. I took 200 mg/2x/day. I have experienced many, if not all of the things listed here: nausea, diarrhea, depression, all early on. I too stopped menstruating after several weeks of being on it. What has been more disturbing to me are the after-effects. I stopped taking Adoxa nearly two mos ago, and have been on hormones (progesterone, I am only 33) for the last several months to restore, but to no avail. I have had massive bloating, water retention, constipation, and my doctors believe they are all inter-related to taking this drug for so long. It has taken trips to countless doctors to even get to that conclusion. Unfortunately, I do not have a great solution for recovery. Has anyone else experienced this? My GI has had me taking Florastor (a probiotic, at any drugstore but you HAVE to ask for it-$40 and kept behind the counter) and thinks it will take at least another month to see benefit. My doctors said next they will treat for IBS but wanted to see if the effects would reverse themselves first.

Doxycycline has been helping with me skin BUT it is entirely not worth what it is doing to my mental health. I went to a therapist yesterday because I have been depressed and he told me that I have a Dysthymia, a mild form of depression. I have been taking Doxycycline 50 mg for 9 months. I thought my depression had to do with me being unsatisfied with my life but now I realize that I have been feeling sad and hopeless due to this drug. I have had incidences of crying for small annoyances, like missing a bus. I have stopped taking it for a day now and I can't wait until this stuff gets out of my system. I have had yeast infections as well, that were so mild that it took me this long to realize it. I only got nauseous when I took it on an empty stomach. Be aware that some people have committed suicide because they were depressed, due to the acne medication, Accutane. I’m not a doctor, but it seems that we need to evaluate the possible detrimental effects acne medications could have on us. I will now look into improving my eating habits and hopefully that will help.

I don't know if I'm taking doxycycline HYCLATE. My bottle just says doxycycline and my instruction manual tells me specifically NOT to take it with food. (To take it one hour before eating or two hours after eating.) Anyway, I didn't have any real side effects. Nothing like listed on the bottle. I just felt foggy headed and depressed and unable to focus. I thought it was just my social life and stuff. But I am taking the stuff for acne and it has only made my acne MUCH MUCH worse and although I know it's supposed to do that, it says "for two to four weeks" and I've been on it two months and it's just horrible. So I didn't fill my second prescription and have now been off it three days. I feel so much more coherent and focused and sane. I feel like ME again. UGH. I didn't even consider it would cause depression until I researched it and found these boards. It doesn't list it as a side effect ANYWHERE. Would've been nice to know!

I was so glad to see this website and see that I was not alone. My Dr told me to take the Doxy with lots of liquid (not milk) before breakfast and dinner and said I had to eat. He said under no circumstances take it before bed. So he must have known about some of the problems. But like so many others I had heartburn real bad and a couple times burped up burning liquid. I've had constant pain just below my rib cage and in my back at the same location and real bad migraines. I thought maybe it was a sinus infection and thats why I looked it up to see if this antibiotic treated sinus infections to rule this out to decide if it was migraines or not. Usually if I get a migraine its for two days max and this has been a week. Oh and I also had swollen feet, ankles, and calfs but thought I maybe just ate too much salt or something. I've been feeling miserable with all this going on. After reading these entries on this wonderful site and seeing that all these symptoms fit as side effects I stopped taking it right then and there. It's been 3 days and my head, stomach, and back are still killing me but the swelling is gone and heartburn much better. I sure hope this gets out of my system soon. No depression or mood issues here.

I was prescribed Doxycycline 100mg tablets twice a day, for 3 to 4 months, for a skin condition (perioral dermatitis) which causes small sores to form around my mouth. After my experience with this antibiotic, I'd rather have the sores!

I took the Doxycycline twice a day for the first week with no side effects. Antibiotics always cause yeast infection, so I took Diflucan before I started treatment and didn't have that problem. On the tenth day of the Doxycycline, (two days ago) I took a tablet with a little water and went right to bed. As I have read in previous posts on here, BIG MISTAKE! It felt like a giant gas bubble just below my breastbone, in my stomach area. Not too painful, but annoying. Every time I woke up during the night, that feeling was still there. The next day, the pressure was still in that area of my stomach, and it began to feel like heartburn. This feeling persisted all day, no matter what I ate or drank, which is very unusual for me as I don't usually have stomach problems. That's when I searched the web for side effects of Doxycycline, and found this website.

After reading many posts on this site, I decided it was indeed the Doxycycline, so didn't take them yesterday. However, the bloated, burning feeling was still present last night, a full 24 hours after the last capsule had been taken.

I had read someone's post about drinking apple juice, and thought it couldn't hurt...and I'll be darned if within 15 minutes that bloated, burning feeling went away, and hasn't returned. I don't understand WHY that works - unless maybe there is residual medicine sitting in the stomach which can't be digested, and the acid in the apple juice neutralizes it, but it WORKS!

I will NOT take any more Doxycycline, and will just keep the perioral dermatitis! I didn't have the depression or fatigue I see others have had, but since I was only on the meds 10 days, maybe those symptoms didn't have time to develop.

I started taking Doxycycline on Jan 22, 2007 for Lyme Disease. I usually get nausea and/or vomiting with most antibiotics so I try and take precautions. The first day I took it I had nausea, headache, dizziness and a feeling of being "out of it". by the 3rd day the dizziness and the feeling of being "out of it" was gone but after I took it in the morning within 1/2 hour I started feeling severe esophagus pain. It's not like heartburn because it's right below my rib cage. That night I started noticing feeling like there was a lump in my throat. By the next morning the lump felt like a huge knot. Now, It hurts every time I swallow, the esophagus pain never ends. Last night I spent the night crying feeling like everything was hopeless. I thought it was just because I've been dealing with the pain from Lyme and now the pain from the medicine now that I read this message board, I wonder if the hopeless, despondent feeling is from this medication. I have 2 more weeks on this I don't think I can take it that long. I haven't eaten anything because it hurts to swallow and it burns. I cry all the time. I did not read that depression was a side effect but it seems a lot of people are experiencing the exact same symptoms. I don't know how some people have been on it so long. Just the thought of taking another is depressing me beyond belief.

This is odd to read all of these. I'm getting the exact opposite effects. I have a mood disorder which consists of depression and anxiety. I take 5mg Lexapro antidepressant for this. In the past 4 days I've been taking 200mg daily Doxycycline for sinusitis and noticed that I do not feel at all sleepy by bedtime. I notice that I am energetic, a bit too much, during the day, and food does not taste and smell like it usually does. I feel a bit too energetic and even a glass of wine in the evening doesn't seem to help me relax.

I can take this medicine on an empty stomach with no problems. I just noticed that I have lots of energy. I can't complain, as I'm only going to be taking this antibiotic for ten days. I usually have to take a nap in the afternoons on many days. Not anymore.

i had to take Deoxycycline 100mg once a day for a month to treat a skin infection which improved but OMG for the first time in my life I started to feel really WORTHLESS and DEPRESSED I was SAD most of the time and i lost my intrest in the things that i ENJOYED the most , I couldn't concentrate or study and the funny thing is that i did not SUSPECT the medication at all I thouught it was just me you know but when i read what happned to you guys i knew that there must be something because Depression was not listed on Deoxycycline side effects on the FDA site

Wow. I just have to say AMEN! I have been feeling so, so low since starting Doxy. My derma wants me on 200 mg a day for the next 6 weeks! I don't think I can do it - it's completely thrown my body out of whack. And my spirit is just so low. My God what's in this stuff? It has made dramatic improvment in my acne though - so it's tempting to stay on it and milk the benefits for as long as I can. Interesting I'm experiencing mood swings - bouts of silliness and then just a quiet low feeling that goes deep. I'm a pretty stable person mood wise. So glad I typed "Doxy and depression" into google!

Interesting, my accupuncturist says healthy digestive track promotes clearer skin and a happier outlook on life. THis stuff does exactly the opposite to my stomach. This stuff is crap!

Depression! I've been medicated for Bipolar II for years, and it's always been well-controlled. Having recently contracted Lyme, though, I'm on doxy for six weeks and all I want to do is sleep and cry! Yikes!

Prescribed for adult acne problem which started around the age of 40. Had one go at it over the winter and found it very effective in curing my skin. However I am an outside worker all be it in Scotland, with a second go prescribed in June. This was a different experiance all together with I guess the sun. I now have what can only be described as water blisters under the skin on my nose and just below my lower lip line. These can be so sore like as many others have described a burning stinging sensation that can come on for hours and then just go. Although they are noticable on my nose as any alteration in temprature makes them very noticable by a deep redness circling each blister. Have also entered into a very low feeling which could be the start of slight depression although not totaly sure, just always seem to have very low points in my day to day life that I never had before. These blisters are still there and burning even after two weeks of not taking this medication of Doxycycline 50mg capsules. Would appreciate any helpful advice or an idea if the burning blister ever goes away? Thank you.

I took doxycyline for 18 days, 100mg 2x/day for a skin infection. Immediately I realized how rough the drug was on my stomach, but I was able to overcome the nausea, etc. by how much I ate before I took the dose. My infection began healing very soon after starting the drug, and I was happy about that.

The side affects took a while to become apparent. Things started to get strange, little by little. I've never had heartburn until taking this drug. The sun sensitivity was not to be taken lightly. I even got a sunburn on my hands and knuckles. After the burn healed, I thought my hands were tingling as a result, but it seemed odd that they didn't stop. I was irregular and kept thinking that I had gained weight, though the scale showed no gain. All the weight gain issues turned out to be (gas) bloating that ended up being pretty extreme. The dr. said the drug probably attacked the "friendly flora" in my digestive tract. The yeast infection confirmed that theory. I also had moments of complete idiocy - really weird ones unlike anything I could attribute to lack of sleep or other normal causes of confusion. I also felt depressed during the last week on the drug. Because the side effects seemed unrelated to each other and all happened gradually, it took a while to attribute them to the antibiotic.
I finally stopped taking the drug when the syptoms sort of peaked.

I've been off the drug for 5 days, and my digestion is 75% back to normal, with huge doses of simethicon and acidophilous. My yeast infection is gone (post-treatment), and my hands are back to normal. But I am still depressed. The depression seems to have deepened since stopping the drug.

Did any of you have to be treated for your doxycycline-related depression, or did it just pass like the other side effects?

I've been on Doxycyclene for 2 weeks now. I was trying to get rid of my acne. I've vomited twice. (The likelihood of this increases when there's very little food in the tum)Before I vomited, I'd feel like I was having a heart attack. A sudden tightness in the chest, breathing became difficult, a depression that felt like the end of the world. All eventually leading up to vomiting. My acne hasn't witnessed much improvement either. Either it doesn't suit me or I haven't been taking it properly.

I started taking Doxy for acne. I took 100 mg 3x a day. My stomach is a bit upset every now and then but nothing I can't live with. My acne cleared up pretty quickly. I noticed my teeth are alot less white than before, sort of turning brownish tint. But what I really noticed is how tired and lethargic I have become. I've become very depressed and my self-esteem has dropped. I've always had somewhat of an issue with this but now I don't even feel like getting out of bed. I have to force myself to go to school, belly dancing classes, and work. My partner complains my sex drive is so low. THis could be from the depression. I don't want my acne to come back but I can't go on feeling this way.

I HATE DOXYCYCLINE.

I never thought I could get so sick from something that is supposed to help me out!

The doctor prescribed it to me for something that I may not have. But just to be sure he told me to take it for 10 days.
It is day 4 and I just cant take it anymore. The side effects are HELL. As soon as I started taking it, my skin felt weird, and now i have a bunch of red dots and rash.. ITCHES.

Not only that but the nausea, stomach pain and weird bowel movements are the worst! oh and the DEPRESSION. I am so tired everyday and I feel as though I want to kill myself. It is awful.

I refuse to take it , the pill is much worse than any disease or illness I've ever had. I honestly thought the symptoms were due to the problem i may have, but after reading this site, definitely it is the pill. Now, I'm so confused, I dont know what to do , if finish with them or just stop right away.

I'm definitely glad I found this website. I've been taking doxy 100 2x a day for epididimytis. I thought I was the only one going through this. I felt my symptoms were not being experienced by others. I have been freaking out thinking I might have something more severe, but it might just be side effects.

I've been experiencing nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, loss of hunger, fevers/night sweats, losing focus, light sensitive, itchy legs, dry throat, pains in abdomen, insomnia, depression, crying episodes, disinterested, paranoia, and suicidal at times.

I never knew a drug like this can have such terrible side effects. I fear going to bed every night because of what goes through my head. Finding this site will bring me some peace for what I'm going through.

It's good to know I'm not the only one freaking out about this.

I've had difficulty sleeping, night sweats, extreme loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, depression, confusion, crying, nervousness, itching in legs, extreme paranoia; just to name a few.

I was concerned I had symptoms of HIV because they are very similar to what effects I'm experiencing with doxycycline. I'm only taking 2 doses of 100/day. Crazy stuff and scary.

I am 40 years old and I haven't taken an antibiotic since I was in my early 20's. I was given this drug after an outpatient surgery.
I am on the 4th day of a 6 day perscription and I have been suffering from a burning in my stomach, I am freezing and it's 65 degrees outside. I have gained about 6 pounds of water weight, I know it's water weight because my feet are fat. I'm normally 115lbs, so I do not have fat feet.
The worst physical side effect is the bloating in my stomach. Although I haven't experienced any nausea, I absolutely do not want to eat because the Doxy makes my stomach feel like I swallowed a rhino any time I eat anything. However, I swing between not being hugry at all and wanting to eat everything in my house.
And if I hadn't entered this site I would have never figured out why I'm so damned depressed! I'm not moody by nature so there's no way I just decided to suffer from depression for the hell of it. I was cracking jokes before, during, and after my surgery. Today I feel like crawling in a hole and dying but I'm not suffering from any post-surgery pain! I hate this drug!
Oh, yeah, I also can't see very well, blurred vision.

I've never skipped a period in my entire life. In fact, I've only been late by a day or two once about 10 years ago. I started taking doxycycline for acne about two weeks before I should have gotten my period. One of the common side effects I wasn't told about? "Menstrual irregularities" and "irregular uterine bleeding." It stopped my period entirely, caused lower abdominal cramps and water weight gain. I have been seriously uncomfortable for over a week now and am waiting for my body to balance back out after taking this drug. As a sidenote: This antibiotic also causes birth defects, vaginal itching, yeast infections, seizures, hormonal fluctuation and depression.

I was prescibed it in the form of periostat, for Rosacea. It has worked very well at reducing it by about eighty percent. I use it with Rosac cream a sulphur based cream. The antibiotic has blown me up with water weight and I have experienced terrible moods, depression and dry hair also ringing in the ears...I am counting the days till I am finished with this horrible medication it also makes me feel "out of it" and strange.

I was prescribed Doxycycline in the form of Periostat for a periodontal problem I was having in November '04. (20mg 2xdaily for 3 months) The first few days on this drug I experienced some low level nausea with some loss of appetite. Within the next couple of weeks the nausea declined but my appetite continued to deteriorate and I was starting to lose weight. By the end of the third week I had virtually no appetite at all and found it extremely difficult to eat anything. I found I was also becoming dehydrated. At this point I decided I had better stop taking this drug. But even 2 days after I stopped taking it I began experiencing periods of dizziness, difficulty concentrating, and feeling disoriented. I also started to feel extremely cold at times and even began shaking. My mouth was extremely dry, with cracked lips. I began to notice some depression with crying spells also. It took me 2 weeks to recover from the side effects of this drug and I still don't feel 100% yet. This was absolutely the worst drug I have ever taken. The side effects were horrendous. At such a low dose I had no idea I would ever experience these type of side effects.

Started taking this medication 7 days ago for Prostatitis, i`m on Lustral anyway for depression, but my symptoms of anxiousness and fear have returned whilst taking this, as well as small spurts of confusion and Pins and Needles in my arm every morning when i wake up, is this normal!! Also i`m finding i`m short of breath sometimes, this stuff is crazy, i`m glad its not just me feeling these things.