Levaquin and coughing up

I posted here many months ago. I was given 2 Levaquin pills in an ER on Dec 10th, 2005, after fainting from the flu at home and falling face first on a wooden floor and smashing my nose and knocking myself out. Much blood pouring out all over. Very traumatic. Nose smashed to right side of my face. I was rushed by ambulance to our local ER but was sent home after 2 hours in this ER even after pleading with the hospital to keep me. No luck there. I fainted about 20 to 30 minutes after these first two ER administered Levaquin pills were given to me and they sent me home... 5 minutes into the ride home at midnight. My frantic wife rushed me back. They said it was a "vagal" response. My electrolytes were out of balance ( low pottassium) I had a fever and an elevated white blood cell count. I was coughing up bronchial flem and blood running down my throat from the smashed nose. I was extremely traumatized and scared from being knocked out and having blood shoot out of my smashed to the right nose ( I was bleeding and swallowing and spitting up blood for over one more week) and all while I was still in the middle of a powerful flu! But, not sick enough to be hospitalized according to this prestigious hospital here on the super wealthy Monterey Peninsula near Pebble Beach, Ca.

When my wife rushed me unconscious back to the hospital this time they put me in a large "recovery" room. Next day they gave me more Levaquin. Sent me home again that day, again against my wishes ( I had no PC to demand they keep me.) By that night I was having all the symptoms you all here have described. Nightmares, burning pain in right arm and shoulder, left shoulder also down to my hands. Bladder acting whacky, insides feeling haywire. shooting pains in chest, almost complete insomnia, scared, almost paranoid. And weakness beyond anything I have ever experienced...even with the flu. I could not even hold my hands up while laying down!

Went back to ER by ambulance 2 or 3 times that first week as I thought I was dying ( even while laying down ! ) that first day home and that first week. They always asked me what I was taking and it was only one drug...Levaquin. They never once suggested I stop taking this and I took a full 6 day course. Finally they started calling in the psych ward people and almost not treating me when I would go to them. How sad and humiliating that was. My stomach became so destroyed starting those first few days on Levaquin with pain I couldn't eat and lost 35 lbs. ( yes, that's 35 pounds ! ) in 1 or 2 months! Doctors couldn't find problem first couple of months but eventually months later after a camera endoscopy it appeared my middle intestines had been severely damaged somehow. 25 areas of inflammation, damage to fibers in the illeum, two beginning ulcers and I'm still going for more intestinal tests this next month at University Of San Francisco and Pacific Medical Center there....It's 9 and 1/2 months later and I am still going through daily nightmares of my insides and even heart beatings feeling like they have gone ballistic. Still pain in shoulders, arms, hands, chest walls, buttocks, knees, ankles, weak, unbalanced on my feet, weak thighs, incredible itching on forearms, back of elbows and sometimes scalp, incredibly sensitive to cold like never before, sometimes a burning ( sunburn ) type of feeling in face and neck, odd sharp pains sometimes in upper stomach, lower and even above heart area that last a few seconds, and a weird dry throat feeling when I breath like all the moisture inside of me has dried up, eye sight much worse, bladder acts crazy, many panic attacks ( Having one as I type and have to keep lorazapam handy ) Money has dried up.

Can't afford co-pays anymore. Doctors are irritated and impatient with me and don't even return calls. Small town. No more doctors to try. I'm 55 now. Was a concierge in a well known hotel. Loved my job. Hardly ever took medicines, didn't like going to doctors. But now, most doctors think I am just mentally off.

Had never seen a psychiatrist in my life. Married 24 years same woman, first wife, raised two kids who are now in college. This normal mental and social 50 year background means nothing to these doctors. I just all of a sudden have gone whacky according to them because they can't find easy to explain symptoms except middle intestinal damage, torn rotator cuff in right shoulder, fractured vertabrae posterior L-1 and two small cysts on left kydney, slightly enlarged prostate, mild to medium gastritis and diverticulosis...but nothing that would explain my body feeling like it's constantly being gripped and going haywire inside.

Today I feel this and like my heart and breathing is just gone crazy. I'm unsteady on my feet. Took a lorazapam and not feeling much better at all ( This is why I do not think it is simply anxiety...and I took Lexipro for a few months with similar no help with these symtoms. I quit that 2 to 3 months ago...actually can sleep better now and again, my symptoms never felt better with that stuff. ) I layed down but I still feel gripped inside and my heart beat kind of changing like a power surge and then a nervous jumpy feeling afterwards.

I am as scared as ever and it is a nightmare feeling that everyone has given up on you. I mentioned the Levaquin theory to my PC ( who is ready to drop me ) and he got upset and refuses to even discuss this saying it absolutely cannot be from that Levaquin prescripton I took.

No attorney will even touch this as they say it's too hard to prove and Bush has capped awards at $250,000 which you would have to be dead from liver failure to win.) My life is ruined. And no one will even begin to consider that it was the Levaquin even though all of this exploded that first week while taking only ONE medicine...Levaquin... and with thousands of people reporting the exact same symptoms. I literally have to pray constantly to keep it together with all the debt and almost death like feelings I live with every day. Creditors are calling like crazy. Dear God. But nobody will even consider the Levaquin. Isn't there even one doctor in the country that will even try to see what is happening to me outside of saying I'm crazy?

Prescribed 10 day course ($113!!!!) for severe pneumoia, despite requesting to first try some I knew I tolerated well from past experience. (I smell kick backs here.) Within an hour of taking the first dose, I had horrible muscle pains and cramping. My intercostals (ribs) cramped so badly, all I could do was gasp for breath in tiny little pants, each of which felt like getting kicked in the ribs. Tachacardia, mild cynaosis. I began coughing up froth (sign of pulmonary edema.) After 4 hrs (and some codine) the pain gradually subsided.

Now, I'm no quitter, so I went on line and did some reading and realized the problem most likely was a potassium (K) deficiency. I loaded up on K and tried again. Very painful, but no cramping. Began to have chest pains. Insomnia.

Third day: Same as second except towards the end of the day, my heart began beating wildly and arrhythmically. I could feel it banging against my chest wall. Wildly erratic. Still coughing up white foam. Sharp chest pains. Insomnia. Normal rhythm gradually restored over 12 hr period but rate very high.

Needless to say, I have discontinued the course.

Adding a tad of insult to injury, the usage info given by pharmacist was pretty much dead wrong. His complete instuctions:
One a day on empty stomach.
No vitamins
Avoid sun.

Not a word about additional water, that the no vitamins was only for two hours before or two hours after dosing, that I should quit immediately if I experienced severe muscle or chest pain, swelling, skin rash or allergic reactions. And it makes no diff if your stomach is empty or not.

My advice is to tell your MD to make his marketing perks at someone else's expense and give you something safe and affordable. If you must take it, make sure you are K loaded before hand and stay that way. Drink lots of water.

TM - 53 - male - generally excellent health. Never had the slightest adverse rx to any med before this. Never bashed any med before and am not bashing this one. Just relating my experience. Be well.