Zithromax Z-Pak and diarrhea

I started taking the Z-pack two weeks ago and the only side effect that I had was that I was very tired and I got a headache but that went away, then I went back to my doctor today and with the same symptoms from two weeks ago and they re prescribed me with Z-pac for my upper respiratory infection and I took the first two with food and now I have diarrhea and a little bit of nausea but nothing to severe. I will be taking the other one tomorrow and I will keep you guys posted on how I feel

Just took the first dose of the Z-pack (the two pills) on a full stomach and I feel like I'm going to die. I've been through the pain of childbirth and this can almost compare...the stomach cramping is severe and the diarrhea is immediate (you know, the "peeing your poop" kind of thing). When the cramping began, I got cold sweats...I'm still up, unable to sleep, because the stomach pains are SO bad. I know you're supposed to keep taking the pack but I am so ill I can't even imagine doing so right now. I had a similar reaction to Z-pack in 2004 but thought it was because I took a dose on an empty stomach. This confirms that it can happen anytime.

I'm taking the Z-pack to get rid of a sore throat. This is terrible. I'm almost in tears. :( I wish I could just throw up but my throat hurts too bad. I'm allergic to penicillin, so this was what the doctor prescribed. :(

I just finished the five day Z-Pak treatment. I did experience diarrhea and mild abdominal discomfort, and both of which have seemed to subside. I have also been experiencing bad gas and bloating. Has anyone else experienced these symptoms? And, if so, how long did it take for the symptoms to go away?

I was prescribe the 5 day course by my doctor for a bad sinus infection, I took the first 2 pills with a meal and plenty of water on the first evening. By noon the next day I was having very, very bad diarrhea and cramps. They continued for several hours then by the evening the diarrhea was gone.
I took the second day's pill with dinner again last night. I had a much better night with little fever or sweating that had made me so miserable the previous 3 days. When I woke I felt much better until the diarrhea kicked in again. I am afraid to get more than a few feet from the toilet because of the suddenness of the cramps. I don't know if I will take another dose or not I certainly feel better but I'm not sure my rectun is up to the stress of a third bout of diarrhea!

Female-18
About two weeks about I was running a fever and had a horrible cough. After my temperature hit 103f I decided to go to the ER. The doctor told me I have a sinus infection. There they didn't really have much interest in what was wrong with me and decided that a Z-Pak would magically solve all my problems. So the first couple days my fever stopped, I felt a little better. Soon after that I had the WORST stomach pains I've ever had before. They brought me to tears, not to mention the diarrhea was pure water with little fecal matter.. I felt better with a high temperature than going through the side effects of Z-Pak. I also had dime sized amounts of brown colored phlegm that appeared when I coughed. I couldn't taste anything. For 6 straight days I was stuck to the couch or bed. Every time I stood up I got the drunken spins and felt like I was going to black out. It's been about 8 days since I started the Z-Pak and the cough has virtually went away. I still spit up a tiny amount of phelgm. I can eat, which I am ecstatic about since the only liquid things I drank while taking the anti biotic gave me severe diarrhea. The only symptom I have now is diarrhea. Only at least now I don't have to 'go' every 5 minutes or whenever I put anything in my stomach. I think the worst part of being sick was taking the dreaded ZPAK. Everyday I was thinking I could feel well enough to go out and do something only to have to race home to lay down.
CONCLUSION-ZPAK TWO THUMBS DOWN!

started Zpak last week for a lingering sinus infection. I live in an area where the weather changes constantly. Two days after I finished the 5day Zpak I began experiencing horrible and flu-like symptoms and worse. I can hardly breathe out of my nose. Heavy chest congestion. Lots of diarrhea and even blood in the stool one day. Taste buds are gone. Here I am a week after finishing the Zpak feeling HORRIBLE. I'm afraid to go back to the doctor (uninsured) only to be prescribed something else that might bring on more side effects. Right now I'm taking Sudafed PE and hoping that kicks it. I've been on a Zpak before but NEVER had side effects like this. I don't wish this on anyone. and I'm wondering how long the Zpak stays in your system? It is possible to make you sicker? Seems so in my case and many others here.

Started Z pack on a Thursday evening for sinus infection. Some minor stomach pains, but no diarrhea that first day. Friday I was tired and spacy feeling, but doing okay. Saturday evening my heart began racing....ended up in the ER with a bp of 159/115 and heart rate of 185. I was really freaking out and scared. With in an hr it had returned to normal and I was given a EKG. Then sent home. Sunday I felt dizzy and tired all day.... just really out of it. Monday I had about 15 panic attacks and felt tired and VERY dizzy all day. Monday night was my last dose and Tuesday I was very dizzy, tired and lazy feeling. Some pains in my stomach, etc. I will never take this again. I have GAD {general anxiety disorder} and my doctor knew this. This has really pushed my panic attacks to a limit I cannot deal with. I have had some gas, headache, itching, slight rash, ringing in my ears etc too. Not fun at all, and I wake up non stop at night.... Hope this goes away soon!

I was prescribed Z-Pak on Dec 31 2008 and it did help my bronchitis and pneumonia, however the side effects are horrible.....I still have a nagging cough but my breathing is better. I had to take gravol for three nights with this med as I was so nauseated and dizzy. Worse, I have agitated sleep and needing 10 to 12 hours of sleep because of awful sleep I am getting. I stared with diarrhea and hemorrhoids, and vaginal yeast infection. Losing urine with coughing which is due to my age and past pregnancies (53 years old), sore breasts and very sore nipples. Heavy period started 3 days ago.....which has shaken me...... as I went through menopause 11 years ago, yes 11 years ago! I had ringing in my right ear (never before) for 24 hours this week and have altered and less hearing in ear now). This is my 53rd birthday and I will call doctor Monday and see her asap. I am freaked out! Is this all from that med or do I have uterine cancer???

this is the second time i have taken the zpack for bronchitis...first time no symptoms, this time however......i am having verrrrry dark brown/ red urine, diarrhea, headache, stomach cramping, and body sweats....i don't know if this is due to my illness or due to zpack, but i HATE these symptoms/side effects

Started the z pack for bronchitis and sinus infection. First symptoms was stomach cramps, diarrhea. The next and most disturbing symptoms were extreme agitation, anxiety, depression. Have finished the last of the medicine 4 days ago and am still feeling the residual anxiety, agitation, general feeling of unease. Will never take this medicine again.

Had severe flu--suspected bronchitis and strep. Took z-pack. Immediately started to feel better. High fever, chest pain, aches gone. BUT now 1 week after I took z-pack, I have severe abdominal pain and diarrhea after every meal. Can't keep anything from immediately going out the other end. So miserable. I'm thinking the good flora was killed off in my intestines. Calling the doctor tomorrow.

Female, 30 years old. Began taking five day course of z-pak for bronchitis., abdominal pain from the beginning, better with food. Day five, abdominal pain much worse, ending with diarrhea. Did not take last dose. Day six, diarrhea persisting, frequent watery stool, dizziness, appetite loss, feeling completely drained. Day seven, began taking anti- diarrheal, seemed better. Went to Dr., advised fluids of course. Later that day, managed to eat a good meal, pushing fluids. Some intestinal pain but feeling generally better. Then: anti- diarrheal not really working anymore. Constant watery stools, feeling severely fatigued, completely drained, dizzy, ringing in ears, chills. Called hospital and spoke to nurse, advised ER visit: probable dehydration. I have been sick for 18 days including z-pak. Would never recommend this medication. The side effects are worse than the bronchitis.

While taking Z pak, I developed a horrible red and itchy rash all over my body. I have had horrible gas, and 6 days of diarrhea, now my doctor has put me on Flagyl for the diarrhea. I will never take this again. It is horrible!!!

I was prescribed the 5-day Z-pack for bronchitis and after two days I quit taking it. I am not psychologically and emotionally perfect (who is) but this drug is causing extreme agitation, nervousness, hard intense dreams that leave me fatigued even after a full night's sleep, and depression with crying spells. I am aware that this drug stays in your bloodstream for a long time. It's half-life is 68 hours and after taking 500 mg. on Feb. 6 and then 250 mg. on Feb 7, I still have somewhat less than 200 mg. in my blood today, Feb. 13. Even at today's level I still have no relief from my symptoms and I am praying that this will all go away when the level of the drug gets to a certain point.
My bronchitis is gone and I am trying to live my life as if I have no symptoms (I teach 7th grade U.S. History) but I cannot ignore the fact that I feel like I am cracking up.
I am not trying to bash this drug. Most people are fine with it. Good for them. But some people have these types of problems because I have seen stories like mine on many internet places.
Hang in there anyone who is suffering like me. I hope it goes away and I can return to my life where I get nervous now and again and maybe once in a while I do not sleep well.
This is horrible.
Anyone who has gone through this and returned to normal please respond. I need to hear some good news.

I've been sick for 22 days. I was told I have tonsillitis and was given Amoxicillin but did not get better. I had a cough that did not go away. I went back in and was told I had bronchitis even though I had no fever. I was given the 6 pill Z-Pak treatment - 2 pills the first day, and then 1 pill each of the next 4 days. They had me stop the Amoxicillin. Both all day yesterday and all day today I've had diarrhea. Watery and frequent. Not fun. I also have no appetite, not sure if that is from the bronchitis or the drugs. Half a serving of soup all day and I had to stop eating. I recommend the soft wipes with aloe in them, as I am very sore back there. However, I must say, if my bronchitis is gone in 2 or 3 days, then the diarrhea was worth it. I can't stand being sick any longer, and can't stand the congestion that is in my chest!!! I've only taken the Z-Pak once before, a while ago, I forget if there were side effects, but I seem to remember it worked.

While I have taken it before, I don't recall having anything but very mild side effects (maybe a little discomfort in my belly). This time, however, it is different and I am owing it to the beauty of aging. I just took the second of the three pills (and yes, I've had the three pill one before). My bronchitis is clearing but this afternoon I had really bad abdominal pain and I have a continuous headache in the back of my head, where my spinal cord ends. It is not as bad (so far) as the one I had with Biaxin (I refuse to take that). The only bright side is that it made it a really good time to join Weight Watchers because I do not have much appetite. I was able to sleep last night, at least, because my cough decreased. The verdict is still out on whether I would do this again. Problem is, I am allergic to Penicillin.

Ok, I took this because I needed to feel better fast for a weekend with all my guy friends. I am a single girl and I was actually HOPING to come out of this weekend with a boyfriend outta one of 'em...so I wanted to be over my yucky cold/flu symptoms so I could have a good time! Ok...I was NOT feeling well after the third day, my stomach was killlllling me, and I wasn't over my cold stuff either. So by the weekend I was finally feeling a little better but I had started having diarrhea and (even worse!) TERRIBLE GAS. I should have just stayed home, but I went on this roadtrip anyway. I was thinking I would be able to hold it until we stopped, but I started having terrible gas buildup and I just had to release it or I thought I would get sick. Ok, let me just say that we had to pull the jeep over so one of my friends, the really cute one that I liked, could throw up. It was terrible....and even worse they all knew it was me. In my opinion, the slight relief I got from my cold was not worth the tradeoff in side effect. So thanks to my Z pak experience, I was called "Hell Raiser" and other nicknames the rest of the weekend. I will not be using this product again.

Years ago when I wasn't feeling well I took zpak. Back then, I had no idea how to take it so I just took it in the morning before I ate. Each time, I had this nauseated feeling, but I just ignored it because I thought it was just my sickness. By day 3 or 4, I vomitted for about 2 hours and then for the rest of the day had diarrhea. I just thought it was the zpak. Then, another time, I took another med when I was sick...took it in the morning before I ate, and the same thing happened. I finally concluded that it was because I had taken it without food.

So...after that, I always take those type of meds after I've eaten something. Since then (which was about 7-8 years ago), I have not had any sort of nausea from zpak or the other.

Conclusion: never take without eating first! Hope this helps!

I've taken Zpak twice in my life. Once for bronchitis, it was helping right away.(within a few days). Second time for a sore throat and ear pain I was having for 2 weeks. By the 3rd day I was felling good again. I have nothing bad to say about the drug. I think it is the BOMB!!! Though I never had any side effects to the drug,
I would take a little diarrhea and nausea over bronchitis ANY DAY!!!

The key, or one of the keys to taking Z-Pak is to always eat something with it, then drink a large amount of water (a full glass). This morning I took it, with only a little bit of water, and now I'm experiencing the side effects. I used it two months ago without any problems I have a bit of diarrhea and bloody stool. Like I said, I didn't eat anything before I took it, which was stupid, it is recommended on the package that you eat something.

I have taken many zpaks before because of repetitive sinus infections or strep throat. Had my tonsils removed 3 years ago and got bronchitis recently and was on a 3 day 500 mg per day dose of it and felt fine the first 2 days and just got hit with MAJOR diarrhea....felt like I lost 10lbs in bathroom for 15 mins. YUCK! Hopefully its flushing the sickness from me.

I've taken Zpak several times (4+) and each time, it worked like a charm to cure ear, nose & throat infections. I think it worked better for me overall because of the short-dosage cycle which made it easier for me to take the full course prescribed (2 first day, 1 every day thereafter for 4 days). Side effects: diarrhea, cramping, headache, feeling "high" or medicine head--taken with or without food. Hard to say if these effects are attributed to meds or to the infection itself. Boyfriend taking Z-pak right now--he reports severe body ache, skin sensitivity (to touch), and feeling like crap. Again--hard to say if from med or virus/bacteria.

After the first day of taking Zpak I had severe abdominal pains and bad diarrhea

I am taking Zpak for strep throat. I was treated with it because I am 23 and have had strep throat/ear infections very frequently lately and the other antibiotics do zip for me. I also work in child care, and wish to get my tonsils out ASAP! The first day I had eaten nothing all day, except for drinking water. (Because my doctors office sent me to the ER, they thought I had menengitis. I DID NOT!) The medication said may take with or without food... DO TAKE WITH FOOD. Even the CVS pharmacist said so after my boyfriend called and said that I had thrown up from it. Eat with it. It has made me 1) Throw up, 2) Feel Nautious, 3) Have Diarrhea, 4) Not Feel Better Yet. It's day 4 and I better feel better soon!!! Also, I was told these are not allergic reactions. If you don't need this medication, ask for SOMETHING ELSE!!

Z-pac taken for an infection in my lungs, sinuses,and ears.
Day one- After one hour of taking z-pak I had severe diarrhea.
Day two- After two hours my head started spinning and I had severe nausea. Couldn't eat anything. Felt like morning sickness. Laid down and was unable to get back up until next morning.
Day three- nauseaus all day even though have not taken pill yet.

Husband put in hospital on day 4 of taking this drug for SEVERE vomiting and diarrhea, lost 13 lbs in 3 days!, will be in hospital for AT LEAST 4 days! Have found out a young women (late 20's - early 30's) was put in hospital for SEVERE abdominal pain on day 3 of this drug treatment. BEWARE THIS DRUG!