Kirsten

Summary

Name: Kirsten
State or Country of residence: Europe
Sex: Female
Age: 42
Quinolone taken: Floxin
Reason for the Quinolone: UTI
Was a safer antibiotic tried first? : Yes
How long did you take the Quinolone for? :
How long ago did you take the Quinolone?: 15 years
How much have you recovered as of now?: 10%
How often do you relapse or cycle?: Many symptoms are more or less constant
Does your doctor agree the Quinolone is the cause of your problems?: Yes
Do you have a history of seizures or neurological problems?: No

Please list anything your doctor did that helped in your recovery: Most helped me to go my own way

What has helped you in your recovery?: Avoiding the substances which triggered ADRs ( food, drugs, chemicals like perfumes, cleaners, solvents…)

Kirsten's Story

Symptoms: and diagnoses:
dizziness, strong tiredness, which can happen suddenly, quickly exhausted, bad coordination of movements, sometimes loss of ability to speak, numbness, brain fog, seizures, pain in joints, circulatory disturbance, nausea, fever like symptoms, pain in the region of bladder after exposure, sore throat, can’t tolerate sunlight on my skin…
MCS, CFS, part of the enzymes of the detoxification pathway I and II are genetically changed and not able to work

My Story

In 1989 I took 1 pill Ofloxacin. The ADRs included CNS, seizures, drop of blood pressure, nausea… I was not able to speak, to move or to rise my body for hours.

During the next days the symptoms became smaller but my body was still upside down.
4 days later I ate a piece of a strawberry cake and my body reacted with the same symptoms again. 4 weeks before I took the pill, I had eaten a piece of strawberry cake and I had no problem.

Soon I discovered that my body has changed. Things which were safe all my life through suddenly caused symptoms. So during the next months more and more foods and substances like perfumes, shampoos, cleaners, disinfectants, solvents…were added to the list of intolerable things. I always reacted with the ADRs of the quinolone.

It was and is a life of trial and error – only error means loss of food, stronger symptoms and more sensitivity against other substances or it can even become life threatening. There is no guidelines what is safe and what not. I had to find it out by myself.

During the first 6 months I was in 2 hospitals, saw several doctors, one naturopathic doctor, but none could offer help. Many but not all ignored the fact that my symptoms were typical ADRs of Ofloxacin that started after I took just 1 pill.

Many years later I learned that the drug caused in my case MCS ( multiple chemical sensitivity) and CFS (chronic fatigue syndrome ). The only treatment was to avoid the triggers, which I already had learned through the hard way.

As consequences of the drug I was forced to give up going to university, I was excluded from all kinds of social life and from medical care ( reactions against disinfectants, drugs, band –aid….). I feel as if I live in the stone age. What if I have high fever, a fracture, need a surgery or I have to see a dentist? Because I can’t tolerate herbs, drugs, medication against pain or anesthesia simple problems can become life threatening.
I have lost my home two times and I wasn’t able to return.

I am not able to read a book or a newspaper because of the smell of the print. I want to have shoes, which have a rubber sole, so my feet are better isolated against coldness, but rubber smells. So no new shoes. My baker changed accidentally the recipe for my bread. At the moment I have no bread to eat and I depend on it because I have not much else to eat. Again and again new problems appear and it is difficult to find solutions.

May my story help others not to get into the vicious circle of MCS, which can end deadly.

Kirsten

Last Updated 5/12/04