Anyone experienced severe anxiety/depression taking Clarithromycin?

Thank you so much for posting this and all who have shared.

I started 4 days ago. 500 MG per day.

I have a dark history of depression and anxiety disorder, diagnosed with disthymia, so I get these period of "double depression" once in a while.

I've kept well for a couple of years so not on any anti depressants at the moment.

The clarithromycin dosage was 500mg twice a day. Day one I just felt nauseous and lethargic. Day two I felt overall disconnected. Day 3 I skipped work and had to call suicide hotline. It spiraled quickly. I did not handle it well. I'm stopping the treatment now. I'd rather get my chest/sinus infection back than to lose myself completely.

Omg!!!! I am so relieved to find this post! I had the most horrific day today! I was given clorithmycine yesterday (January 25th). The pharmacy didn't send me the paper they usually put in the bag and didn't advise me of the side affects on the phone AND in fact said I could take one in the afternoon and when I go to bed (500 mg) PLUS the doctor said I could take Tylenol. Well I took this all at 1 and went to nap for 2 hours. I woke up groggy (normal I figured) and my mom dropped my 2 year old daughter off to me. So I took another C-pill at 8 and 1 Tylenol because I didn't want to take too much...and I was feeling sort of okay and had a moment to call my friend who's been Having a hard time finding a diagnosis for the mental health challenges she's going through. She said she's been given high functioning autism, which is extremely hard to diagnose in adults and females. Anyway... this got me thinking maybe I have high functioning autism and not general anxiety like I thought (which I manage

okay enough with yoga and meditation).... because of all these X factors (I'll spare you the details) which was kinda mind blowing in a positive way because I've worked for many years with individuals with autism.... and now enter backstory; manifesting all at the same time in March 2014 I had lost the opportunity to graduate university, my grandfather and had been in a borderline emotionally abusive relationship- Well this guy and I got into an argument one day and I became a mess. So much so he didn't know what to do so he brought me to the mental health ward, where I stayed for two days. I had an episode there where I just freaked and managed to hide in a locker room that had been forgotten open...well I got privalages taken away (like my clothes) and pumped with something to calm me down. It was terrible because I had worked in the mental health ward at another hospital and by shear crazy (pun NOT intended) I shared a room with a lady who had been a patient! Fastforward to me being released, leaving the guy, move to another province, get better...become pregnant by a guy who lied to me and told me he was infertile one night stand)-I had been off BC because I had been dating a woman since the last man...and gave him the option you know, to meet another night-honestly it was such a raw and romantic night both conversationally and intimately... but things didn't really materialize more because I realized he wasn't as emotionally healed as he and said...fastforward, I only found out when I was 3 months pregnant and had just met a new guy, was returning to school, my health was on track (even though I had been laid off from a job, I had school setup) so I decided to keep my daughter (I was 28)...Anyway. Fastforward to my mental health deteriorating because the father of my daughter was so emotionally abusive and drug/alcohol abusive and in/out about supporting the pregnancy and impregnated 4 other woman plus just not parent material and his mother was adding to the crazy. Plus feeling like I lost the good I had rebuilt...AND abandoned because the guy I met who said he would stand by me (and had a daughter who recently called me her second mom)...backed out...and my roommate kicked me and my cats out (at least giving me two months to figure it out)....AHHH nearly had an abortion at 4/1/2 months pregnant because I didn't want my daughter to be around the crazy...but more lies..i believed them because I wanted her and was struggling you know? Maybe someone here will. Anyway, I came home to where I grew up. To rebuild for my daughter and rebuild a relationship with my mother.

Fastforward to the above statement and the below...

omg what a weird night-that first night on the pill. I kinda slep but it was wierd... ANYWAY I woke up at 330 in the morning today (January 26th) and just felt f*****g wierd. I had a work training to go to though and my mom had come to pick up my daughter and bring her to daycare (thank god)... anyway I was feeling so wierd that I didn't eat but popped my pill, told brought a banana and a cookie and had every intention to get breakfast on the way...AND then BAM f*****g 7 in the am!! Basically I had a vagal something but my thoughts...HOLY f**k....I was like on some high/burning out (which I was for work and intended to take steps that afternoon)...managed to get off the bus, tried asking for help at the terminal post by knocking on the window. Didn't work. I passed out. Came to, tried again. Got in. Paramedics. Hospital. And BAM all my earlier trauma mentioned and that conversation with my friend. F**k. Just f**k me. Was a nutso day.

Doctors, tests, confessions to mom, ask for a neuroconsult ALL the while knowing they want to send me to psyche. I can tell (because of above)..and my ptsd kicks in so I'm practically mute as f**k. Shaking. Not present.

Fastforward to clean results (no psyche visit-thank god I had my mom with me-

Do groceries. Come home. Eat. Take my pill and tylenol.....

OF Course because I didn't realize it was the PILL causing the MAIN symptoms... I had stupidly not looked to see what it was, thinking it had been penicillin I was given for an ear infection. Busy single mom life with a full time job, you know?

Again, my mom to the rescue bringing my daughter home and really just had to put her to bed....AND omg the trip I just had. TERRIBLE images in the head. Wierd. Like my eyes closed but I'm seeing images as if my eyes are open. and just grotesque. Hallucigenic like.So my anxiety or (whatever I have-I will follow that up) PEAKS.... temporary insomnia I guess, paranoia, fear, chest pain, not feeling full or hungrym tummy gurgling. Just sooo disconnected....talking to my mom all the while... stressing for the safety of my daughter while I'm messed up and my mom is saying my stepdad takes this pill (for something else) he says yeah it's.like that. How there F**K does he function?? Mom calls the pharmacy and they say "yeah thhtose are reported side affects" okay so some ease...but CANT sleep. So alone. So scared. Was told I could still breastfeed (though pretty much no production). I'm researching this pill (for the zillionth time)...

...and then it hits me to type clorithmycine and anxiety. And here I am. I'm back to the real world.

Thank you all for sharing. Like. I would kiss you. You have saved me (and my daughter right now).

I can relate, I was on Azytromicin for 5 days and after I started a depression. I was feeling fine before.

Take care

I'm so glad I found this post. I'm currently on day 10 of a 10 day treatment of Clarithromycin 500mg/twice daily, one more pill to go tonight. The treatment is for a chest and skin infection that have been resistant to other antibiotics so far. Due to other complications, my body is quite run down right now and not fighting off infection well at all. I do struggle with anxiety and bipolar disorder, but do not take medication for either, and generally am able to maintain a functioning life and schedule, and I manage alright. 16 years of a mood disorder, several panic attacks, daily anxiety, and I've never felt this bad that I can remember.

The first couple days of treatment I was lethargic and nauseous, but that passed. Then I had a few days that I felt pretty alright, as close to normal as I could be, I think. I did start experiencing some weakness in my legs, heart palpitations, and shortness of breath, digestive discomfort, but that wasn't brand new to me, as the past few weeks have already included those symptoms, due to another health issue, so I chalked it up to that, even though those symptoms had not been present for maybe a week or so before starting the Clarithromycin. 

Then, within the past few days, I suddenly started experiencing extreme depression and anxiety, uneasiness, nothing like what I deal with on a regular basis. Uncontrollable sobbing, for hours a day, a constant feeling of fear and just "wrongness", zero motivation, loss of interest in most things I used to take pleasure from, have been stuck in bed for days, extremely negative thoughts (very non-typical for me), loneliness, agitation, nothing brings any sense of comfort or relief, other than sleep, which I'm not getting a lot of.

I only have one tablet left, I'm undecided about whether or not to finish the course. On one hand, one more tablet can't make things much worse, and I'm still extremely anxious about the infection, as it doesn't appear to be completely cleared up even after completing most of the course. But, on the other hand, if the infection isn't going to improve with just one more, maybe it'd be best to start the process of flushing it out of my system.

Anyway, the negative thoughts were starting to erode pretty deeply, so reading all these stories has given me a glimmer of hope. I will do my best to hang on to some positivity over the next few days, and have faith that this storm will pass!

Thank you to everyone who's contributed here, knowing there's a light at the end of the tunnel is all I need to push past this! 

I took 2 of these tablets 5 days ago. After the first one I felt a bit better after weeks of tonsillitis and penicillin not having worked. I took one again in the evening. After an hour or so I started to feel very odd. I felt scared, extremely anxious and starting shaking/shivering uncontrollably. Later that evening I rang for an ambulance. The paramedics checked my obs which were all fine. I think the outcome was a panic attack which I felt very embarrassed about. I had since read the leaflet of side effects from clarithromycin. I couldn't believe what I was reading and how extreme it could be. I was a bit concerned but it did say these were rare and I didn't think it likely that I would be affected in this way. After having the paramedics out I did some research online about other experiences and found very similar reactions. The next morning I decided to stop taking this drug (also under medical advice). I vowed to never go near it again just after this one experience. This was only the beginning. Over the next few days things got worse and worse. I have had extreme/acute anxiety, trembling, shaking and shivering. I have never over abused the health services but I have been phoning 111 multiple times daily, going to A&E on two separate occasions, the first time talking to a psychiatric team. My record doesn't look good but its clear I have been very very distressed. My anxiety has been so extreme I haven't been able to look after my two year old and luckily my family have helped with this. I have lost a lot of weight as I have hardly eaten a thing, Im still having delusional feelings and thoughts at night, hearing voices when I try to sleep. My doctor has now put me on diazepam and sleeping tablets but it is hasn't totally taken the edge off. The experiences I have read on here and other sources are similar but possibly not as extreme as Im taking it, however I have read about a few instances of psychosis seemingly caused by the drug. 

Today I have actually had breakfast which is a massive breakthrough and I haven't paced up and down looking out windows as I been doing but I don't know if thats the sleeping tablets and diazepam masking it a bit. I am desperately hopeful that this will start to ease but I think it will be a slow process.

I have a history of mental health (anxiety and depression) although I have read others with this experience having no previous issues. I would say my previous was fairly mild and I have never experienced something like this in my life. I have phoned people saying I think I need to be taken away and hospitalised.

So, I do hope this is a breakthrough, having had breakfast and being able to write all this. My mission here is try and get any answers or response to the time it has taken for similar symptoms to ease. If anyone can respond I would be so grateful. This has turned my life upside down, I can't work and my daughter has gone away to other family members as I can barely care for myself.

When I get better I will decide what I will do about all this, how I raise awareness and possibly make somebody accountable for the loss and severe distress I have experienced. 

Can anyone please help.....???