Why Am I Experiencing Anxiety And Stress After Taking Effexor And Biaxin For Bronchitis?

Posted on Sun, 5 Jan 2014

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Sun, 5 Jan 2014 Answered on

Tue, 21 Jan 2014 Last reviewed on

Question : I've been taking effexor 300 mg xr for 8 years. I've also been taking serequol 50mg at night. I recently got bronchitis and was put on Biaxin 1000mg xr twice a day. I've noticed anxiety, stress, nerves and feeling like effexor withdrawal since taking the antibiotic. I spoke to my pharmicist and he suggest stopping the antibiotic. He said there is an interaction between effexor and Biaxin. How long do I have for the antibiotic to leave my system and to start feeling normal again? I took my morning dose of Biaxin but I didn't take my PM dose because I was told to stop taking it. Do I need to go to the hospital? If so, what do I look for symptom wise before going to the hospital. I'd rather take my normal serequal dose to sleep but is that dangerous? Also noticed my mouth is dry and kind of looks like my tongue is dehydrated even though I've been drinking fluids. Also I would like to add, I've been taking the antibiotic for 2 days. Started Friday.

Answered by Dr. Rakesh Madhyastha (1 hour later)

Brief Answer: Can take usual medications Detailed Answer: Hello Thanks for the query The half life of Biaxin is about 3-4 hours so I recommend that you restart taking Serequol and Effexor. Dryness of mouth could be part of the infection and also because of the antibiotic itslef, it can only be treated symptomatically so please continue hydrating yourself, I usually tell my patients to chew on lozenges in cases of extreme dryness of mouth, I recommend that same to you. You will need to go to the hospital for a change of antibiotic as you will be stopping Biaxin, an alternate antibiotic like levofloxacin has to be started. Worsening of the symptoms like fever, severe cough with expectoration and breathlessness would be the red flags to visit the hospital immediately. I hope I was of help to you, if you have any further queries please get back to me I wish you good health and a speedy recovery Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Raju A.T