Acyclovir and Nausea: What Users Say

• MS1...
• March 13, 2014

For Herpes Zoster "I had a random herpes zoster outbreak (shingles) on my back and was prescribed 800 mg 5x a day for 7 days. It dried up my blisters within two days, and I healed nicely. I did, however, have headaches and dry mouth, with severe nausea and vomiting the last two days on the medication. Those are side effects, and being that I was on a strong dose, these side effects really affected me."

• kat...
• January 13, 2016

For Herpes Simplex (HSV) "I have been on Acyclovir for 3 days following a first outbreak of genital herpes - having never suffered with anxiety or depression, I've been crying about an hour after taking each pill. Feeling anxious, depressed, sweating, abdominal pain, short-tempered, and very nauseous. Mood swings aren't in the side effects but they should be, as countless other people on similar forums have experienced the same."

• Cre...
• May 26, 2015

For Herpes Simplex, Suppression "I was exposed to herpes simplex 1 genitally one year ago. My first outbreak was minor and only lasted a week with no medication and disappeared with no medication. One year later, I have a horrible outbreak, very painful, and the doctor prescribed acyclovir 400 mg 3 times a day. The medicine worked quickly and stopped itching after 1 day, sores healed after about 3-4 days. After I stopped taking the medication, I had sex, which must have irritated the area because I got another outbreak about one week later. I started taking acyclovir again, except this time I experienced unusual tiredness and nausea. I noticed that if my heart rate went up, I became short of breath and felt like fainting. I only took the drug for this outbreak for about 3-4 days."

• Anonymous
• July 22, 2011

For Herpes Simplex (HSV) "If you take it right at the start of an outbreak, it works really well. The sores that have already formed will disappear in about a week, and it will completely stop any other sores from forming after the first dose. The only issue is that it makes me feel really ill. I feel nauseated all day, have diarrhea, and completely lose my appetite."

• Van...
• February 25, 2015

For Herpes Simplex (HSV) "Acyclovir 800 mg tab 4 times a day for 5 days. The first pill stopped the cold sore in its tracks, it immediately stopped growing with just the first pill. On the second day, the tingling phase stopped, they erupted, and by the end of the 2nd day, they were drying out. I had to stop at the end of day 2 due to this medicine being too strong for my stomach. I ended up with a gastritis flare-up, terrible stomach pain, diarrhea, and nausea. If it weren't for that, this medicine would get 10/10!"

• pop...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 20, 2022

For Herpes Zoster "I have been taking acyclovir 800 mg 5 times per day for 8 days for shingles (2 days more to go). I had a headache and nausea for the first couple of days taking this. The headache went away, but I still feel nauseated most of the time. I am also lightheaded, and the dizziness increases when I walk around at all. I feel very fatigued. Sometimes I have felt really agitated, like I wanted to crawl out of my skin. It has caused frequent bowel movements and some diarrhea. Between the shingles pain and the side effects, I am nearly housebound. I've been sick for a month (the rash didn't appear for 3 weeks). I'm at the end of my rope and cannot wait to get off this drug. I had shingles 8 months ago and couldn't tolerate the valacyclovir then - now that it's returned, my doctor insists I must take this to get the virus out of my system. I pray that it works. I am 64 and small build (110 pounds). I do tend to be sensitive to drug side effects."

• Kay...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 17, 2020

For Herpes Zoster "I took Acyclovir because of shingles. I had to take 800 mg 5x a day for 7 days. On the first day, I was okay, second day, I felt dizzy and a little nauseous, third day, I had severe nausea, which was horrible. Other symptoms included feeling spaced out, stomach cramping, headache, and sweating when I was asleep. It’s better to finish the course, which I managed to do-thank God! However, it did clear my rash away."

• Kay...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 17, 2020

For Herpes Zoster "I took Acyclovir because of shingles. I had to take 800 mg 5x a day for 7 days. On the first day, I was okay, second day, I felt dizzy and a little nauseous, third day, I had severe nausea, which was horrible. Other symptoms included feeling spaced out, stomach cramping, headache, and sweating when I was asleep. It’s better to finish the course, which I managed to do-thank God! However, it did clear my rash away."