Bactrim DS and Tiredness: What Users Say

• Liz...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 22, 2016

For Urinary Tract Infection "Take a breath. If you're speeding through all of these experiences, you're probably looking for potential side effects and reactions of other people. I know because I'm just like you. I can tell you the first day I took Bactrim, I had a horrible migraine. The worst I've had in months. But guess what? I also didn't drink coffee that day after having a constant intake for weeks. I had other problems like chills, but wait, I got this medicine for an infection! So many symptoms people experience are likely a result of other things. My UTI went away. I drank lots of water and milk with it. Other than experiencing a few more headaches and a bit of tiredness, I was fine."

• Anonymous
• April 5, 2013

For Urinary Tract Infection "Had a 7-day prescription of Bactrim DS. The first two days, I had a headache. By the 3rd day, I started feeling nausea, which turned into nausea, dizziness, and constant fatigue. I've been off the medicine for 36 hours and still feel extremely exhausted, dizzy, and a little queasy at times."

• non...
• April 13, 2012

For Urinary Tract Infection "I also had similar experiences and side effects like lethargy, shaking, confusion slightly, severe fatigue, headaches, aches, and pains, but kept taking the medicine anyway because the pain of a urinary tract infection is much, much worse. I'd rather suffer for a short time with these symptoms than suffer with a bladder infection."

• hor...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 4, 2019

For Urinary Tract Infection "I will never take Bactrim again, despite the fact that it appears to have cleaned up my UTI. I was prescribed 6 pills, 2 per day for 3 days. By pill #2, I lost my appetite and felt very weak and tired. Went to bed very early. As I continued the medication, I developed many flu-like symptoms and spent the next 4 days in bed. Chills, achiness, lethargy, listlessness, extreme tiredness, brain fog, inability to stand up for very long without feeling woozy, not even able to sit up and do light work indoors. This medication had me flat in bed for 4 days straight. Two days after finishing the medication, I have still not regained my strength completely, although I am starting to normalize. I am typically a very active person who works outdoors every day. This one threw me for a loop - never again! I will ask for something else for a UTI."

• hor...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 4, 2019

For Urinary Tract Infection "I will never take Bactrim again, despite the fact that it appears to have cleaned up my UTI. I was prescribed 6 pills, 2 per day for 3 days. By pill #2, I lost my appetite and felt very weak and tired. Went to bed very early. As I continued the medication, I developed many flu-like symptoms and spent the next 4 days in bed. Chills, achiness, lethargy, listlessness, extreme tiredness, brain fog, inability to stand up for very long without feeling woozy, not even able to sit up and do light work indoors. This medication had me flat in bed for 4 days straight. Two days after finishing the medication, I have still not regained my strength completely, although I am starting to normalize. I am typically a very active person who works outdoors every day. This one threw me for a loop - never again! I will ask for something else for a UTI."

• hor...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 4, 2019

For Urinary Tract Infection "I will never take Bactrim again, despite the fact that it appears to have cleaned up my UTI. I was prescribed 6 pills, 2 per day for 3 days. By pill #2, I lost my appetite and felt very weak and tired. Went to bed very early. As I continued the medication, I developed many flu-like symptoms and spent the next 4 days in bed. Chills, achiness, lethargy, listlessness, extreme tiredness, brain fog, inability to stand up for very long without feeling woozy, not even able to sit up and do light work indoors. This medication had me flat in bed for 4 days straight. Two days after finishing the medication, I have still not regained my strength completely, although I am starting to normalize. I am typically a very active person who works outdoors every day. This one threw me for a loop - never again! I will ask for something else for a UTI."

• Lil...
• July 29, 2019

For Bacterial Infection "This is my 2nd time on Bactrim. I contracted MRSA after my c-section, and although it does the job it’s prescribed to do, I have never felt so lethargic, nauseous, and just extremely sleepy. The nausea comes in waves all day long, and I can hardly stay awake. I couldn’t figure out what was going on with me until I thought, I bet it’s my antibiotic! Bactrim does the healing of staph infections, but it wreaks havoc on your body as well."

• Anonymous
• July 3, 2012

For Bacterial Skin Infection "Medicine cleared up skin problem, but I have been tired, dizzy, nauseous, and have had stomach distress the whole time. Today was so bad I went to the emergency room just to be sure there was nothing else wrong with me."

• Uns...
• May 2, 2009

For Bacterial Skin Infection "I have been using this for about 6 days now and already notice a huge difference. The first few days I was very tired, but it was well worth it to get rid of the skin condition that came from nowhere. I am 32, and my skin had never done this before. I am so happy that this is working and thank God that it was not an expensive medication either, considering I am a widow and single mom. I would tell anyone with this problem to try this first and skip anything else. It is just an infection. Best of luck to you all."

• Anonymous
• June 7, 2011

For Bacterial Skin Infection "I have been on Bactrim for 1 week now, and my skin is almost completely clear. I had a very bad infection across my chin and up to the right side of my nose, small red bumps, and an itchy rash that would peel over and got infected. Within 2 days, I noticed a huge difference. This medicine saved my life for sure. Dermatitis and skin issues on the face can really do a number on your self-esteem. I am back to almost clear skin and so, so happy. A little tired and was dizzy at first, but promethazine helps with that if your doctor can prescribe it, it helps with nausea. Other than that, this medicine rocks."

• Cut...
• August 21, 2016

For Urinary Tract Infection "I had 3 UTIs this year so far, first in February, got cephalexin prescribed for 7 days. It returned in June, got prescribed ciprofloxacin for 5 days. It had returned in August. I asked the doctor why this is happening. She said they prescribed me the wrong drug the first time, the first drug was resistant to the bacteria I had. (Really? Why do we pay doctors for?) So I got Bactrim DS prescribed now, I'm on day 3, got it for 5 days. I weigh 100 pounds, so I try to take the pill with Activia and Yakult, that helps with the upset stomach. I felt as side effects, dry mouth (because it dehydrates you), loss of appetite, tiredness, fast heart beating. Hope this works for me, can't be sick anymore because of the doctor’s mistake!"

• Kay...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 1, 2019

For Urinary Tract Infection "Can’t sleep for more than 2 to 3 hours at a time, even after taking melatonin. Pretty severe nausea and even worse restlessness. Seems to be working for the UTI, but at the cost of side effects, which are leaving me exhausted and bedridden with no energy."

• Kay...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 1, 2019

For Urinary Tract Infection "Can’t sleep for more than 2 to 3 hours at a time, even after taking melatonin. Pretty severe nausea and even worse restlessness. Seems to be working for the UTI, but at the cost of side effects, which are leaving me exhausted and bedridden with no energy."

• Gra...
• May 7, 2016

For Bacterial Skin Infection "Super bad reaction. TERRIBLE! High fever, loss of appetite, lethargy, brown urine, liver inflammation. NO RASH. After 7 days on Bactrim DS, feeling beyond terrible, I did some internet research and suspected drug fever. Ceased taking. Went to my doctor who ran blood tests which confirmed my suspicions. Liver enzymes: AST/SGOT 335 H (mine) 14-36 (unit/L) (normal range) ALT/SGPT 581 H 9-52 (unit/L) Alk Phos 307 H 38-126 (unit/L) Levels started to go down after I stopped taking it; it took 3 months for levels to return to normal. A lot of information says you have a rash with drug reactions. I did NOT. My skin infection did clear up. It wasn't that bad to start with. I asked him for something topical. Was not my regular doc who prescribed it. My doc said it was overkill. Just because the guy's a doctor doesn't mean he is a good doctor! Be your own advocate. Another round of this crap--who knows! Sulfonamides are one of the drugs that can cause a severe reaction."

• Ann...
• June 7, 2017

For Upper Respiratory Tract Infection "I was prescribed this medicine for an upper respiratory infection and sinus infection. The first day it helped me sleep taking the two pills. My third day, I was feeling a lot better, able to get out of bed, felt like everything was going away. Later in the night on my third day, I started having chest pains, peeing a lot, and extremely tired. My fourth day, I was having more chest pain and my brain felt cloudy. I'm on my fifth day, and I don't know if I'm going to continue it. Started getting short of breath and lightheaded. Starting to feel how I was feeling before I started the medicine. I wouldn't recommend it at all."

• Hea...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 10, 2019

For Urinary Tract Infection "I was put on Bactrim for a UTI. This did not work for me after 5 doses, 800 mg. I felt like I had just had a baby, I was so very sore. Nauseous, tired, headache (possibly from not sleeping well on it). Amoxicillin always worked for me, I wish my doctor would listen to me. I know my body."

• spa...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 30, 2015

For Urinary Tract Infection "Knocked UTI symptoms out effectively after the first 24 hours. However, the side effects were not pleasant and were very noticeable: headache, nausea, dizziness, light-headedness, weakness, sweating, dry mouth, excessive thirst, tiredness. I'm on day 3 and have asked the doc to switch me to something else so I can function better at home and work. Trying Cipro. Be sure to drink water constantly when on Bactrim DS."

• Ell...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 28, 2019

For Urinary Tract Infection "Took 3 days of Cipro - UTI symptoms continued. Put on Bactrim, and initially, the symptoms started improving. But by the 3rd day, I could no longer eat - the nausea was terrible. Chills. Exhausted but couldn’t sleep due to heart palpitations. Finally, started vomiting. Decided that the side effects far outweighed the benefits of this particular drug."

• Ter...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 20, 2017

For Bacterial Skin Infection "I have been taking Bactrim DS for an infection in my toe from a pedicure. It's been 4 days of not feeling human. I'm terribly exhausted. It feels like trying to stay awake after taking NyQuil. After day 2, I started getting bad headaches. I'm only on it for seven days, so I'm going to suffer through it, but the side effects are almost unbearable."

• S S...
• April 12, 2017

For Bacterial Infection "I have been taking Bactrim for a total of 3 days. I have awful headaches, the shakes, spiky fevers, tightness in my chest, and can barely keep my eyes open from exhaustion. I have 7 days left of treatment, and I'm not sure I'm going to finish it. I feel worse with the medication than I did with the infection. Granted, it has reduced swelling and pain at the infection site. So I guess it's doing one thing right."

• Anonymous
• May 26, 2016

For Urinary Tract Infection "This is day 2 taking this med. It makes me very queasy and very tired. The nausea and tiredness start about 30 minutes after I take one, and seem to last for 6 or 7 hours. I try to take it with food, but I don't have much appetite (not gonna be mad about that, tho). The UTI seems pretty much gone, but I'm also taking Azo."

• Raj...
• January 2, 2018

For Kidney Infections "I always get digestive issues (severe nausea, diarrhea, gas, upset stomach) from antibiotics. I hadn't taken Bactrim before. For me, the side effects have been very minimal. I eat a serving of carbs about 10 minutes before taking it (bread, pasta, or a banana) and then drink a large glass of water with it, and have made sure to drink a lot of water generally. I'm also taking a probiotic midday. The side effects I've had are being more tired than usual, low appetite, and a bit of a dull headache for a couple of days. After the initial dose, I had intense nausea, but I had not eaten. I have one day remaining of the 7-day course. After one day on Bactrim, my infection symptoms went away. I'll need a follow-up, but so far, yay Bactrim!!"

• Dis...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 17, 2020

For Bacterial Skin Infection "I got a skin infection from a spider bite, so prescribed Bactrim. Relatively mild side effects except for sometimes feeling stoned. After my last dose (after 10 days), I experienced the worst side effects, I felt high, nauseous, exhausted, depressed, overly worried, my urination speed decreased, my urine was unusually dark despite drinking tons of water, I had chest pains, a cough (note, I also have asthma), a severe headache that lasted over one day, and I felt sick in general. Never taking this again, at this point, it's unbearable, and there's nothing more I can do right now other than wait it out."

• Dan...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 18, 2018

For Bacterial Skin Infection "Bactrim healed the abscess infection that I had, but the lethargy was absolutely crippling for me. The first day on it, I was driving and was literally falling asleep for 2-3 seconds at a time and almost crashing. Had to go home, obviously. Other than that, I had side effects, but even with caffeine, my body felt like it weighed 1000 lbs and couldn’t keep my eyes open."

• Moo...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 8, 2019

For Bacterial Skin Infection "I was prescribed Bactrim DS for an infected callus between my toes. I am diabetic and take Tramadol for fibromyalgia and take extra potassium. All three were listed as serious drug interactions, but the pharmacist assured me I would be okay. Three days in, I was miserable. Headaches, exhaustion, nausea, and loss of appetite. And no, my urine didn't change to orange. And I drank lots of water too. I finally had to discontinue it."