Hi,

I am asking this on behalf of my wife, as the is too tired to research her problems any longer.

My wife has suffered from non-nerve related pains the last 3-4 months. Due to these pains she has tried a number of medicines, including anti-depressants and antibiotics. When testing some of these medicines she started having nerve-related sensations. I'll give a simple chronological rundown. The dates aren't exact but

9 weeks ago ago: tried SSRI (Sertralin) antidepressants. after just one dose she started having weird nerve sensations all over her body within a few hours, first pins-and-needles and then more painful ones. We stopped right away with the medication. The sensations abated in a few days but she had minor remnants of it for about a week.

5 weeks ago: we both started eating Azithromycin antibiotics to treat a rare bacteria infection. She started having the same type of tingling and burning sensations all over her body, but she didn't describe them as painful, just as weird and bothersome. The sensations moved around a lot from day to day and wasn't focused on a specific part of her body. After ending the 5-day antibiotic treatment she still had them, all up until...

2 weeks ago: started a second antidepressant trial, this time with Mirtazapin. A few days in she felt that the tingling and burning she had started becoming more pronounced and painful. A week in the had to stop with the antidepressants because the feared the neurological pain would keep on increasing.

Today: the neurological sensations have become more of a painful ache. The tingling and burning sensations are mostly gone, or rather replaced by more pronounced feeling of pain. It's also more constant. What's interesting is that the pain is located almost exclusively on the right side of her body. She reports that the main source of pain is her right hand, foot and lower leg. She also feels pain around her right arm pit and breasts. She still has the odd tingling/burning (on both left and right side of her body, as well as her head, mouth at times etc). She occasionally has a feeling of numbness to her her right hand/right foot, but she has no issues with balance. She also isn't sensitive to touch, I can massage the areas that she feels pain from without the pain increasing. However she does feel a bit "sore" when I massage her so obviously something is going on there.

Sertralin, Azithromycin and Mirtazapin all list paresthesia as a side effect. And I see some sources that mention antibiotics as a possible cause for neuropathy. She is also eating diazepam (Valium, basically) and morphine on a daily basis for treating pain and anxiety.

When I read up on sensory peripheral neuropathy it always says that it usually starts in both feet and travel up the legs and then to the hands. For her the tingling and burning moved all over the body every day, and when she started having more pronounced pain it was first in the right hand, then the right foot and lower leg. So it seems she doesn't fit the standard symtoms.

Coupled with this she is also suffering from a lot of anxiety due to all the pain and the prolonged exposure to crappy healthcare that offers little help. I know there are lots of reports from people with anxiety and depression of similar symtoms that eventually just abate when they feel better mentally. However that feels like to easy an explanation and I wouldn't feel content just saying "it will probably pass".

So, I'm curious if anyone recognizes these symtoms and the way her nerve pain has developed? Anyone else suffered neuropathy from antibiotics or antidepressants? Or valium/diazepam? I'm glad for ANY HELP and any input regarding these issues.

Thank you very much for taking the time to read.