During the spring of 2018, I developed an upper airway infection that required the short-term use of antibiotics. The prescription that I received quickly began to alleviate my symptoms. Before I even finished the course of my antibiotic, I was feeling significantly better.
Several weeks elapsed. I started to notice that I was experiencing extreme soreness, as well as pain, in my joints. These symptoms were especially severe upon first awakening in the morning. I started to question if I might be developing fibromyalgia.
Not another illness to manage, I kept thinking. It honestly hurt to even put my clothes on. These symptoms persisted, for a few weeks. I had a follow-up appointment with my ENT, the specialist who had previously prescribed the antibiotic I recently finished taking.
I told him that I was relieved that my airway infection symptoms were drastically reduced. I mentioned the persistent myalgia that I was experiencing. My ENT said that my symptoms were a delayed response to having discontinued my antibiotic. I had never even heard of this being a possibility.
