Cephalexin and Nausea: What Users Say

• Her...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 2, 2019

Cephalexin for Bladder Infection "I started with a bladder infection on Sunday. I was urinating every 10-15 minutes, and it was so painful and I felt a lot of pressure. I called the doctor, and I was put on Bactrim on Monday night. The Bactrim gave me the spins, constipation, and anxiety. It was a nightmare! After 5 doses of Bactrim, my infection kept getting worse. I called the doctor, and they switched me to Keflex. I started the Keflex at 9 pm, and in less than 24 hours, I felt much better. No side effects except a little bit of nausea and dizziness, so remember to eat when you take it. It is a miracle drug for urinary infections and bladder infections."

• Fat...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 6, 2020

Cephalexin for Bladder Infection "So I ended a Saturday at the ER. I ended up having a urinary infection, a severe one. The PA prescribed Keflex 500 mg for 7 days - it really helped after 2 days, but I noticed that it does bring out side effects on myself. I feel nauseous, tired, agitated, eyes feel hot, headaches. Even though I took 2 Advil, it was still there. I also feel super anxious, I've been having mood swings, I feel more sad, and somehow more depressed than I have been in the past. And I still have one more day to go."

• eis...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 27, 2020

Cephalexin for Bladder Infection "I was prescribed Keflex twice a day for 7 days for UTI but I only lasted 4 days. Before I took this medication I had some anxiety, but no other mental health issues besides my ADHD. The 2nd day I took it I became psychotic. I was severely depressed, paranoid, convinced everyone was talking about me or working against me. I cried all day. My mind was racing & convincing me of all kinds of delusions about myself & those around me. I was having vivid disturbing nightmares. I couldn’t eat anything. Constantly felt like I was going to vomit & slept from the time I got home from work until the next morning when I got up for work. I have been on antibiotics before, but this was my first AND LAST time I will ever take this."

• Pay...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 14, 2021

For Bacterial Infection "Yes, this drug has side effects, and yes, they suck, BUT I will say it works amazingly. Just like all of you reading, I did the same and got scared, but overall I have a REALLY BAD infection on my foot, and it’s been about 3 days on the meds, and my foot has already stopped swelling, isn’t red anymore, and pain has gone down a lot. If you are prescribed this med, do not be scared, it works. And again, yes, side effects suck. I got bloating, gassy, and nauseous. But I’d rather deal with these side effects than losing my foot! Please take it if you need to, and I really hope this helps."

• rin...
• February 17, 2009

Cephalexin for Bladder Infection "I usually never have side effects from antibiotics, but I had moderate dizziness and nausea. The nausea is not bad enough to send me to bed all day, but it does interfere with my daily schedule and leaves me extremely worn out and fatigued. It is frustrating. I have to take it four times a day for ten days."

• Lil...
• September 15, 2020

For Kidney Infections "Okay, so now after nearly two weeks of getting diagnosed with a kidney infection and of me coming here to read the reviews (a lot of me crying) of how it works for everyone else, here is mine. I was taking one cephalexin pill, 500 mg, twice a day for 14 days. I am on day 13; I didn’t start feeling better until day 4, which scared me because it seemed that I was healing slower than others. I still had kidney pain at day 10, but now I don’t. This pill, after 5 days, made me sleepy and nauseous, but that’s about it. I did find that on day 12, I started to pee out blood again, but I knew it came from my vagina by the discharge with it, so I ended up getting BV with this pill, which doesn’t surprise me; it is an antibiotic. So please know you may not feel better until four or five days; everyone heals differently. I wish you a speedy recovery :)"

• dav...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 16, 2016

Cephalexin for Skin or Soft Tissue Infection "Had an ingrown toenail infection. Was given 500mg Keflex taken 4 times a day for 7 days. It is working and I have no pain in my toe. However, so far I've had diarrhea, stomach pain, tiredness and weakness, dizzy spells, yellow skin, loss of appetite, nausea, red scratchy eyes. So most of the usual stuff. The long and short of it is my toe will be healed as long as I can deal with the side effects for a few more days."

• Anonymous
• July 9, 2013

For Bladder Infection "I am very sensitive to antibiotics. Bactrim makes me nauseous, gives me a rapid heartbeat, and makes me feel like I have a fever. Cephalexin, on the other hand, doesn't make me feel sick at all. The only thing it really does is make me exhausted for the first 1-3 hours after taking the dose and makes me feel high during that time. Not sure if that is a good or bad thing. However, if I stand up during this 1-3 hour time frame, I do get a little dizzy and slightly nauseous, but it's nothing. Overall, good medicine."

• Jea...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 28, 2019

Cephalexin for Bladder Infection "Took a 500 mg dose of Keflex twice a day for one week - I had a UTI. Side effects were diarrhea, headaches, felt depressed, upset stomach, and nausea. Now I’m having stomach cramping. Just hope the urinary tract infection I had is gone after taking this strong antibiotic."

• Kri...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 10, 2016

For Bladder Infection "Commonly known as Keflex. I had burning when urinating, urgency, retention, bloating, and went to the ER. The ER MD diagnosed me with bladder cystitis (progression from a run-of-the-mill UTI from - regretfully - ignoring the symptoms). I was prescribed 500 MG Keflex 4 times a day, 2000 MG/2 G daily. Never took Keflex before, but I know it's been around a while and works wonderfully. This is actually my first day (second dose in). I already feel a difference. It's true - this drug does make you sleepy (for some odd reason). I have not felt nauseous yet. Must take this with food, as always with any antibiotic - plenty of water too. Smells like rotten eggs, so toss it back and swallow."

• Anonymous
• July 22, 2011

Cephalexin for Skin or Soft Tissue Infection "Works very well for treating the cellulitis I got from an insect bite. But don't drink alcohol while you are on this medication. I had half a beer and started feeling really nauseous, had a migraine and my stomach hurt."

• Pai...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 11, 2013

For Kidney Infections "Taking two 500mg twice a day for a kidney infection. 28-year-old female. I normally get extremely nauseated and dizzy on antibiotics. I do not with these. No side effects as of yet (day 3). I feel an improvement in my kidneys but not as much as I had hoped at this point. I'm just happy I am not nauseated on these. I am eating Greek yogurt daily to avoid a nasty yeast infection from taking antibiotics. I do have to warn you, every time I open the pill bottle I get a strong bad smell. It's worth it to get some kind of relief from my angry kidneys!"

• Gre...
• January 5, 2012

For Upper Respiratory Tract Infection "After just the 2nd day, my energy levels increased dramatically. I was being treated for bronchitis and was also prescribed an inhaler and cough syrup. All three helped my congestion, and after about the 4th day, I stopped waking up to hacking fits. I would suggest eating something light before taking it because it did make me nauseous."

• Drs...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 25, 2015

For Bladder Infection "I am 15 weeks pregnant and got my first bladder infection of the pregnancy, and hopefully the last, as I'm sure I know what caused it. My OB prescribed cephalexin 500 mg twice a day for 7 days. I took my first dose last night. I took it on a somewhat empty stomach, but because I was going to sleep, I didn't think too much of it. I woke up feeling a little dizzy and nauseated, but already NO pain with urination! I'll just make sure to take it with food from now on. Overall, this is a great antibiotic for me, someone who is pretty sensitive to medications."

• Lyn...
• June 8, 2019

For Skin or Soft Tissue Infection "Cephalexin got rid of the infection, but I had horrible side effects. I took it for 4 days, at a dose of 500 mg, 4 times a day. I had horrible headaches, diarrhea, major depression, dry and bloodshot eyes, nausea, was very tired, and didn't have motivation to do anything. Anxiety, joints were on fire! Stopped a day ago and still feel awful! Won't take it again because of side effects."

• Ash...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 4, 2020

For Bladder Infection "I was prescribed Keflex 500 mg dose 4 times a day for a bladder infection. I’m sensitive to medicine, but this seems to be the one that I’m not as bad with compared to others. I’m on my 4th day, and I feel like it’s helping the symptoms of my UTI. I also have E. coli in my urine, so it treats both. At first, I felt so nasty, sluggish, depressed, like I felt like I had the flu or just was really sick. Now, in my 4th day, I’m still tired. I also had the feeling of nausea that is starting to go away. I feel like even if it gives you tiredness and some side effects, just ride it out. It’s hard to do, I feel like 7 days is just too long to take 4 times a day for an antibiotic, but try to stick it out and see if the side effects start to fade as you take it more. I would rather take this instead of something that makes me have heart palpitations. Everything has a side effect, so if you can bear it, just try to push through it. Good luck to everyone, hope I can finish mine."

• Tay...
• December 30, 2015

For Kidney Infections "I got put on cephalexin for an untreated UTI, which obviously spread to my kidneys. I am currently on day 3, and I do feel so much better kidney pain and urinating wise. But it gives me insane diarrhea, makes me feel very nauseous, makes me confused with really bad anxiety, and gives me killer heartburn. I am currently on 500 mg, 4 times a day."

• Jes...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 2, 2018

Cephalexin for Bladder Infection "I have been going back and forth battling a UTI for about a year. I take D-Mannose, which usually knocks it out in a day or so, but the D-Mannose has been giving me weird pains in my carotids. Anyway, I decided to go get a script after waking up with severe bladder pain a few days ago. About six hours after the first dose, the pain subsided. This medication will make you nauseated if you don't take it with at least 6 oz of water and a snack. No negative side effects yet! Love Keflex!"

• Cle...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 23, 2019

For Bladder Infection "Got a UTI. Dr. gave me Macrobid at first, and I was so dizzy and nauseous that I couldn't work. After he called in cephalexin, I immediately felt better. In fact, the first two days I felt great. The next five days I was tired, but that has been the only side effect. This is my last day of it. I do think I got a yeast infection, despite taking some probiotics, though I forgot on two days. I used Monistat last night, just in case. I usually have such horrid symptoms with any antibiotics that I'm glad this one didn't give me bad side effects. I'll definitely request it again if needed. In the meanwhile, I'll go back to D-Mannose, which does an amazing job at preventing UTIs."

• ano...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 24, 2020

For Kidney Infections "I’m a healthy 20-year-old female who took this drug for about 4 days before having to call it quits. I’m 9 weeks pregnant at the moment. Not sure if that was making this worse or not, but I had the WORST fatigue I’ve ever experienced. I was physically unable to get out of bed other than to use the bathroom and shower. My body felt extremely heavy, and I was very confused and out of it. It made me nauseous, I was already experiencing 10 times worse. I ended up having a severe episode of heart racing for about 10 minutes on the 4th day. Blood pressure shot up to 150, and pulse got high. I threw this away. Listen to your body. I know it’s important to finish medications, but when the side effects are this bad, this is dangerous. Since my urine has completely stopped burning and it’s clear again, I have made another appointment with my doctor to confirm my infection is gone. Home tests came back negative. If not, I will request something else because this was AWFUL."

• Liv...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 21, 2016

For Kidney Infections "Have been using cephalexin for 2 days now due to a UTI which started on a Monday, then got worse and spread to a kidney infection by Tuesday, then had all the symptoms by Tuesday night and started taking cephalexin Wednesday afternoon, started working the next day, although I get random severe headaches, feel dizzy when standing, feel nauseous in the morning and with no appetite, but that will go once I've finished these antibiotics. I'd much rather be feeling like this than how I felt with no treatment on the kidney infection :)"

• Lou...
• September 10, 2017

For Bladder Infection "The first antibiotic I took did nothing, so my doctor put me on Cephalexin AN. Within a few hours, my symptoms started to subside, probably about 5 hours later. I'm now on the second day, and I feel back to normal after 11 days of what seemed like hell. It makes me feel slightly nauseated, but it's worth it. Make sure you're taking probiotics, as antibiotics kill good and bad bacteria."

• fat...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 23, 2013

Cephalexin for Skin or Soft Tissue Infection "This medication gave me really bad traveling gas with cold sweats and made me very nauseous on the very first pill! I might ask my doctor to replace this medication with something else. I find it very strong, especially for a mild skin infection due to a spider bite!"

• Aly...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 30, 2018

For Skin or Soft Tissue Infection "Ended up with an infected wound after foot surgery. Was leaking pus and blood from the incision site. Was put on 500 mg 2x a day for 10 days. After the 3rd day, I noticed no more pus, just blood draining. The pain decreased as well. No bad reaction as I usually get very nauseous from other antibiotics, but not Keflex. I made sure to take the dose on time every day and had a small meal 10 minutes before each dose. 2 hours after each dose, I took a double dose of probiotics and was also taking Saccharomyces boulardii (another probiotic, but it is a yeast and is not killed by antibiotics since it is not a bacteria). Did NOT experience any stomach pains, diarrhea, anxiety, lightheadedness like others. Also stopped drinking coffee and consuming sugar while on these antibiotics, bacteria thrive on sugar in the gut, and the coffee makes your body acidic."

• Mis...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 30, 2014

For Kidney Infections "I had just taken Diflucan for what I thought was a yeast infection. Then I got a sinus infection and I started taking cephalexin. I noticed, 3 days in, some back pain (flank pain just to the left of my spine) I had been having for a few weeks suddenly went away. I went back to the doctor, who agreed that I probably originally had a bladder infection that spread to one of my kidneys. Glad I got the sinus infection, or who knows what would have happened. The medication made me feel a little nauseated after the first few days, but it's possible that feeling was related to the sickness."