Can Flu/Fever affect Meds and Stop them working?

[Matt B]

Hi all,
I'm sorry that my first post is a question, I've been reading on the forum for a while now but not registered to post as I didn't think I had much to add or help with. Just to give you a little background.

Around September last year I just got hit with extreme anxiety and couldn't sleep or function at all, I spiralled down very quickly and became suicidal. I'd been treated for serious depression around 10 years before after a suicide attempt but had been off medication for years since and never had anxiety like this. It really just came out of the Blue.

It was truly unbearable, my heart goes out to anyone who suffers with this too. After many weeks of hell, and many drugs changes by a Consultant Psychiatrist I ended up on the following meds:

Quetiapine 200mg at night
Effexor 150mg at night
Mirtazapine 45mg at night

After a couple of months and after getting over the initial side affects I started to feel better, the suicidal thoughts went away and since then I have felt almost normal. I've had very little anxiety for nearly 5 months and have been taking my meds as prescribed religiously.

My real question is one that may sound a little strange, around five days ago I picked up some sort of Virus and had a temp of over 38 for a few days, felt generally rubbish and did very little. I was still taking my meds and apart from the fever was okay.

Then one evening I just got hit by a massive wave of anxiety, stomach in knots, feeling sick, unable to think, sweaty, crying, just terrible. So I went to bed and woke up the next day feeling okay again. My temp had got back to normal and I thought, okay it was just a blip. Then that evening, exactly the same thing happened and it's been pretty constant since. I feel like I've gone back to where I was before all of the meds and treatment and I've no idea why? I'm so so scared that I'll be like this from now on. I just want the world to open up and swallow me.

So I thought, maybe someone else out there may have experienced something similar, could a fever affect the meds being absorbed? Could it stop them working?

I just want to be able to lead a normal life and play with my kids etc, not be scared to get out of bed like this morning.

I really appreciate anyone taking the time to read this thread, I apologise it's a bit long winded, it's hard to know how to write these things down.

Thanks all,

Matt

[Annie0904]

Hi Matt
I think most people here would agree with me that when we have any physical illness it often triggers anxiety again. It will just be a blip and hopefully as you start to feel better the anxiety should lessen again. Worrying that the anxiety is back will make it worse so it is important that you accept it and believe that it is just a blip.

[Rennie1989]

Colds tend to trigger my anxiety off purely because of the symptoms of the cold, rather than the virus itself. Aching muscles, difficulty breathing and loss of appetite trigger mine off. There is no evidence to show that illnesses stop our medication from working, they just cause their own, different problems instead.

[Matt B]

Thanks very much for the replies, I'm guessing you are probably right. With any luck it will improve once I'm 100%

Thanks again:)

[swgrl09]

I agree so much with the other posts. Anytime you are under the weather or even just emotionally under stress it can make anxiety worse.

Hope you feel better soon

[Lemondrizzle]

Yes I'm a I'm an emotional panicking wreck and feel mess aren't working.