# Bentyl/Dicyclomine is the most messed up drug I've ever taken



## JennyBean

My GI doc gave me Bentyl (but I got the generic version) yesterday and I took it last nite for the first time. Oh my god. I read the side effects, made sure I was aware of what might possibly happen, and I swallowed it. I had the worst drug experience I've ever had.About 20 minutes after it went down my throat, I started having dissociative feelings. I was completely out of my mind and I think it was pretty obvious that I was on drugs. I had severe nausea and was running to the bathroom many times, but I never threw up. My lips were smacking, my heart was fluttering, my stomach was cramping in a different way than it normally does, I had shortness of breath, my legs felt like they had weights in them, my face looked like that of a ghost. Whenever I touched a part of my body, for instance my arm, it would feel like I was touching someone else's arm, not mine. I also had loose stools instead of the "constipation" like it named on the side effects, and I couldn't get to sleep last nite. That all lasted intensely for 3 hours. Today, my chest hurt and I felt dizzy, and I let my doctor's office know what happened, but no one was able to get back to me about it today. The doc gave me 20 mg, which is a normal dose of it, so I figured it would be alright. I don't know if I took too much, or if the pill just really didn't agree with me.I'm happy this pill works for a lot of people, but I don't plan on taking it anymore.


----------



## slacker

That is really bizzarre. Sorry to hear you had such a crappy time. It makes some people feel "Weird," but not like that! Please be careful, if you try another anti-spas. It coulda been a reaction to that one specifically, or it could be your system doesn't tolerate that kind of med at all.slacker


----------



## carolauren

Oh, my goodness! I take 10-20mg of Bentyl with no problems, but it certainly sounds like you can cross that one off your list!


----------



## yodiss

WOW- I take Bentyl and it doesn't even make me a little drowsy or anything!


----------



## jennieb54143

bentyl helps me alot. i dont even get the side effects much.


----------



## JennyBean

Thanks for all the concerns. My doctor's office did not get back to me this week, so hopefully I'll get an answer on what I should do next on Monday. My old GI doc gave me Levsin, and that didn't give me any weird side effects, but it also didn't do anything to help with the spasms either. Oh well. I'm just having a bad week of flare ups, that's all. It will hopefully go away soon!!!


----------



## jennieb54143

jennybean lol i used to be called jenny the penny or jennybear


----------



## DonnaDB

Well, I can't say much about your side effects as I take bentyl with virtually no side effects at all except maybe a dry mouth; however, I would consider getting a new DOCTOR if you called his office reporting all of those reactions and no one got back to you IMMEDIATELY!!!!


----------



## JennyBean

Haha. Jennie, my parents used to call me Jenny Penny when I was little!Donna, It's somewhat disappointing because all of the GI doctors that my insurance will cover are in the same freaking office! I'm on my second one there so far.


----------



## boxgirl73

Try Levsin/SL. A small pill you put under your tongue and let it dissolve. I had no reaction such as yours but I was on dicylomine and it didn't do anything. This works. Try it.


----------



## kinetic

hmmm dicyclomine didn't work for me either... actually I think it kinda made my symptoms a little worse, but not extremely so... didn't have any horrible side effects to that one... I take levsin now and that works great... been taking that as needed for about 2 years now.... the only pill I've had any serious reaction to was amitryptaline (sp?)... that one gave me horrible abdominal pains when I'd take it... and questran powder set off my IBS really bad when I had been doing well up until I took it... ah well... live and learn


----------



## JennyBean

Alritey, the doc put me on Donnatal and it's working well. The first time I took it, it made me pretty drowsy, but now it doesn't give me any side effects and it seems to take my pains away pretty well.I used to have levsin, but it didn't do anything for me. Thanks everyone for the input. I think I'm on target with my stomach for now!


----------



## bellyknot

Bentyl gave me horrid side effects too. I don't remember exactly what they were because I only took one dose about 5 years ago. Donnatol is better but doesn't seem to work very well. Unfortunately for me tylenol and codeine #3 is the only thing that really works so far. I make sure that I don't take more than two in a weeks time and that the pain is unbearable before I resort to such drastic measures.


----------



## Maureen Ann Leary

THE DOCTOR JUST GAVE ME DONNATAL TODAY. ANYONE KNOW WHAT I CAN EXPECT?


----------



## Maureen Ann Leary

Oh, also, I had dicyclomine and HATED IT!!! It made me feel so weird, I felt my arm twitch all the time and I felt like an air head. Yuck.


----------



## flux

The reaction you had is unusual enough for me to ask you how you know that it was Bentyl that you took?Do the pills have anything written on them? Did you bring them back to the pharmacist and have their identity confirmed? If the drug was indeed Bentyl, I suggest reporting it: http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/how.htm


----------



## Ophelia120

I'm 25 and have had I.B.S for seven years now. I was given nothing for a long period of time and finally given bentyl/dicyclomine about five years ago. With no major side effects other then a little elevation in heart rate or occasional sleepiness. However I've found it to be nothing more then a bandaid for the problem. I recently switched to Anaspaz possibly referred to as Levtin. It's a quick dissolving med that gets into your blood stream much more quickly by placing it under your tongue. My experience with it is minimal but I have found some releif with Anaspaz. I'm still waitng for Lotronex (GlaxoWelcome) to finish their studies and start redistributing. Lotronex in my mind was proof of a cure it just was'nt tested enough. I still have a supply I resort to when nothing else works.


----------



## lily2000

I was also prescribed 20mg of Bentyl several years ago, and I experienced all the major side effects including blurred vision and headaches. While the drug did stop the spasms, it practically knocked me out. I was so sleepy that I had to take the day off work or leave work early every time I needed to take a Bentyl. I told my doctor this, then she prescribed a 10mg dose instead. This smaller dose still stops the spams 90% of the time, and eliminates all the side effects except for fatigue. I still feel sluggish and need to curtail my activity for about an hour after I take a Bentyl, but it doesn't ruin my entire day anymore.


----------



## angelk753

I had the same reaction to those pills. I started seeind red spots. Then I started grinding my teeth and I couldnt sit still. I swear I was having flashbacks from some crazier days


----------



## Cindy3535

I take bentyl as well and it doesn't help that much I'm looking into herbs right now because I'm so sick of suffering with the D form of IBS I have had IBS for 5 years now and I hate it







I need ways to cope before I loose my mind.


----------



## cranberry93

I started taking the drug friday. I makes me feel weird. I has helped with the spams though


----------



## Aikido59

I first tried Bentyl 15 yrs ago...I started having crazy dreams.waking up stressed just exacerbated the problem. If the Doc doesn,t return your calls of drug reactions that are that severe... make an appt... when he comes in...kick him square in the Hmmm can I say nuts?


----------



## RitaLucy

Jenny,I would say that is a severe reaction to bentyl as well. I am one of the most allergic to meds person with high reaction rates to most meds and bentyl I thankfully can tolerate. I take the 10mg. capsules. I think what Flux suggested is vital. I was given the wrong medication before and had I not known what the pills were suppose to look like I would have taken someone else's prescription for a totally different ailment.If it is the bentyl then for sure you shouldn't take it again as well as other belladona type drugs.


----------



## JennyBean

I am taking Donnatal now, but luckily, my IBS has seemed to have gotten a lot better in the last month. It's the first time I haven't had pain EVERY SINGLE DAY in a couple of years! YAY! Anyways, the Donnatal worked great the first few times, but I took it yesterday because I had the worst stomach pain I've had in a long time, and the pill did nothing for it. Whatever though, at least it didn't give me any horrible side effects like the Bentyl.You know, I was so scared of those pills that I threw them away so I wouldn't confuse them with any of my other pills and accidently take one, and then I thought of taking them to the pharmacy after the fact when it was too late. I really don't think they gave me the wrong pills because I have had really severe reactions to other pills as well. I went to the ER after I took Zomig for a migraine, but that's another story. I think my problem is that I am a tiny, tiny person and the doctors give me too high doses to start out. I know better now, so I basically have to take my health and medicine into my own hands and figure out how much medicine I should be taking. I think everyone should be in tune to their bodies and health like that anyways. IBS sufferers are perfect advocates about how doctors don't know everything!!!Back to the Bentyl: The pills were actually dicyclomine, and they were small, light blue colored, and they tasted REALLY bad as soon as I put it in my mouth. I couldn't get the water in my mouth fast enough to get it down without tasting that horrible taste!That's all.


----------

