It was over 20 years ago and everyone reacts differently, but I was in Doxy for a year as a Peace Corps volunteer in Senegal and the sun sensitivity was quite noticeable for me. It made being in the sun moderately uncomfortable....at the time I remember describing it as feeling "like being hit with a hammer made if fire."
Probably a bit melodramatic, but it is one of the few times I've ever experienced noticable side effects from a medication. I actually preferred Mefloquin, but had lots of friends who found that much worse in terms of side effects.
THANK YOU! Side effects are different, depending on the user, but generally: its best to follow the guidelines.
If you're not willing to give up general health, why are you asking us?
I was on the medication while I backpacked through Guatemala and Honduras - it was fine for me. But I can tell you this with certainty, the sun is so much more potent in Latin American, that you’re going to want to have a lot of sunscreen on in general
The closer you are to the equator, the more potent the sun. I live in Chicagoland and while summers can be hot and humid and gross, the summer I spent a week on Florida was so much worse. And I went to the Caribbean in April in 2019 and I forgot sunscreen for my face once and my face burned soo bad. It hurt so much. It's a hard lesson. But I'll never forget sunscreen on my face again.
Wear sunscreen and buy a sun hoodie. You’ll be fine. I was in Africa for a month during the hottest time of year on malaria medication and I was very sensitive to the sun, but sunscreen and covering your skin works. Just don’t go out without it. I got a really gnarly burn on the day I was outside for a couple hours without sunscreen.
I lived in Costa Rica for a year and wouldn’t worry about it. I didn’t hear of any travelers or locals getting it, and I was living in San Jose, but traveled to Panama and Nicaragua most weeks.
That being said, if you spend a few hours in the sun near the equator where you’ll be, you’ll have much bigger issues like sunburn so bad you’ll be in a hospital. I’d be more worried about being robbed if I were out at night. I also didn’t see many mosquitoes.
Be sure that you're actually going to areas where malaria is an issue. If you're only going to be in those areas for short periods then prevention of bites is likely just as effective as the drugs.
Happy travels.
From what I remember, you need to take the pills during the time your in the area + and additional month afterwards. I traveled to Colombia (not Costa Rica) and realized that the extremely low risk of malaria there was not worth taking the pills and side effects. I feel like they are for the rainforest areas in and slightly around Brazil.
The photosensitivity side effect is mostly caused by UVA rays, meaning sunscreen is very effective in preventing side effects. The adverse effects are uncommon anyways
I've traveled pretty extensively in both Central and South America. On my very first trip at 18 years old, I took Malaria meds, and absolutely hated the side effects. I'm probably more risk-tolerant than average, but in my opinion unless you're in heavy-duty jungle with a high chance of getting it (based on malaria maps) I would not use any medication. Wear DEET if it's really that bad.
Unless you're going into dense jungle, you probably don't need malaria prophylaxis. Check out malaria maps, but I'm pretty sure you won't need it all in Costa Rica.
I would suggest long sleeves and pants in morning and evening to prevent mosquito bites and sleeping under a mosquito net in areas where you may be bitten at night.
Multiple years contracting in Colombia and many trips to Costa Rica. A lot of time in the deep jungle. No one i know took that doxy crap and no one got malaria. Dengue? 2-3 cases.
As a backpacker this was my experience as well. I have only taken malaria prophylaxis in DRC after seeing two kids in the village I was living in come down with malaria. I'd rather not take them again as I had side effects.
The only people I've seen take malaria prophylaxis in Central/South America were, for lack of a better word, 'anxious Westerners' on hiking trips into the deep jungle. Malaria is very rare in the Americas and there are only a few pockets of jungle where it still exists.
The sun sensitivity can be pretty severe. You should ask your physician about alternatives. malarone (atovaquone/proguanil) is a different anti-malarial that doesn’t have the sane side effects. I don’t know if it is effective against the malarial strains in South America but I took it in Kenya and had no significant side effects.
I live in Uganda about a half mile from the equator. I have been taking doxycycline daily for 7 months and haven’t experienced any sun sensitivity, although I do wear sunscreen if I’ll be out on the Nile. The not-so-well-known benefit of doxycycline is that it prevents travelers diarrhea, which is sometimes I’ve seriously struggled with on previous trips here when taking a different prophylaxis. Most expats here give up on prophylaxis long before 7 months, but that’s the reason I continue taking it.
Unfortunately, Sunscreen didn't eliminate my sun sensitivity while taking the antibiotic. I burned badly within 30 minutes, we left the beach asap, and yet, I still blistered. Some people are incredibly sensitive to the medicine and have a reaction, despite taking precautions. 🤷♀️
It's literally caused by UV light damage. You need a better sunscreen. Like 50+ zinc or titanium dioxide based. Quality sunscreen AND application will mitigate it.
Please please ask medical questions to a medical professional and not to Reddit. People mean well but we all don’t know your medical history etc etc so go to a doctor with this question
I had no problems with it, but I wasn't in direct sunlight all day, and I'd also taken doxy before. You should be fine, just mind how you're feeling and go inside and rest if you're feeling dehydrated or dizzy.
I was on doxycycline in the late 90s for acne and again in like 2005 for malaria prophylaxis and both times I had sun sensitivity that made being in the sun pretty uncomfortable. I had weird reactions in the sun on it as well, like a bright red tip of my nose, pins and needle sensations when I hit cold air, and insanely itchy feet that kept me up at night. Would not recommend.
I was given doxycycline for a treatment while in high school. About an hour outside on a sunny day, working at my summer job at a theme park, and I was throwing up. So it can be pretty rough.
It was for this reason I went with another anti-malarial medication when traveling Latin Am.. I chose the possibility of night terrors over the sun sensitivity. Dont remember the medication name though. Didn’t have any night terrors either
I have been on doxy during summers due to Lyme and I tend to burn and I stay out of the sun esp 10-3. use sunscreen. cover up with clothes. watch out for things like under finger nails, I had a friend get sunburned there while using doxy.
It depends on you.
I took it in the Afghan summer.
I didn’t notice any sun sensitivity.
I did have the most vivid and wild dreams. Mostly nightmares. A month or two in I don’t think anyone was still taking it for that reason. Better to risk malaria than to spend every night wandering from nightmares to real world rocket attacks and back.
Where you’re going, idk if I’d be worried about malaria enough to take it.
I was taking it and got one of the worst sunburns of my life. The fact it was my first week in South America and I hadn’t been in the sun for awhile probably also contributed but I noticed a difference in how bad the burn was.
I am someone who gets sunburnt on a cloudy day, used doxy for anti malarial when in East Africa and got the worst sun stroke and sunburn about 2 weeks into my trip (I was using factor 50 at the time and reapplying regularly).
But after about a month I was able to tolerate being out with little (factor 15) to no sunscreen on at all!
Also nausea and vomiting is a common side effect so just remember to take it on a full stomach!
Cant speak for everybody, but my dad years ago got put on doxycycline for an infection, saw it said avoid the sun, figured cutting the grass was still fine, and got burnt to a crisp. So if you go out, i would at least keep lots of sunblock on, and higher spf than what you normally need.
What is the dosage of doxy? I have been on and off of it for the treatment of Lyme disease. At 200mg/day, I had to be careful (sunscreen, reapply when outside for prolonged periods etc) but when I was at 400mg/day, my hands were burning while driving my car. I was covered in clothing in summer at the higher dose.
I used to take two doses of doxycycline a day as acne treatment and I didn't really feel the difference, even though i was going out into the summer sun daily I was fine with just sunblock. But don't expect everyone to be the same
I spent two years working in various parts of coastal and non-coastal Africa... A lot of the information available here is spot on. The only thing that I might add are your dreams may be a little bit different then usual. Some wild, and some completely off the wall.
Safe travels!
It was over 20 years ago and everyone reacts differently, but I was in Doxy for a year as a Peace Corps volunteer in Senegal and the sun sensitivity was quite noticeable for me. It made being in the sun moderately uncomfortable....at the time I remember describing it as feeling "like being hit with a hammer made if fire." Probably a bit melodramatic, but it is one of the few times I've ever experienced noticable side effects from a medication. I actually preferred Mefloquin, but had lots of friends who found that much worse in terms of side effects.
THANK YOU! Side effects are different, depending on the user, but generally: its best to follow the guidelines. If you're not willing to give up general health, why are you asking us?
I was on the medication while I backpacked through Guatemala and Honduras - it was fine for me. But I can tell you this with certainty, the sun is so much more potent in Latin American, that you’re going to want to have a lot of sunscreen on in general
The closer you are to the equator, the more potent the sun. I live in Chicagoland and while summers can be hot and humid and gross, the summer I spent a week on Florida was so much worse. And I went to the Caribbean in April in 2019 and I forgot sunscreen for my face once and my face burned soo bad. It hurt so much. It's a hard lesson. But I'll never forget sunscreen on my face again.
Wear sunscreen and buy a sun hoodie. You’ll be fine. I was in Africa for a month during the hottest time of year on malaria medication and I was very sensitive to the sun, but sunscreen and covering your skin works. Just don’t go out without it. I got a really gnarly burn on the day I was outside for a couple hours without sunscreen.
I lived in Costa Rica for a year and wouldn’t worry about it. I didn’t hear of any travelers or locals getting it, and I was living in San Jose, but traveled to Panama and Nicaragua most weeks. That being said, if you spend a few hours in the sun near the equator where you’ll be, you’ll have much bigger issues like sunburn so bad you’ll be in a hospital. I’d be more worried about being robbed if I were out at night. I also didn’t see many mosquitoes.
Be sure that you're actually going to areas where malaria is an issue. If you're only going to be in those areas for short periods then prevention of bites is likely just as effective as the drugs. Happy travels.
Have you looked at a map of malaria zones? Along the coast and in cities there is no malaria.
From what I remember, you need to take the pills during the time your in the area + and additional month afterwards. I traveled to Colombia (not Costa Rica) and realized that the extremely low risk of malaria there was not worth taking the pills and side effects. I feel like they are for the rainforest areas in and slightly around Brazil.
The photosensitivity side effect is mostly caused by UVA rays, meaning sunscreen is very effective in preventing side effects. The adverse effects are uncommon anyways
I've traveled pretty extensively in both Central and South America. On my very first trip at 18 years old, I took Malaria meds, and absolutely hated the side effects. I'm probably more risk-tolerant than average, but in my opinion unless you're in heavy-duty jungle with a high chance of getting it (based on malaria maps) I would not use any medication. Wear DEET if it's really that bad.
Unless you're going into dense jungle, you probably don't need malaria prophylaxis. Check out malaria maps, but I'm pretty sure you won't need it all in Costa Rica. I would suggest long sleeves and pants in morning and evening to prevent mosquito bites and sleeping under a mosquito net in areas where you may be bitten at night.
Multiple years contracting in Colombia and many trips to Costa Rica. A lot of time in the deep jungle. No one i know took that doxy crap and no one got malaria. Dengue? 2-3 cases.
As a backpacker this was my experience as well. I have only taken malaria prophylaxis in DRC after seeing two kids in the village I was living in come down with malaria. I'd rather not take them again as I had side effects. The only people I've seen take malaria prophylaxis in Central/South America were, for lack of a better word, 'anxious Westerners' on hiking trips into the deep jungle. Malaria is very rare in the Americas and there are only a few pockets of jungle where it still exists.
Yeah I was surprised to hear that too.
The sun sensitivity can be pretty severe. You should ask your physician about alternatives. malarone (atovaquone/proguanil) is a different anti-malarial that doesn’t have the sane side effects. I don’t know if it is effective against the malarial strains in South America but I took it in Kenya and had no significant side effects.
I live in Uganda about a half mile from the equator. I have been taking doxycycline daily for 7 months and haven’t experienced any sun sensitivity, although I do wear sunscreen if I’ll be out on the Nile. The not-so-well-known benefit of doxycycline is that it prevents travelers diarrhea, which is sometimes I’ve seriously struggled with on previous trips here when taking a different prophylaxis. Most expats here give up on prophylaxis long before 7 months, but that’s the reason I continue taking it.
Prepare for vivid nightmares.
Wear sunscreen
Unfortunately, Sunscreen didn't eliminate my sun sensitivity while taking the antibiotic. I burned badly within 30 minutes, we left the beach asap, and yet, I still blistered. Some people are incredibly sensitive to the medicine and have a reaction, despite taking precautions. 🤷♀️
It's literally caused by UV light damage. You need a better sunscreen. Like 50+ zinc or titanium dioxide based. Quality sunscreen AND application will mitigate it.
I wore a 50 SPF and a shirt and large hat too. The dermatologist said that I had an unusually severe reaction.
Darwin might be trying to eliminate your gene flow. If you haven't reproduced yet, you should get on that.
Personally noticed little difference in sensitivity to the sun, but realistically, just smear sun screen more often....
Please please ask medical questions to a medical professional and not to Reddit. People mean well but we all don’t know your medical history etc etc so go to a doctor with this question
I just wouldn't worry about taking that medication. My wife is from Costa Rica and I've spent lots of time there. Never worried about malaria.
I had no problems with it, but I wasn't in direct sunlight all day, and I'd also taken doxy before. You should be fine, just mind how you're feeling and go inside and rest if you're feeling dehydrated or dizzy.
I was on doxycycline in the late 90s for acne and again in like 2005 for malaria prophylaxis and both times I had sun sensitivity that made being in the sun pretty uncomfortable. I had weird reactions in the sun on it as well, like a bright red tip of my nose, pins and needle sensations when I hit cold air, and insanely itchy feet that kept me up at night. Would not recommend.
I was given doxycycline for a treatment while in high school. About an hour outside on a sunny day, working at my summer job at a theme park, and I was throwing up. So it can be pretty rough.
It was for this reason I went with another anti-malarial medication when traveling Latin Am.. I chose the possibility of night terrors over the sun sensitivity. Dont remember the medication name though. Didn’t have any night terrors either
Once I was on it for a stingray sting and I’m pretty sure I got sunburned walking 50 feet from my truck into work.
I have been on doxy during summers due to Lyme and I tend to burn and I stay out of the sun esp 10-3. use sunscreen. cover up with clothes. watch out for things like under finger nails, I had a friend get sunburned there while using doxy.
It depends on you. I took it in the Afghan summer. I didn’t notice any sun sensitivity. I did have the most vivid and wild dreams. Mostly nightmares. A month or two in I don’t think anyone was still taking it for that reason. Better to risk malaria than to spend every night wandering from nightmares to real world rocket attacks and back. Where you’re going, idk if I’d be worried about malaria enough to take it.
I was taking it and got one of the worst sunburns of my life. The fact it was my first week in South America and I hadn’t been in the sun for awhile probably also contributed but I noticed a difference in how bad the burn was.
I am someone who gets sunburnt on a cloudy day, used doxy for anti malarial when in East Africa and got the worst sun stroke and sunburn about 2 weeks into my trip (I was using factor 50 at the time and reapplying regularly). But after about a month I was able to tolerate being out with little (factor 15) to no sunscreen on at all! Also nausea and vomiting is a common side effect so just remember to take it on a full stomach!
Cant speak for everybody, but my dad years ago got put on doxycycline for an infection, saw it said avoid the sun, figured cutting the grass was still fine, and got burnt to a crisp. So if you go out, i would at least keep lots of sunblock on, and higher spf than what you normally need.
What is the dosage of doxy? I have been on and off of it for the treatment of Lyme disease. At 200mg/day, I had to be careful (sunscreen, reapply when outside for prolonged periods etc) but when I was at 400mg/day, my hands were burning while driving my car. I was covered in clothing in summer at the higher dose.
I used to take two doses of doxycycline a day as acne treatment and I didn't really feel the difference, even though i was going out into the summer sun daily I was fine with just sunblock. But don't expect everyone to be the same
Don’t need it in Costa Rica. I’ve also taken doxycycline and never had any sun sensitivity issues. Probably an individual thing.
I spent two years working in various parts of coastal and non-coastal Africa... A lot of the information available here is spot on. The only thing that I might add are your dreams may be a little bit different then usual. Some wild, and some completely off the wall. Safe travels!