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Comment by thorin | Hacker News Reader

I've had Lariam once or twice as Malarone used to be really expensive in the UK (10$ vs 150$ ish) and I don't think I had any of the famous side effects. It can be hard to tell when you're in a radically different country, very hot, with strange food and drinking a lot...

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I took Larium (Mefloquine) for about 7 months while in the US Peace Corps. I had incredibly vivid dreams, all of which I would remember and I also developed depression that went away as soon as I switched off the drug. No good.

I ended up working for a company in another country that didn't have any requirements regarding malaria prophylaxis so I didn't take any drugs. I got malaria and it was god awful for a couple days but got over it quickly. Compared to the side effects of Larium or taking heavy doses of Doxycycline or getting the more spendy Malarone, it was worth rolling the dice.

Do not drink at all while taking Lariam, at least in my experience. I would never take that crap again. I woke up on the side of a road where the police had dropped me off right outside town after some moderate drinking, and I am a heavy "partier."

Not only that but it brought out weird parts of my personality that aren't normally more than background chatter I ignore in my daily life, like grandiosity and melodramatic emotionality including severe melancholy.

Last time I took Larium was near the White Nile in Uganda for 3 weeks. The beer there is pretty strong and people stay up late! During the trip I did feel pretty lethargic, but it was very hot and I was very active so I didn't blame the larium. No other symptoms. On other trips I've taken Chloroquinine/Proaganol (this is what it's called in the UK anyway) and it was fine, I think that is only useful in a few regions now though?

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