Cleansing diet symptoms and conditions

I am a 49 year old woman in good health. My blood pressure has always been low, but in January it was up a bit, yet still within the normal range. I was seeing a new doctor, who suggested I start Lisinopril just as a precaution to keep it from going higher. I started having side effects right away. Inability to sleep well, bad dreams, achy joints, fatigue, and paranoia, but the worst was the persistent cough, which worsened the longer I was on the medicine. I sincerely thought I was being poisoned, either intentionally or accidentally. Little did I know at the time I was poisoning myself with a medication I did not really need. I called my doctor several times to report the cough, which was keeping me up at nights and was generally bringing my quality of life down to a intolerable level. We changed my allergy medicine several times and he even ordered a chest x-ray to eliminate any really ugly problems like lung cancer, etc. After 5 1/2 months, the doctor says, almost as an afterthought, that perhaps I should quit taking the Lisinopril. I asked why that would have any effect on my coughing and he said it was rare, but it had been known to cause some coughing in a small number of patients. After doing research on this drug, I do not believe these side effects are rare at all, and I can not understand why I had to suffer for so long before my doctor considered the fact it could be medication related. The drug companies responsible for manufacturing this medication, and all similar ones, both formulary and generics, should educate the physicians prescribing them of these detrimental side effects. I have only been off Lisinopril for six days, and the cough has gotten worse, even to the point where my family members sincerely thought they should call an ambulance to take me to the hospital. I realize it can take a number of days to get the drug out of my system, so I am pushing fluids and have myself on a cleansing diet to speed up the process. I am so miserable. I hope I only have a couple more days of this. I really need some sleep to function during the day, and I am just not getting it yet. Any suggestions?

I am a 51 year old female that has experienced several side effects from lisinopril, especially when I started going into perimenopause at the age of 48. I am now menopausal, but I thought I was doomed to having hot flashes/night sweats, sleep deprivaton (wake up every hour or so every night), depression, forgetfulness, lack of concentration, bloating for many years to come. I discovered that the lisinopril was causing this when I went on a cleansing diet for a week in January and noticed that some days I felt great and other days I felt like crap. I realized the pattern was directly connected to whether I remembered to take my lisinopril. I started taking 20mg/day 7 years ago, was upped to 40mg/day 3 years ago and have stopped taking it for now so I can function normally, especially for my analyst job. I've been making some lifestyle adjustments (losing weight, deep breathing (I tend to hold my breath frequently), next I need to quit smoking) to lower my BP somewhat, but I am going to ask my doctor for an angiotensin receptor blocker (DIOVAN since some peope have mentioned here that they have been successful with that) when I have my appointment in 2 weeks. Uncontrolled HBP can cause more serious problems down the road, so I have to try to control it with meds for now while I continue my lifestyle adjustments.

Has any woman ever experienced side effects that could be confused with perimenopause or menopausal symptoms?

In January I was diagnosed with polymyalgia rheumatica and temporal arteritis (giant cell arteritis). I was put on 60 mg prednisone and an array of other meds to help with pain, inflammation, water retention, and stomach problems from everything. I've lost some vision from the TA. I've experienced the weight gain, the moon face, stomach problems, depression, fatigue, muscle weakness, lack of memory and concentration, and generally feel miserable. The brain fog is awful! I don't trust myself doing much of anything these days!

When I was first put on the prednisone it completely took away all my TA and PMR symptoms. I could walk and get up and down again, didn't have the headaches, and didn't hurt all over.
My doctor tried to taper my dosage about 6 weeks ago and all my symptoms returned and increased as I went down on the prednisone. He upped me back to 60. That time the symptoms didn't go away. They lessened but were still there.

He's trying to taper again, and I'm down to 30 mg now and feel worse and worse. My sed rate has been normal, so the doctor thinks it's from the prednisone. Does it mimic all the TA and PMR symptoms? I also am having a lot of hand and feet cramping.

Does anyone else have these two illnesses? I would be interested in your experience. I want off these meds! Anyone found an alternative approach that's helped?

God bless!