February 13th
2008
9:14 PM
I started taking Toprol XL after being diagnosed with SVT back in May of 2003. I was only in my late 20's & was very trusting, at the time. I was recently sent to a cardiologist because I was having horrible chest pain & the Toprol XL 50 MG wasn't working at keeping the heart rate down. The GP put me on a double dose as well as Cardizem to help with the chest pain & rapid heart rate. I was already on Lanoxin 0.5MG, the highest dose allowed. The cardiologist took me off of the Cardizem right away because he said that is was too stressful for the heart to be on that much heart medicine. I went though several tests & was told by the cardiologist that I didn't have SVT & that this was actually Postural Tachycardia (POTS) & Neurocardiogenic Syncope. I was taken off of Lanoxin, but kept on Toprol XL 100 MG. He put me on lots of salt & water to increase my blood volume which would help my blood pressure when standing. That was in June of 2007. All went pretty good, I thought, until January 18, 2008 when I was working. My heart rate went up to 136 just standing or walking across a room. I called the doctor & talked to a nurse who suggested that I take another 1/2 of a Toprol. I did that & felt better for awhile, but it was short lived. I had been having chest pain, rapid heart rate, fatigue, muscle pain, joint pain, headaches, nausea, vomiting, short term memory problems, rapid weight gain, hair loss, cold extremities, & other things I can't think of right now for what seemed like forever. My gynecologist & my cardiologist first thought that I had thyroid problems, but all tests have come back negative. They then thought that maybe it was from the birth control pills that I had been on for the ovarian cysts. I was changed from one medicine to another & at first I thought that was what was wrong. I am now certain that all of the problems that I have been having were & are a result of the Toprol XL. I was even told that all the problems were "psychiatric in nature". I know that that isn't it at all! I have never had anxiety problems & the GP now thinks that's all that is wrong with me & wants me to go on Zoloft. I tried it, but became so ill that after one pill, I quit. I now plan on weaning myself off of the Toprol XL without the GP's knowledge or consent. The cardiologist was planning on weaning me off at some time in the future, but I am starting without him knowing it at the time. I'll just tell him when I see him next month. Thanks everyone for alerting me to the facts about this medicine. If I had known then what I do now, I'd have never consented to starting it in the first place. My only question is, are some of the "side effects" going to be a permanent thing for me or will they eventually go away? Any advice would be welcome! Thanks again!
-- By micheledelp | Reply | (7) replies | Private Message me
January 31th
2008
4:08 PM
I'm a 43 y/o male, on Toprol-Xl (25mg) and Diovan(80-mg) for high blood pressure. I've been on Diovan since it hit the market (no side effects at all) but recently developed a fast heart rate with no explaination. I saw a cardiologist and he put me on 25mg of Toprol-XL once each day.It's been 7 weeks and I'm fairly well adjusted with few minor side effects (slow pulse, cold extremities, weird chest feelings when the Toprol starts to wear off) and a major side effect (lack of sleep and weird dreams).
I read an article that Toprol-XL is time released and the medication has it's peak affect 8-hours after taking the dose. I was taking the medication with dinner, but would then wake up at 3:00 am, wide awake, couldn't fall back to sleep. I now take the medication with lunch and my sleep patterns have improved considerably. My incredibly, sometimes scary, dreams have tapered off too. My blood pressure is picture perfect (usually 115-125 over 70 to 80) and the bursts of rapid heartbeats have stopped altogether (I had an echo stress test, echocardiogram, blood work, 3 EKG's) and all were normal. My cardiologist said all my side effects are normal and that if i couldn't tolerate them he would switch my beta blocker.
-- By tpmvabch | Reply | (1) replies | Private Message me
January 10th
2008
9:43 PM
I am a 41 yo woman in good health. I started Toprol xl about 3 years ago for a heart palp that would happen maybe once a day, and occasional racing heart beat. I did great for a long time on 25mg once a day. Then about 6 months back I was switched to generic due to insurance issues - they only want to pay for generic.
It took me a while to figure out what was happening, but several problems started happening over the last few months that I am sure were from this generic drug. Suddenly I was having vivid dreams - fish swimming on the ceiling, cats with heads 5x too big! Worse yet, over about 3 months I gained 20 pounds with no difference in diet. And I was getting more and more tired. I started looking into what could be causing these crazy effects - I was only on Toprol and birth control pills.... well, it was not the birth control!
So, I decided to wean myself from the Toprol. I decided I prefer a heart palp and occasional racing heart to this!! I gave myself a couple of weeks of lesser doses, then 5 days ago I stopped it altogether. I am having some horrid "rebound" or withdrawal effects! Numb/tingling hands and feet, headache and - surprise! High blood pressure! I never, ever took this med for HBP, and I have never had HBP! I always had a nice, low blood pressure, even when 9 months pregnant! Now it's running around 135/93 - I work in a medical office, so I got one of the nurses to check it on Tuesday...she sort of freaked! She said she has seen much higher, but mine is not normal. So we have been checking daily, and it's staying up there. I am so mad to think Toprol could have damaged my body in some way so that my blood pressure may not stay messed up for life. I have read online that the rebound effects can last up to a month, even with a fairly low dose like I was taking. Does anyone know if a month is about right? If my blood pressure keeps this high, I suppose I will have to seek treatment at some point. Ugh!
On the plus side, I don't feel so tired. No vivid dreams since I stopped the Toprol, and much better sleep! I feel "clearer" mentally. I just wish the tingling hands and feet would stop - and the high blood pressure!
-- By ree | Reply | (10) replies | Private Message me
December 2th
2007
1:54 AM
I started taking Toprol XL seven years ago to control palpitations. Side effects I have experienced include loss of hair, coldness in my hands and feet, probably due to the lower blood pressure, and, believe it or not, palpitations. I am somewhat, but not entirely, certain that the palpitations that I originally suffered from were from poor exercise, stress and a bad diet. The new palpitations I get are from squatting, reclining in certain positions, raising my legs up in a certain way which I attribute to side effects from this drug. I am trying to cut down on this drug, but it is hard. My heart has grown accustomed to it and it acts up whenever the dosage is reduced, no matter how slowly I do it. I want to get it down to 12.5 mg. I take about 18-19 mg now (I cut the 25mg in half and take one of the halves and cut it in half again). Some things about this drug: take it consistently, e.g., same time with same amount of food. It will give you some harmless, but scary, palps if you do not keep a regular pattern. Indeed, I can usually tell when a palp is Toprol-induced. Another thing is to be wary of doctors who have you double or quadruple a dosage at one time. Years ago my doctor told me to go from 12.5 to 50 mg after I complained of some palps that I now know were Toprol related. I thought he was nuts because my pulse was already way down due to this drug. I envisioned myself fainting. being a bad patient, I upped it to 25 instead. Later, after looking at a Holter monitor readout, the doctor calls me and says lower my dose to 25 because my overnight pulse was getting to a point that if I took anymore Toprol the pulse would be dangerously low. I never told him I did not listen to him. But I have to say I have not suffered all of the side effects listed on this site such as depression. The drug was and has been effective in controlling the palps that were driving me crazy. My palps were very bothersome and this drug gave me peace of mind. But, looking back, I think I could have brought about the same results with a healthier lifestyle. I am very cautious about taking myself completely off of it entirely and will do that with the guidance of a doctor, not the one mentioned above of course. But they are hard to find. Most of them will tell you beta blockers are the greatest and if you take dosages as low as mine there are no problems whatsoever.
-- By skippytoo | Reply | (1) replies | Private Message me
May 5th
2004
12:53 PM
My husband was on Lipitor. After only 4 days, he would "walk" into a wall if he got up in the middle of the night. He was confused and unsteady on his feet. I had him stop taking it. We also tried Zocor..same effect. Eventually we hit on a regemin of good diet, Garlique and drinking vinegar(about 2 TBSP. /day) This helped lower his cholesterol some. Then the doctor said he HAD to take Lipitor or he would have MORE heat damage (previously had an attack).He did take it for 4 weeks, BUT the symptoms came back plus tiredness, GROUCHINESS, and muscle pains; also cold extremities. He is off the Lipitor again. After reading this website, I will NEVER let him take it again. We will try harder with his diet and hopefully increase his exercise(mostly walking).
I think we are very fortunate to not have been on it a longer time. Some of you suffered alot. God Bless.
March 11th
2009
7:26 PM
Prescribed Avelox after previous antibiotic could not clear up sinusitis. Avelox cleared it up within three days, but I feel worse now. Extreme agitation/anxiety, tremors, twitches, no appetite, boughts of depression, dizzy, lack of coordination, accelerated heart rate, leg shake, cold extremities, very strange, vivid dreams. Doctor told me to stop taking and side effects should clear up in a few days ( I hope). This is nuts. I feel like I am going insane. I could not go to work for three days due to side effects.
-- By pssat | Reply | (9) replies | Private Message me