Doctor calls symptoms and conditions

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.

This may sound a little strange ... I was prescribed Lamictal off label for OCD. A lot of my obsessive-compulsive behavior is related to an insatiable need for male attention, in addition to an overwhelming need to check and fix my apperances - what my doctor calls BDD (Body Dismorphic Disorder, which is closly related to OCD). I started taking 50 mg of Lamictal, and after several months, ended up at 250 mg. My behavior didn't really seem to change and I didn't feel any side effects ... well, for the most part. I have taken SO many different kinds of medications for depression, OCD and social anxiety, and they have ALL had some side effect or another than made it impossible for me to continue taking the drug, no matter what the upside was. Dizziness, nausea, blurry vision, sexual side effects, memory loss, headaches, etc. You name the side effect, I've experienced it, but NOT from Lamictal. The only side effect I had from Lamictal wasn't really a "normal" side effect. It was fitting to my situation and my initial need for the drug. After being on Lamictal for a while, I felt nothing different in myself - no aching, nausea, vision issues, or forgetfulness ... just an extremely weak libido. And, I'm not talking about the sexual side effects that normally come along with taking certain medications. Where you just completely lose you sex drive, and the idea of sex ends up being totally disgusting to you. I didn't lose my sex drive - I just lost all my flirty, provocative, sexy, cheeky behavior. I use to want to take sexy pictures of myself for my boyfriend and things like that, and it all completely went away. I don't know if Lamictal is supposed to have sexual side effects - I don't think it is - but this was my experience with it. I want to continue taking Lamictal because it does curb some of my behavior that normally ends up putting me in danger and getting me in trouble, but I truly feel like a huge part of me is dead inside. I feel that my sexuality is a big part of who I am, whether I like it or not, and I miss it. I'm probably going to stop taking the medication JUST b/c I miss that certain part of myself. I would, however, recommend Lamictal to anyone with OCD who wants to try and control certain obsessive behavior. It seems to do the trick

I was on Prilosec for over ten years when my insurance company took it off their formulary, and switched me to a generic. I haven't had any problems with the generic, other than that which I experienced with Prilosec, except slight hair loss. I changed generics, and that stopped. However I firmly believe that this drug is addictive, and I cannot function without it. The insurance company calls it a currative, and my doctor calls it a maintenance drug. The doctor says I will be on it the rest of my life, and the insurance company only approves it for 10 week period of time. I have tried Nexium and can tell no difference. I learned at the beginning how to adapt to the side effects of brief periods of nausea, and constipation.

I have been taking alprazolam for about two years and have never had any side effects other than a mild headache, and am not commpletly comvinced it was the medication that caused it!!! I know for a fact it has helped me cope with the terrible effects of cronic pain,...dicouragement (what my doctor calls depression) on one end of the spectrum and discouragement (what my doctor calls anxiety)...One comes from my not being able to do the things i used to do (physically) and the other end of the spectrum, having the tendancy to get upset over that fact...

THANK GOD FOR DOCTORS
AND THE MEDICATIONS
HE REVEALS TO THEM FOR
OUR INFIRMITIES !!!