Generic drug symptoms and conditions

Sorry to keeping annoying y'all with more posts from me, but I have another question. I noticed that my symptoms were worse with Yasmin's generic, Othello, than they were with Yasmin. I am not knowledgeable about generic drugs vs. brand-name drugs, but I wonder if there is something different about Othello that my body doesn't agree with. Just a thought... Any comments???? :)

For five years, I did fine with Apri until drugstore.com stopped carrying it and started sending me Reclipsen (another generic Desogen). Now I'm getting nausea, PMS and hot flashes. At first I thought the change was because I'm getting closer to forty, but now I wonder if it's some change in the generic drug.

Due to recent heart problems, and recently diagnosed HBP, cardiologist prescribed Lisinopril 10 mg. I took it for a month. It did lower my BP, but the side effects were too much to bear. It gave me constant gas and diarrhea. I need to be sharp mentally for my job and normally am; however, the Lisinopril left me feeling somewhat confused and interfered with normal thought processes. I was constantly forgetting things that I normally would not. I went back to my doctor yesterday, and he said to stop taking the Lisinopril immediately, and prescribed Diovan. I took one this morning - no gas as of yet, no diarrhea, and my head is clear. Hoping this is the answer.

I developed hbp during pregnancy with my first child, after delivery the bp continued to stay up for about four months and then it went back down to a safe level. Six yrs later I became pregnant with my second child and my bp spiked again. Once again, after delivery, my bp went even higher. I tried a calcium channel blocker which gave me SEVERE headaches and then was put on a beta blocker. The beta blocker had no side effects but my bp was still out of control. My GP tried me on Lisinopril 10 mg in November 07. Since then I have had abdominal pain, loss of concentration, fatigue, leg and arm pain and numbness that is slowly worsening, dry, hacking cough, loss of sleep, strange thoughts of losing family members, etc....When I spoke to my GP about these new symptoms, I was told I have reflux, even though I never get heartburn and get this...POST PARTUM DEPRESSION! Oh, I am so sick of the "D" word. I never have thoughts of hurting myself or my kids, not to mention, I'm the happiest person I know. I'm really convinced now that these symptoms are all due to the Lisinopril b/c it all started around that time. The cough can be so embarrassing. I work in health care and will start hacking in the middle of an exam with a patient. It comes off as really unprofessional and it bothers me a lot. I see him next week and will discuss this with him. I am kind of discouraged b/c my bp is totally out of control w/o meds and this is the second one that has caused major side effects that has actually helped my b/p.

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!

I was started on Toprol-XL after a triple bypass in 2000. I had experienced several episodes of rapid heartbeats. For the next 7 years I took it daily and had no side effects that I was aware of other than feeling a little weak if I missed a dose.
During this time, I was diagnosed as a diabetic and started on Lantus insulin. I had some gastric side effects from the Metformin but other than that I was doing ok. I was and am still overweight but I was also in good enough shape to walk 30 minutes everyday on my treadmill and to hold down a stressful job.
In September of 2007 I hosted a large family reunion at my house and had no physical problems. Right after that I came down with a bad sore throat and was put on Clindamycin. At the same time, my husband went to refill my meds and came back with the generic version of my Toprol-XL. Our insurance now requires us to use generics if available. Within two weeks I was having shortness of breath just walking up the steps into my house. I at first thought it was a hang over from the sore throat and went to my GP. He had me switch back to the original Toprol-XL and I felt an almost immediate relief. However, the symptoms did not go away entirely, in fact after seeming better, they came back again. I went back to my GP. He was concerned enough to want to send me to a cardiologist. Since we had just moved here a year ago I had not visited a cardiologist as yet so this doctor was new to me and my symptoms.
So far we have done a nuclear stress test, echocardiogram, EKG's, heart cath, lung scan, and numerous blood tests. Everything looks good according to the cardiologist. And yet, I cannot walk through my house without stopping to try and catch my breath, I have had to quit work since I can no longer climb the stairs to the second floor offices, I cannot sweep a floor without having to sit down.
Is it possible that a side effect from this generic drug could have damaged something permanently? Has anyone else had any kind of problem like this?

45 y/o female, nurse, prescribed Toprol XL 50mg daily. Could not take drug at bedtime as suggested by MD. Was not able to sleep. After a few months experienced visual problems, joint and muscle pain, anxiety, gi upset, weight gain as well as sleeplessness and heavy sensation of chest along with shortness of breath. Complained to MD to no avail. Called cardiologist, he suggested brand use as opposed to generic. Apparently, generic drug does not provide continuous steady release. Also, he lowered dose to 25mg daily. Will report subsequent effects but hope to be weaned off the drug entirely. I appreciate all the information that has been posted on this site, especially the beta blocker info. Hope this helps somebody else!

PEOPLE, PLEASE DO NOT DISCONTINUE THIS MEDICATION SUDDENLY, IT CAN BE DANGEROUS!!!

I have been reading about this medication here for some time, and I feel concerned when I read about someone deciding to just quit taking it suddenly. I personally intend to quit as soon as I find a doctor with enough knowledge to help me wean off of it in a safe manner. I've been on it for two years, and the side effects have grown worse than my original health problem, so I understand wanting to just up and quit taking it, but after learning the hard way, I've found out it's not so easy.

Do your homework, read and learn about the potential 'rebound effect' and by all means, talk to your doctor before doing something that may cause you to be in danger ( as in having a heart attack)...if you don't believe me, learn for yourself, the information is easily researched.

Blessings, and good luck...

Put on the generic drug Simvastatin same as Zocor along with taking Zeita. Had real flushed face and body and could not walk without stopping. I have the aches in my legs and feet also. Today in my jaw and in my left hip. The Doctors just will not listen to me. Both the MD and the Heart Specialist.

There is something seriously wrong with this generic drug, maybe quality control. It now has 68 pages of complaints, and continues to grow rather fast. It seems even worse than other ACE inhibitors, even the brand-name/non-generic versions of this same med, like zestril or prinivil. It is obviously toxic for some people, like me. I compare this to other meds I know about that have 1 or 2 pages of complaints.

For what its worth, a bit of extra zinc and selenium seem to help a lot with the cough, also with other problems from this med. Also vit-c and vit-e. Best of luck to all.

It has worked fine for a few years. In the beginning I was taking a Generic only to suddenly realize it wasn't working and my skipping beats were as active as ever. Upon questioning the Pharmacist, she allowed that LEGALLY, the drug companies only had to put %80 of the active ingredient in the Generic drug! I was put on Toprol and everything was fine until one day my lips began to swell up especially in the morning and then a few weeks later I got a nasty migraine and I never get headaches. I suppose it could be anything but I have my suspicions. The next step is to contact my Cardiologist.

RE: the new, generic levothyroxine drug, manufactured by SANDOZ: Theis generic drug was only approved in the summer of 2004. Has any tried it like me, and suddenly had terrible muscle/ joint pain and weakness? Does anyone know who to contact about this?

Well, I was prescribed Cipro, but the pharmacy was out; so the nice man suggested I try Doxycycline instead. Since it was a generic drug it costs less than Cipro, so I was happy to try it. I have taked Cipro often for urinary infections, but the Dox cleared it up just as well and at a savings. The side effect I had was; I got to keep more of my money.

Most people believe that when their doctor writes them a prescription for a generic drug, that their are getting the same medication that they were taking before. This is not true. I work in the medical field and I know for a fact that the reason generic drugs are cheaper is because they are not manufactured with the same controls as the name brands. They work differently. That's why so many people have bad reactions to them and alot of the times they don't even work. Once a medication works for me, I never accept the generic form of it. Alot of doctors won't even write prescriptions for generic drugs. Especially cardiac medications. I took Prilosec for 3 yrs and it worked like a charm. I tried Omeprazole for 1 week and it made me deathly ill. Went back to Prilosec and refused to switch.

I have always taken Prilosec but when I asked the dr for a new prescription , I was given the generic drug. I didnt take notice as I never have any side effect from any drug. Shortly after taking it, I started experiencing irregular heartbeats and pounding of my heart. I ended up in the emergency room but my ekg's , x'rays were fine. I ended up getting so anxious and nervous , the dr gave me valiem for my anxiety. I also experienced insomnia, hot flashes. Didnt know what was going on until three weeks later, I started reading on side effect of this drug and found out that a lot of people were experiencing the same symptoms I was. I immediately quit taking the drug and within a few days my symptoms started going away. I still get an occasion jerking on my stomach but its a lot better than it was when I was on the drug and didnt even know this was causing it.