Holter monitor symptoms and conditions

I've been on the generic Wellbutrin for around 5 years. When I started it, no real side effects. About a month ago, I had what I think was a panic attack. This was the second one, the first happened about 3 years ago. Anyway, I had racing heart, dizziness, a feeling of a lump in my throat, tingling hands and feet and chest pressure. I thought I was having a heart attack, but a holter monitor and stress test showed my heart is fine. I think it was the Bupiron. I am weaning off, and still have most of those symptoms, though much less. I can't wait to be off of this. It helped for a while but has nearly paralyzed my life for the past month.

I think it's really sad when everyone here has the same side effects without seeing this site ,thinking they are crazy and your doctor looking at you like you should be in a mental ward! I took lisinopril 10 mgs for about 8 months I was borderline high blood pressure ,ok I am over weight and did not eat as well as I should have ,but instead of my doc telling me to lose weight(and I know I needed to) and eat better she put me on the drug from hell! I had started walking and eating better since she put me on the drug,at first everything was great I was feeling better I started walking and started the dash diet ,which works great by the way.then all hell broke loose ,I started getting weak ,tired all of the time, my feet felt like they were on fire ,numbness in my hands and feet(felt like I was having a stroke)started taking the drug in may and by thanksgiving I was in the emergency room,I was supposed to work on thanksgiving (I am a bartender)and could not get out of bed,of course they found nothing,I went home an then a week before Christmas the heart palpitations started ,I was lying down watching t.v.and I started having them.still weak and then the palps started,I was scared I was having a heart attack,I went to see a heart doc. and he told me I need a holter monitor for 24 hours and an echo (did I mention I don't have insurance)so after three e.k.g's from different doc's my medical bills are sick and an emergency room visit you can imagine.well to let you all know you are not crazy we all have the same symptoms without seeing this site!My echo and holter monitor test both came back normal,my doctor took me off the meds my bp is 120 over 80 , and I am loosing weight with the dash diet ,and my palps are coming less and less,I don't know how long they will last but hopefully not long.good luck everyone and god bless

I started using Yasmin 2 weeks ago & am having serious problems like heaviness in my chest, short breath, nausea, headache, acidity. At one point I felt as if I got an heart attack! My physician sent me for an ECG yesterday & I am worried about the results! I hope to recover from all these side effects soon because my work is getting affected due to discomfort.

At a dermatologist, I was treated for seborrheic dermatitis with shots of Kenalog. I received 4 shots, the last two were 40 mg each - 2 weeks apart. I started experiencing skipped heart beats that have become very annoying. Sometimes my heart skips 7 beats per minute. I have no other side effects at the moment. Before receiving the first shot I asked about any side effects. The nurse told me I could have trouble sleeping the first night and may feel excited. NOTHING about heart arrhythmias. I went to my family doctor who took an EKG that showed PVC and I wore a holter monitor for 24 hours. I also called the dermatologist and explained the situation. The nurse confirmed that yes arrhythmias are a side effect of this shot.

I am 39 years old. I have been taking Lisinopril for nine months now, for my High BP. For the first 7 months I had not really had any annoying side-effects other than a mild dry cough. But for about the last 2 months I am having a really odd sensation in my heart. It seems like a flutter and it goes across my upper chest area and into my throat. At times they are mild and other times, during a lot of moving around, I have more aggressive sensations. One night while in bed. My wife got her stethoscope out, (she has a medical background) and listened to my heart. She told me not to tell her when I get the sensation, but to let her try and determine when I have the feeling. this nailed it as soon as I had one. She said that it seems that my heart if pumping too quickly. Meaning that I may have a Premature Ventricular Contraction. This has really scared me. I am scheduled to see my Doctor tomorrow. In my last visit which was about 3 weeks ago, I had brought this up to him. He didn't really try to hear my heart on his own. He just listened to what me and wife were explaining about the sensation. I had hurt my leg about the same time this started happening, and I was taking large amounts of Ibuprofen. So he partly chalked up to Ibuprofen and maybe a drug interaction and stated that I lay off the Ibu and see if they go away in 2 weeks. And if not, he wants to do a Holter Monitor on me to see what may be happening. Well they haven't stopped! I am thinking maybe I should ask for a different BP med. I still want to do the Holter to make sure, but I think it may be time for a change. I have only heard of this fluttering feeling happening to one other person. Has anyone else out there had this same scary sensation? if so please let me know what you have done or have found out. Thank you!

I am a 56 year old that had an aortic valve replacement 51/2 years ago, I have been on toprol only 12 mg a day for around 4 years I have had minor side effects, cold feet, cold hands, optical migraine headaches (once in a while). I was on the real toprol for years and then the folks at walgreens offered a generic and I excepted, things were fine and I was rolling along until they chaned generic brands from SANDOZ to ETHEX, I seemed fine on the SANDOZ it even looked the same as the real thing, but when walgreens gave me ETHEX (which is a round pill about twice as large as the other) I began to feel sensations in the middle of my chest and sometimes while taking my pulse it felt like my Heart stopped or skipped a beat, this scared the shit out of me! I took about 22 days worth of EHTEX and the symptoms kept getting worse, I finally called the Cardio folks and they suggested that I wear a Holter monitor for 24 hours, which I did and felt that I had a few Heart stopping moments along with a odd heart burn sensation in the middle of my chest. Two nights ago I found some of the SANDOZ that I had saved for vacations and began taking 12 mg of that instead of the ETHEX today for the first time in nearly 3 weeks I had NO Heartburn problems and NO Heart stopping experience, mind you this was only day one! Looking forward to day 2 and now that I have read all of the side effects from all the good folks on this site, that are not listed when you purchase the drugs, my opinion is that all GENERIC drugs that are suppose to be IDENTICAL to the real thing is a huge lie! What the hell is the FDA doing? Are they trying to let the GENERIC FOOLS poison all of the good folks that actually need these drugs without doing or maybe reading the test results? Or maybe the drug company's have so much clout that they can grease a few palms and get there GENERIC shit to market. To think that these drugs are suppose to be IDENTICAL and then to receive a pill that looks NOTHING like the real thing and when you bust it in half it's a different frickin color (ETHEX)!!!! What was I thinking taking this GENERIC piece of garbage! The GENERIC buttheads along with the real manufacturers should be required by LAW to list ALL ingredients on the label so all of the good folks can read and compare to see what there swallowing and putting into there bodes! I hope to get off of thos drug soon but if I don't rest asure that I will seek out the real thing. I was so freaked out by the side effects that the Cardio Doctor scheduled an ECHO for this Friday, I think the valve is fine but we will find out! Good luck all!

I have been on Lisinopril for 10 months and I have experienced horrible side effects. I am 48, pre-menopausal and I believed the side effects we due to my aging. I thought I was dying on this medication. I started having stomach problems, diarrhea, bloating, swelling in my throat, dizziness, cramps in my feet, constipation, weight gain, hair loss, shallow breathing, increase in my glucose levels making me pre-diabetic. Most importantly, I believe the drug contributed to the heart palpitations I experienced one month after starting the drug. I rushed to the hospital and had to wear a holter monitor for a day to monitor the irregular heart beats I was experiencing. My blood pressure was never stabilized until I started a new drug. I am now off this Lisinopril and taking a wonderful drug called Tekturna. Tekturna dropped my blood pressure down to 122/72 from 150/80. Talk to your doctor if you have experienced these side effects and demand a change.

I am a 55-year old woman. I was first diagnosed with paroxysmal svt at age 7. It has never been much of a problem, but as I have aged, I have worried enough about it to make sure my doctors are all aware of the condition. I have had many ekgs, echos, worn a holter monitor, had every kind of stress test, but it wasn't until April that the svt was actually seen on an ekg. My internist freaked out, wanted to put me on Toprol immediately, but I resisted, since I knew that my irregular heartbeat could be back to normal by the time I reached the parking lot. I did heed her urging to see a cardiologist (two in fact), which led to an ep study, with the hope of a radio frequency ablation on August 5. I have been taking a full strength aspirin since April to decrease the slight risk of stroke during an svt episode. The ep study showed that the electrical problems in my heart were in places that made an ablation too risky, so nothing was done, but the doctor advised me to try Toprol (25 mg) for a month "and see how I liked it." I had my first dose in the hospital on Tuesday, August 5, and proceeded to take it as prescribed. By Thursday afternoon, I felt oddly on the verge of tears. On Friday, both of my knees were hurting, by Saturday evening, I was in bed feeling like I had the flu. Every joint in my body was aching. Sunday morning, I felt even worse. I found this website and decided to stop taking the medication at that point. Today, Thursday, August 14, is the first time I have felt vaguely like my usual healthy self. After stopping the medication, I had 2 episodes of svt, lasting about 10 hours each. I have had excruciating stomach cramps, headache, inability to sleep, depression. This is after taking it for 5 days!! My heart (no pun) goes out to those of you who suffered for months on the drug and then even more months off of it. I know it helps many people, my mother included, but thank goodness that those of us who have a bad experience have a place to realize that we're not crazy.

I have been having the same problems for about two months. Heart palpitations, chest pain, left arm numbness, spouts of rapid heart beat (up to 150 beats a minute) while laying in bed. Other things that I have started putting with this is I broke out in hives several months ago, I had yeast infections every month for a year, I have had dark hair pop up on my face that was never there before. I have been to the ER many times, I have had an EKG, the whole blood work done, chest x-ray, stress test, and a holter monitor. They did catch PVCs and a few other irregular heat beats on the monitor and EKG but no one seems concerned about. I have been at my wits in and like you felt like a horrible mom and wife. Not hardly any to function. I finally thought to look up IUD and heart palpitations and BOOM....there was pages and pages of women talking about this. I am relieved in some ways but still not convinced! I just don't know if it could actually cause PVCs or other irregular heart beats but I guess it could. I hope this was the problem. I got the IUD out last Friday and I seem to feel a little better each day, although last night I did have another attack of racing heart-147 bpm. I'm 27 years old, with not family history of heart problems, I am thin, I have low resting pulse and have always had low blood pressure. I guess the IUD makes more sense than a heart problem. It's just very scary when you have two small children at home and you're afraid you might not wake up the next day! I have never been a fearful person, I am very laid back so when the docs kept throwing the anxiety and stress thing at me, it REALLY didn't make sense! I have been under way more stress several years ago than I am now and this has never happened. I have had the IUD for two years. I have researched hormone imbalance and it does add up to the same. I think it's possible for the IUD to malfunction and instead of squirting out a small amount of the hormone daily it could be giving way to much which gives us a hormone imbalance. Let me know how you are doing and if your symptoms have gotten better with time and thanks for sharing your story.

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.

Haven't been taking this medication very long started March 1st or so with 50mg once a day. But felt didn't need it so took it kind of sporadically the first week, every other day, then I tried just half the second week 25mg. Then I had to go back to full 50mg this past week, so basically 50 to 25mg for three weeks or so now, and I feel AWFUL. Now that I have dropped back to the 25mg the side effects have lessened but the anxiety is unbearable! My arms and hands go cold and numb. When taking it at 50mg felt very sluggish, cloudy mind, doomed feeling. It just doesn't feel right. I am only 33 years old they did a stress test on me this past Friday and 2-D echocardiogram. Tomorrow they are going to do some blood tests and a get a holter monitor put on me for 48 hours. To see if I "need" to be on this med. I dont' think I do, if it truly was something I needed or helped my body, it would help it not bother more. I truly think I may have some other underlying reason for the high heart rate, my BP has always been normal except when I was hospitalized and then once they had me hydrated and my sugars back to normal (I'm hypoglycemic) my BP went normal I just had the tachycardia off and on. So that's why the doctor in the hospital said to begin the Toprol Xl b/c it's SO SAFE I GIVE IT TO PREGNANT WOMEN!! His words. I pray for those women. After just the one week straight of 50mg when I dropped to 25mg a couple days ago it felt AWFUL to do that as well, today is much better Thank God. But can you have such strong withdrawals after such short period of time? And if so, that is scary in and of itself.

Anna here again.

I don't think the hormone imbalances caused my stroke. I think Yasmin did in the way that OCs have a risk of doing, by causing a clot to form. I suspect Yasmin carries a higher risk of blood clotting than other OCs but I can't prove that.

I had a ton of tests done at the ER. Lots of blood work. An ECG (which is the same thing as an EKG I think. Probably what they mean is they're going to put you on one for 24 hours using a Holter monitor? I had that.) A CT scan and later an MRI of my brain. A Chest radiograph. A Carotid Artery ultrasound. (I'm copying from my notes!)

After being released from hospital I had a Trans Esophagal Echo (which found the hole) and a 24 hour brain scan (which was yukky and found nothing.)

I can't remember when my OB-GYN switched me to Yasmin but it was still considered 'new' then. I know it was by Fall 2003 so I was on it for at least 3 years. I'm 38.

These are the things I suspect Yasmin caused when I was on it:

Depression
Insomnia
Hypothyroidism
Increased Heart Murmur
Stroke

And this is what I've been suffering in the way of withdrawal effects/ hormonal imbalance:

Anxiety
Shakiness/dizziness
Fluttery feeling in chest/arms/legs
More insomnia
Abdominal pain
Constipation

Oh what a joyous little pill it is...

Anna

Hi everyone!
Well. It's now been 6 1/2 weeks since I took my last Yasmin pill. My husband told me yesterday that I seem more like myself these days! I asked him to describe how I USED to act. He told me that I would go off on a tangent for no reason,get my feelings hurt over tiny things,have days where I'd hardly talk at all. He said he's glad his wife is back!
Guess what?? I mentioned the side effects of Yasmin we have all discussed here to my doctorS (ob/gyn/internal specialist/family md & ENT!)....they all said they've never heard of any of it! They offered me Paxil,Zoloft,referral to psychotherapists, endless tests and bloodwork. I mean, Holter monitor,EKG,Echocardiogram,3 blood tests, and tomorrow they want to do a CT scan on my head. I'm thinking I don't really want to expose my head to radiation over this.
I've not had anymore "attacks",no heart palpitations,my so-called IBS with diarrhea has miraculously disappeared! But they doctors don't believe it could be the Yasmin because it's "such a mild dose of hormones". Can you all believe this??
I'm so freaked out over what's happened to me these past few months that I don't know that I'll ever take BC pills again. I'm contemplating asking to have my tubes tied. Really!
I'm so glad I accidentally found this site. Now if I could just find something to explain the burning pain sensation down the side of my neck and in my inner left ear and the tingles in my left arm I'll be SOOO happy. Could these be side effects too after 6 1/2 weeks off Yasmin?
Take care all of you. I'll check back periodically to see how everyone is doing! :o)

Have been on med for 1.5 years. the last 7 months heart rae has droped to the point of having 10 TIA's. all stroke syptoms testing has come back negitave. For last three weeks have been off med and no TIA's Has anyone else had this trouble.

I have been taking Snythroid for about 18 months. In the past six months, my blood pressure is uncontrolable. I have been on 7 regiments of blood pressure medicine in the past seven months. I have been to the Emergency Room twice in the last two months with tackycardia and irregular heart beat. My fingers and hand feels as though I have carpal tunnel. I started on .25 mg of Synthroid and somehow, whether it was the doctor or the pharmacy, my medication is now 25 mg. I have been to a cardiologist, had a stress test, MRI on my kidneys, holter monitor and they can't find anything wrong with my heart. I switched doctors, hopefully, she can figure out what is wrong with me.

Good God! What does all of this mean?! Is ANYBODY paying any attention to this, or do we all need to get together and petition the FDA?

Just the fact that presumably all of these folk writing in were in enough pain and turmoil to seek answers through the internet speaks volumes, doesn't it?

Anyhow, let me add my two cents' worth: I'm living in Greece so taking a European version of synthetic T4 (called, creatively enough, "T4"!) (Novartis is the manufacturer) and I'm finally so screwed up and concerned that I'm looking here there and everywhere else for answers. I was a pretty damned healthy 40-ish woman and suddenly I feel, as so many others have said, 100 years old ...

FYI, I'm on the lowest dose available, i.e. 50 mg/day. In the beginning I felt better because my periodic feelings of extreme fatigue went away, but the heart problems are making me a nervous, frightened wreck! I begin to prefer just plain ol' Hashimoto's thyroiditis with a slow dip toward hypothyroidism rather than this nonsense. At least then I didn't feel like I was on death's door!

The mail from the woman who woke up with pounding, racing heart struck me the most, as it's the pulsating and skipped beats and the rest that are driving me to distraction. I've worn a holter monitor for 24 hours and discovered that I "only" now have tachycardia, but suddenly I'm on TWO meds for the rest of my life (when I was never on any previously, short of a tylenol for an occasional headache ... quite a change, and not a very welcome one!) one for HEART problems! AND I'm still relatively young AND I now officially feel like s**t?!

Amazing, all of this. Drug companies pleasing their stockholders while a huge number of us go slowly crazy?

Would appreciate it if people who've succesfully gone off synthetic T4 would write and tell me their stories, particularly their experience with the Armour alternative (not that I know if it's available over here, but at this point, I'd happily fly over to the States a couple times a year to get it if it would end this misery!!)

Thanks to all and COURAGE!

Have been taking Advair 250/50 since October, 2002, and have not had to use an emergency inhaler once since that time. HOWEVER, had to start taking the drug every other day, once per day only, to eliminate hoarshness since I speak with clients for hours often during the business day. With very wet summer, was having some wheezing due to mold reaction over last several weeks, and increased dosage to once, every day. Last two days have had irregular heartbeats and I went off of caffeine totally months ago due to a previous arrthymia episode that lasted 5 days (wore Holter monitor for a day) some 4 months ago. Stopped all caffeine (except some chocolate!) and all alcohol at that time, but who can eliminate all daily stress. Convinced that Advair is causing the premature beats since there is causality to the increased dosage of late. Five months ago experienced periods of dizziness that disappeared after several weeks. There are studies now that steroids, in suppressing the body's immune system and its resultant reactions to triggers or allergens, can contribute to the onset of blood cancers such as lymphoma and other immunological diseases. Use Flonase for sinus swelling, and now looking for alternative to Advair. There is no question in my mind that a patient has to constantly question both drug interactions and overall side effects, i.e., cost-benefit analysis.

Took Advair for 2 weeks for a mild allergy induced asthma condition which I developed after a long bout with bronchitis. My breathing was slightly more comfortable but every day my throat was becoming increasingly sore and my voice was very hoarse. One evening my throat was so sore that I didn't take the dose. The doctor gave me a lower dose which I took for a week but I stopped it after I couldn't tolerate the sore throat( I rinsed my mouth like it instructed). Anyway, since my breathing was better he recommended that I stop the Advair. Well it's been 3 months now and I am suffering from intra costal nerve vibrations, muscular weakness,palpitationsand feelings of malaise. The muscle tremors are most noticeable when I lie down.I feel very down most of the time for no apparent reason. I have even had a holter monitor test for the palpitations but the test was negative. Trying to get myself back to normal with vitamins,diet, exercize etc. Can't believe that it is taking so long for the residuals of the drug to leave my system.