Lower blood pressure symptoms and conditions

I am a healthy, active female on a low dose of premarin from a hysterectomy last year, went on a low dose or Lisinopril last June and within a month, was at the ER twice for heart attack symptoms. My EKGs were perfect, thyroid, electrolytes, etc. and we determined, my sis has two MDs that I was over-medicated because the panic attacks started there after and were nightmares! My doc said menopause triggers these even on hormones, I know my body and I was being poisoned with Lisinopril! Been off a month now and this is my first weekend I felt normal w/no more stroke/heart attack signs thank the Lord! Any ideas on what we menopausal women can take for high BP? There is life after this drug but if it high BP runs in your family, some kind therapy is needed for us middle aged gals!

I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid arthritis at the end of 2007 and have been on prednisone since then. I started on about 105mg a week and am currently trying to reduce it but it is really hard as the moment the dosage goes down I lose all mobility and cannot even get out of bed. I am only 23 years old and really feeling the disease to the extent that I cannot even cope with my life. The prednisone has really taken its toll on me and the side effects are crazy! I just want to go back to my old self as I am finding it sooo hard to get through a single day. My side effects include:

Insomnia, tooth sensitivity, depression, anxiety, mood swings, moon face (my face is so swollen that I cant stand looking in the mirror anymore, dizziness, temper, feelings of uselessness, nightmares, night sweats, water retention, and to top it all off the arthritis is getting worse and I am in constant pain. Is there anything anyone can suggest then please help me!

I am a 54 year old male in relatively good health. I was perscribed 5 mg. of Lisinopril by me Endocrinologist because the medicine I am on for type 2 diabetes is causing minor problems with my kidneys. I was told that Lisinopril which is used to lower blood pressure and be used to protect the kidneys as well. I began to use Lisinopril and immediately began to feel pain in my elbows. The pain became debilitating, I could not lift our garbage can to dump in the dumpster without extreme pain. I called my Endocrinologist within the first week of feeling these symptoms and she was surprised about this side effect. She asked me to discontinue using the drug and call her back in three to four days to see if the pain has subsided. If so, she will prescribe an alternate drug. At this point it's been four days and the pain has not subsided. How long will it take for the symptoms to clear? I'm afraid to call my doctor and tell her the pain is persistent making her rule out Lisinopril as the reason. I have decided to no longer take this drug regardless. I have also had some minor pain in my shoulders and hands.

I have been on 100 mg topamax for a few months now, and i was actually having people try my drinks bc i thought they was flat, and i would feel my fingers and my toes go numb and tingle. I honestly never thought for two seconds it was my medication. The only side effects i was warned about was weight loss (which hasn't occurred with me) and that i would be very thirsty, which i am. But i have NIGHTMARES about things im not even afraid of, and i have trouble spelling words i didn't before, and sometimes i can't even remember what i wore last week to school. Im starting to rethink this whole topamax thing, does anyone know any other prescriptions that will help headaches without the crazy effects?

I am a 65-year-old female. I was given Lipitor 10mg in Feb 07, which I appeared to tolerate, with the effect of reducing my high familial cholesterol. Because of a genetic enzyme problem, I am careful about my diet; having been a vegetarian for decades. I don’t smoke, and rarely have wine. By May that year my GP increased the dose to 20mg., but days later I was sent to A + E with cardiac concerns. The hospital adamant it had nothing to do with Lipitor.

By mid 2008 I told my GP of dizzy spells, and loss of balance, also swallowing difficulties, but after liver function tests I was reassured it couldn’t possibly be Lipitor.

Early October 08, saw me in hospital with a ‘stroke’, although the CAT scan and MRI were puzzling. I was sent home with no help or guidance after the Consultant insisted Lipitor was not a problem, and I should not reduce it, as it was already a very low dose. Unable to walk to the end of my street, my calf muscles feeling as though I’d run a marathon, and experiencing cardiac stress. Severe neck and shoulder pains, and confusion with words. Frequent muscle spasms in my feet, legs and hands, etc. etc. No energy for anything, and so difficult coping - living alone. End of Dec. a friend from out of town visited, and was alarmed, as she’d researched a web site for her brother, who was using a walking frame. I was astounded at the reports from users of Lipitor, so many suffering in the same way. Although my GP had arranged more laboratory tests for me, I was not prepared to wait.

On 6th January 2009, (almost 2 years later) I reduced my dosage to 10mg., and within days was experiencing improvement in many areas. By 17th January, I reduced to 5mg., (maybe a little hasty) and by 24th stopped it. By 28th my GP could see for himself, the considerable improvement generally, with a lower blood pressure reading.

By then, I could complete half, of what used to be my regular walking regime. To date, I am able to cover more than that, and hope I will eventually be able to cover the full distance. I’m hoping there will be no lasting damage, but am so thankful that my friend found this website. Its scary to think I had no quality of life, and doubt I would have survived more Lipitor. So I’m taking my chances with high cholesterol, and a near normal life.

M.

New Zealand

HELLO EVERYONE....IM SITTING AT WORK AND JUST DECIDED TO RESEARCH THIS DRUG LISINOPRIL...BECAUSE I AM REALLY BORED....WHEN I GOOGLED THE NAME I CAME ACROSS THIS SITE.....OMYGOSH...I THOUGHT I WAS GOING CRAZY...I HAVE BEEN TAKING Lisinopril FOR ABOUT 6 MONTHS NOW....I ALWAYS READ THE INSERTS THAT COME WITH THE MEDICATION BUT I NEVER SEEN THE SIDE EFFECTS THAT WE ARE HAVING ON THE INSERT...I SING IN THE CHURCH CHOIR AN I ALWAYS WONDERED WHY MY VOICE WOULD BE SO HORRIBLE AND MESSED UP..I AM SO HAPPY I GOOGLED THIS DRUG...DOSE ANYONE KNOW HOW LONG IT TAKES BEFORE YOUR BODY GOES BACK TO NORMAL AFTER STOPPING THE DRUG....

My heart rate spikes when my blood pressure gets markedly lower. I also get really dizzy when that happens. I know that so many of you are struggling with these side effects and I also know (based on experience) how nerve wracking it can be. Maybe...just maybe we aren't experiencing side effects from the drug exactly, but instead the effect of the drug working. Maybe once our bodies get used to the lowered pressure, our heart rates will normalize. Maybe when we adjust to the lowered pressure a little better, we won't get so dizzy....

Don't mean to sound preachy...I guess I'm just trying to suggest an alternative view...again, one that is based on experience../.

Approximately 3 months ago, I was prescribed a daily 10 mg dosage of Lisinopril which I've been taking before bed. Last night was the last straw... I anxiously took another baby Aspirin and lay there wondering if I needed to wake my husband. I really thought that maybe I was preventing or reducing a heart attack as my chest pains had become un-nerving. This has been going on for weeks on and off.

To name a few, various other symptoms combined with last night’s symptom-related anxiety are telling..... Coughing, chest pains, nausea, vomiting, light headedness, headaches (including Ice-Pick headaches), numbness in my toes, nasty stomach aches, and the very tangible anxiety and stress caused by some of the symptoms, particularly the chest pains. I’m so appreciative to have found this site and I truly thank God. To read the postings and matched other’s experiences with my own... It’s a real wake-up call! Last night, I vowed to start exercising daily & eating better. I’m going back to see the Doctor to evaluate and get off this med. I am relatively young but overweight and inactive with only recent elevated BP, which is believed to be transitory and stress related. Regardless, I just read...“if you're overweight, losing weight usually helps lower blood pressure. Regular exercise is a good way to lose weight. It also seems to lower high blood pressure by itself” (http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/heartdisease/risk/092.html). As the saying goes, “The “cure” can be worse than the cause”.... might well be true with me and Lisinopril. I hope this post will help as so many others did for me. Now I’m off for my walk.... Blessings and health to you all.

I am a reasonably healthy 57 year old male, 6' 1", 220 lbs. I started taking Lisinopril 10mg about 1 year old for HPB. My BP was all over the chart, but averaged at about 160/80. After being on Lisinopril for about 1 week, I noticed that my BP would be about 130/70 in the mornings, but jump back up to about 150/75 in the evenings. I have never achieved the 120/70 range that others talk about. It was also at this time that I developed the tickle and dry cough. I lose sleep by waking up coughing. The cough also comes on at any time, day or night. Sometimes I cough until I feel my head is going to explode. I never cough up anything. Always dry.

Over the last year, I have had other side effects that have come and gone and come back again. Among them have been itchy skin, numbness in fingers and toes, chest pains (EKG's and stress tests were fine), stomach pains, back pain, jaw pain, pounding heartbeat, racing heartbeat, loss of sex drive, erectile dysfunction, vivid dreams (when I sleep), feelings of dread and recurring thoughts of something happening to family members.

Since I do not have any prescription coverage in my insurance, I was happy to find a $4.00 drug, but now that the refills have run out, I think that I will ask the doctor for something else.

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.

You don't know how good some of your posts make me feel. I was placed on Lisinopril after having a stent put in. I am 45 year old male who smoked a lot before and cholesterol at 280. I was about 35 pounds overweight not that bad except for the other 2 factors. My heart races now without any reason, dry cough at times, and chess pain also with no reason. Guess what sports fans??? I have never had high blood pressure. Why are these MD's prescribing this poison??! They will swear up and down, "by taking this med it will reduce your chances of having a heart attack or stroke." This a bunch a hogwash. It is causing problems!

age 71, took lisinopril (5mg) for 3 weeks. Developed cherry angiomas over body, legs and arms. Also had cough, immediately stopped medicine.now pressure and dull ache behind ear. wonder if this is an additional side effect. Will change diet and exercise to lower blood pressure naturally.
maggie

I have just come across this site, while looking to find out why I have been experiencing heart palpitations for the past two months - out of the blue!!! and usually "exercise" induced. I had some tests and have been told they are Premature Atrial Contractions "PACs". I started taking Yasmin in April, after having tried others over the past year (tri-cyclen lo and alesse) which did not work for me as the progestin was not strong enough. I am in my 40s and never took the pill before. Yasmin was great, it significantly reduced my "physical" pms (severe inflamation, severe bloating, severe sore breasts) which I experience for 2-3 weeks a month. However, sometime in mid to late June, I started getting palpitations/tremors out of the blue. The first episode freaked me out and lasted for about two weeks. At first I thought it was allergy medication mixed with my thyroid med, which can happen - but I cut out the allergy meds and still got them. They seem to come about 6hrs to a day after I fexercise/figure skate and they last from 2 to 5 five days. It's very irritating and nerve wracking, and I feel very agitated. I am also out of breath more than usual when walking up stairs, a little light headed and have some tightness in the chest. My legs also are weak, which makes no sense given my exercise regimen. I then lowered my thyroid replacement from .125 synthroid to .100 - too much thyroid med can cause some palpitations. Anyone who has mistakenly taken a second thyroid pill having forgotten that they already took one will understand. Even with the lower dose I am still getting the palpilations. I am totally at a loss as to why all of a sudden this is happening to me (perhaps perimenopause??). I have had the odd flutter here and there in my live, but nothing like this. It just doesn't make any sense ag ll. Can one's health just change like this overnight?. I am otherwise healthy, slim, have "lower" blood pressure (apprx 100-90/70-60)I skate 3 to 5 times a week, I have a full time job and yes I do push myself, but this is getting ridiculous. The only thing I can attribute it to is the Yasmin, ... but my symptoms only started after a few months not instantly, whereas it would seem that most of the the women here noticed the side effects faster. I hate to stop the Yasmin because I will have to return to pms "hell", but I suppose I will give it a try to see if the palpitations subside. At this point, I have been offered a low dose "beta blocker" and have refused. I am stunned to think that all of a sudden I have heart issues, especially since my Dr has always kidded me my that I will never have heart problems with my blood pressure. I will stop the Yasmin tonight and post another message in a few weeks one it is out my system. Here's hoping it is the Yasmin.
KarenSkaterGirl

I just finished week 2 of Yasmin and the side effects hit me hard about 3 days ago! Anxiety, heart palpitations, moody, tired, nauseous, headache, did I say moody? My appetite is out of control too! I will not be continuing with this pill. Thank goodness I found this site, as well as another forum - Otherwise, I would have chalked it up to stress in general (I'm a SAHM of 3 children). It got so bad today, I thought about going to the ER!

I am on Lisinopril 10mg I break the tab in half take it morn and night, also I am on Hydrochlorot 12.5mg once a day.
I have been having a cough, dizzyness, tiredness, knee pain and I have no control of wetting myself when I cough. for some time now. I have been on this stuff for a year. I went to the Doctor the 14th of Nov. only to find that my Triglycerides are out of the roof my Cholesterol is up and I have high blood sugar. My blood preasure is good though.
I watch what I eat very closley. I am a bit over weight 60#'s.
I have been on the web for 3 hours now checking out these problems well Hydrochlorot causes the Triglycerides, Cholesttrol and the blood sugar to go up. Then I find this web site stating all the problems that Lisinopril causes I am having some of the same problems as the rest of you.
I am not going to take any more of this poison. I am going to go the natural way. I found on www.rxomega3.com some information about Lowering Triglycerides the stuff is called OMACOR (omega-3-acid ethyl esters) it is FDA approved which means nothing to me. Your Doctor can prescribe it for you.
Thank you for all the information you all have shared about this drug. My husband and I do alot of the natural ways in the first place but I feel I was scared into taking these drugs.
I am just going to put my trust in the Lord from now on he is the doctor and the healer. He healed my Husband of Mastatic Prostate Cancer this year.
If you want to email me with any comments please feel free to do so my email is ******

USE PERIWINKLE as a BP herbal med to lower pressure but be careful.
Hemostatic, reduces blood pressure.
Periwinkle is used for circulatory disorders, cerebral circulatory impairment, support for the metabolism of the brain and its improved oxygen supply, prophylaxis of memory and concentration impairment, improvement of memory and thinking capacity, mental productivity, prevention of premature aging of brain cells, for geriatric support, as a sedative and as a blood pressure-lowering remedy, for catarrhs, feebleness, and for improvement of the immune function, for diarrhea, vaginal flux, throat ailments, tonsillitis and angina, sore throat, intestinal inflammation, toothache, dropsy, as a diuretic and blood-purifying remedy, for promotion of wound healing, as a hemostatic remedy, and a bitter principle.

Individuals with low blood pressure or those individuals taking medications to lower blood pressure should not take Vinca minor due to the possibility that blood pressure may become too low.

Thought Diovan was good as I was having no side effects but after about a month I could NOT sleep. Cardiologist said he never heard of that. Went off it briefly and sleep returned. He put me on Benicar and it too was okay for a few weeks until sleep was out of the question. Found out on internet that medications such as antihypertensive and betablockers may cause insomnia. Going to go off all meds and try exercise and "Resperate" which is non medical device clinically approved to lower blood pressure. May as well try it as doctors dont believe me anyway. Just want to push pills!!! Since I have been off all meds for a few days I slept 9 hours last night. Wow what a relief. If the high blood pressure does not kill you the medications will.

The 1st day I started Lisinopril, I felt light-headed and shaky (about an hour or two after taking it). This weird feeling lasted less than 4 hours or so, then felt fine and haven't had a problem in 3 weeks. It lowered my blood pressure by the next day and has remained lower ever since. I am very pleased with the results. In the last year I have tried: Atenolol and Atacand HCT with no results. I had my son try Lisinopril and he had the same 'light-headed' experience the 1st day also. He was on Toprol Xl. He also has good results with Lisinopril (which is a generic - $5.00 vs $15.00) and no other side effects - just more money in our pockets and lower blood pressure.

My mother was 84 yrs old and got a UTI treatment using this drug and lost all her strength after taking just two tablets in two days. She has history of lower blood pressure and the doctor still gave her this. I felt aweful not to stop her taking this after reading all these input from everyone. How could a doctor prescribe this to my 84 yrs old Mon without making her understand all the side effects?

Steroids have been a night mare in my life for almost 3 years.
I started taking prednisone to combat Sarcoid 3 year ago. I was so messed up I thought I was going to die. My blood sugar went nuts. Both upper and lower Blood pressure went crazy. I started shaking and droping things and just in general feeling awful. I was on a decreasing amt. starting with 80 mg in Oct. to going completly off of it in Dec. In Jan of the next year I went to a new pulmonilogist. She said I had asthma and recommended I take Advair. After three months I started experiencing psychoses. This went on for 18 months. Starting with episodes evry few weeks to episodes every few days. The last 3 months I had several prednosine doses for sever asthma attacks. That is when I started having the most frequent episodes.

It has been almost a year since my Dr. and I figured out what was wrong with me, after going through many blood test, an MRI on my brain, an EEG, many dollars, much heart ache and much missed work. The eposiodes have started to slowly taper off in frequency and intensity.

Ther have been several occasions I need the drug, a skin rash, another severe asthma attack and inflamation in a wrist injury. I used an ointment on the skin rash, advair for the asthma and an injection for the wrist injury. All left me with psychoses.

I become extremely emotional (my face screws up and I cry), I hallucinate (my head feels goofy), My moter skills are impared and I shake. I am out of comission for 5-6 or more hrs.

If you can avoid this poison (my opinion) do so at all cost.

God Bless.

ADVICE FROM THOSE WHO HAVE STOPPED YASMIN!!!!

So I posted here a while back with a list of all my symptoms while on Yasmin...stomach problems, urinary problems, migraines, increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, high cholesterol, chest pains, muscle aches, vaginal dryness, ANXIETY...and the list goes on and on.

Anyway, after 3 years on Yasmin and many doctors refusing to believe that Yasmin has anything to do with my problems, I decided to stop Yasmin on my own. Although I am glad that Yasmin is out of my system and there have been some improvements (decreased heart rate, lower blood pressure and lower cholesterol), I have been off of Yasmin for 7 weeks and am feeling pretty horrible. Since stopping Yasmin, I have acquired the following new symptoms:

-EXCESSIVE HAIR LOSS- my hair is thinning, falling out constantly and I am losing 200+ hairs a day.
-Increased acne and oiliness on face
-Dry skin everywhere else- my hands, legs and scalp have been really dry and are either flaking or peeling.
-No period- I have not had a period for 7 weeks.

I feel so depressed and more anxious more than ever- possibly due to all of the additional symptoms I am having. I am assuming this is just the Yasmin getting out of my system.

Anyway, has anyone else who has stopped Yasmin experienced hair loss? I have an GYN appt on Thursday, but all of my doctors tend to blow me off like I am just some crazy person. I am really freaking out about this and it is really consuming my life.

I was first perscribed 10MG of Lisinopril to treat my high blood pressure of 140/90.I am 56 year old female. On the first day I experienced very high heart rate and pounding ,but my blood pressure came down immediately. After 2 months my blood pressure increased to 135/90 so my doctor increased the dosage to 20MG. After being on the med. for 3 months my eyelashes began falling out and then my hair...It is so bad I decreased the medicine on my own because I was on vacation and then I quit taking any pills. I had read that some vitamins and herbs can lower blood pressure so I am taking them and monitoring my pressure on my own everyday. after a week off medication I can happily say that my blood pressure in the morning is 115/70 and in the afternoon a range of 117/76-124/82.. I hope this continues... Calcium,Garlic and Lecithin are just a few of the vitamins that I am taking. Also my other side effects that I attribute to this drug are a slight dry clough,acne on my nose, runny nose increased heart rate and out of breath when excercising. I don't advise anyone to stop taking their meds , but you might want to look into the possibility of taking vitamins and getting off this drug.

Have dry cough for more than two weeks.Also had a small rash on my chest.Some breathing difficulty at night too.Lower blood pressure sure,but there's got to be something else.I'm off the Prinivil now and exercise with cardio training(cycling 2 hours,max effort).No problems now except waiting for the coughing to subside,which it slowly going away.My doctor wants to prescribe something else.Why can't they make something without the side effects that seem worse than the original ailment?
Impotence? I ain't waiting for that to happen!