Racing heart symptoms and conditions

I started Metaprolol Succ. 2 weeks ago when I had a racing heart and ended up in the ER. I was actually dehydrated and low in potassium plus going through a fungal detox and that's why my heart was out of whack. The metaprolol has put me on the couch for 2 weeks. Extreme dizziness like I am being pushed down to the ground, depression, crying, fear, some diarrhea,shortness of breath, feeling drugged out, fatigued, weird vision, and the most awful high anxiety I have ever had! I cannot believe someone could have this much anxiety and not jump out of their skin. The first few days I was taking this, I felt great! Then it just went downhill.. I am trying to take magnesium and inositol (all natural) to help curb the anxiety. I told the doctor to wean me off of this, NOW! I am only taking 25 mg per day and I was told to cut it in half for 4 days and then stop. I can't wait to get this stuff out of my head and system. I never had high blood pressure and taking something for high blood pressure is just not right for my system. All I really needed was magnesium/potassium to get my heart under control. I am going to start Enzymatic Therapy Krebs Cycle Potassium/Magnesium in a few days.

my effect after 6 months are nausea, racing heart, dry eyes, cuticles breaking. my 6th UTI already...I'm thinking this BC has to low of estrogen level for me, I used to be on a triphasic pil which wokred much better...going back to it.
The best thing was an IUD, but here they make such a big deal of it if you didn't have a baby yet....

I am 36 years old and my OB thinks I may have endometriosis. For the last two years I have suffered from pain during intercourse heavy periods as well as sistitis in the bladder, I also have a grape size fibroid in my uterus and suffer from night sweats and hot flashes. My Dr. decided to put me on the nuvaring to treat what she thinks is a hormone imbalance. However since starting the ring two weeks ago I am having chest pain, racing heart, shortness of breath and severe mood swings including depression, anxiety and crying spells. Even when I am resting my heart is racing and I have chest pains. There have been some good side affects however such as I think that the sistitis is clearing up and my complexion is better but I do not think it is worth the risk of having a stroke or heart attack to stay on it. It amazes me what drug companies will push through all in the name of profit. Thanks to all of you who have posted your side effects on this site it gave me the courage to call up my Dr. to look into other options of treatment. Bless you all.
Miss S

I HAVE BEEN ON TOPROL-XL FOR 2 YEARS. 25 MG. IN AM AND BLOOD PRESSURE WOULD FLUCTUATE UP TO 170/116 AND GO BACK DOWN TO 140/85. THEN WAS ALSO PUT ON NORVASC 25MG. IN PM. I ALSO AM HYPOTHYROID WITH HASHIMOTOS. MY SIDE AFFECTS HAVE BEEN EXTREME. SWEATING, HAVE TO CARRY A PAPER TOWEL OR SCARF TO WIPE SWEAT OFF, SPACED OUT, TIRED, FORGETFULNESS, RACING HEART, LEGS ANKLES SWOLLEN, THEY FEEL SO HEAVY, WEIGHT GAIN, EYES WATER, NOSE WILL HAVE NASAL DRIP, CONSTIPATED, SORE NECK, HEADACHES, THE LIST GOES ON. THIS SUMMER I WENT TO THERAPY FOR MY NECK, HAD ECHO AND WORE 24 HR. HEART HALTER, WHICH I HAVE FOUR EXTRA BEATS, WENT TO ENDRICONE DOCTOR WHO RAN TESTS FOR EVERYTHING, 24 HR. URINE, TESTS CAME BACK WITH TSH HIGH, EVERYTHING ELSE WAS NORMAL BUT FOR MY HEART EXTRA BEATS ENDR. AND FAMILY DOCTOR TOOK ME OFF NORVASC AND PUT ME ON TOPROL-XL 25MG IN PM ALSO AM. WELL FEELING LIKE I WAS READY TO GIVE IT ALL UP, LIKE I WAS DYING, I QUIT TAKING IT LAST NIGHT AND HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT THIS ALL YEAR, TRYING PEPTACE AND CELERY SEED EXTRACT. I FELT SO BAD THAT I KNOW IT COULD BE DANGEROUS TO QUIT THE TOPROL-XL LIKE THAT BUT I FELT LIKE MY HEART WAS GONNA BURST AND IT WAS GANNA TAKE ME OUT ANYWAY, AND DOCS. WOULDN'T LISTEN AND I HAVE BEEN IN TO THEM A LOT WITH ALL MY ISSUES. I AM 56 AND HAVE ALWAYS BEEN ACTIVE, OUTDOORS TYPE PERSON. I WALK 2 MILES ON TREADMILL EVERYDAY AND 30 MIN. OF TAE-BO EXERCISE. I WORK 5 DAYS A WEEK AND HAVE LOTS TO DO AT HOME. THEY TRIED TO PUT ME ON CYMBALTA, LEXAPRO, ELIVOIR FOR THEY SAID WHEN YOU FEEL THAT BAD YOU CAN GET DEPRESSED, I TOLD THEM NO, I AM NOT ADDING ANY MEDS. KNOWING I WOULD GET WORSE. PEOPLE AT WORK, MY FAMILY WILL SAY YOU DON'T LOOK LIKE YOU FEEL GOOD OR IS SOMETHING WRONG, HOW COMPLICATED IT WOULD BE TO EXPLAIN. SO I AM LISTENING TO MY BODY CAUSE FEELING THAT BAD ISN'T RIGHT SO I HOPE THIS WORKS. I COULN'T FEEL ANY WORSE ANYWAY. SO GOOD LUCK TO YOU ALL AND ALL OF US ARE UNIQUE TO FIND WHAT MIGHT WORK FOR US, AND MOST THOSE PRESCRIPTIONS ARE FOR ONE THING AND THEN TRIGGER OFF OTHER THINGS THEN YOU GOTTA TAKE ANOTHER MED. FOR THAT. I AM GLAD TO FIND THIS SITE.

OMG!! I am so glad I found this site!! I have been taking Fem Con now for about 10 days and have gained 5 pounds! My face is patchy. My head is killing me and I can't get a good night's sleep. This pill is the devil! I have been bleeding constantly for the past 10 days with no sign of letting up, and don't get my started on my racing heart beat. If a doctor offers this to you--- get a new doctor!!!

I've been taking levoxyl for 8 years now with mostly good success. My endo doctor recently upped my dose due to lab results (I think the test results were bad). Now I feel horrible. Headache, dizzy/lightheaded, blood pressure increased, tightness in throat, and muscle cramping. I've been to many specialists concerning the dizziness - everyone says I'm OK; cardiologist, ENT, and neurologist. The symptoms started a few weeks after the dose increase, and have worsened in the last week or two (about 2.5 months out).

I have been on Levoxyl for about 9 years and have felt awful. I have had weight loss, dry hair, thinning hair,dry skin, muscle aches, migraines and the list goes on. I just got out of the hospital Monday after 4 days of testing of my heart and lungs. I was admitted for racing heart. The doctor's conclusion was anxiety! They said that Levoxyl has nothing to do with my rapid heart rate. The endocrinologist prescribed taking levoxyl .050 on day and .075 the next also a beta blocker, Xanax and Zoloft. I can not take any of these meds b/c they make it almost worse. I KNOW it is not Anxiety and it from the Levoxyl but what do I do?? I am a mess right now can not be in this condition with four young kids and a husband. None of the doctors would say it was the Levoxyl and instead prescribed more and told me to check up with blood work in 6 weeks. I took the .050 yesterday around noon and by 7:30pm my heart rate picked up again and continued until 4:30 this morning. I can not sleep more then 2 hours at a time and wakeup feeling like I am crawling out of my skin. PLEASE let me know of any solutions.

I am 25 and healthy.
I had Mirena inserted in October 2007. In March 2008 I went to the ER with a racing heartbeat. The ECG was normal, i was sent home.
On June 8 I went to the ER again for racing heart beat and chest pain. The ECG was normal, I was sent home.
On June 11 I was home alone and my chest was sore, my heart started racing, my fingernails turned blue, i was light headed. it felt like the blood left my body. I called 911 and was rushed to ER with a heart rate of 175 bpm. The ECG was normal. The doctor said it was anxiety, gave me an Ativan and sent me home after the heart rate normalized,
The 12 of June I went to my family dr as my symptoms had not improved. I was told she could not do anything except order blood work and to go back to ER if i still felt like that. I went to the ER. This time they prescribed me Ativan for anxiety even though i told them i was not anxious.
I took the Ativan for a couple of days. It made me tired but did not improve my chest symptoms or shortness of breath.
I got worse each day. I could only sit on the couch. Even going to the bathroom would have me feeling like i was having a heart attack. Since then, I went to ER 4x. because i KNEW something was very wrong.
Each time the ECG was normal so i was given a 24 hr monitor to wear (still awaiting the results).
I was reading the side effects for Mirena and my symptoms were listed. This medication can potentially cause heart attack and stroke.
I would wake up in the middle of the night with my chest burning and heart pounding. You don't wake up from a deep sleep having a panic attack!!
My last visit to the ER had the doctor telling me "not to google shit and freak myself out". I asked to have my IUD removed and although he was skeptical he agreed after i begged.

I cannot say for CERTAIN the mirena caused this but I have had it out for 3 days now and started to feel better yesterday which is also the day i started to bleed. This only convinces me further it was the IUD.

I am still not 100%. It will take some time for my system to return to normal after this. My main concern is that it damaged my heart so I am going to have an Echogram done to find out.

Amy - Moncton NB Canada

I have been on Lisinopril 20mg.for 4 years now. At first I just noticed fatigue and a lack of motivation to do things. A year later, I started having chest pain, fast pulse up to 130/min. and activity intolerance especially after meals. I went to my Dr. and he put me on a beta blocker to lower my pulse. At first it worked and I felt slightly better. Now I have all these symptoms again together plus I have gained 22 pounds from the activity intolerance and the beta blockers. I went to my Dr. this week and told him I am going off the Lisinopril with or with out his help. He reluctantly agreed and lowered my dose.It is very important to wean off this med and not stop taking it suddenly.I am weaning off the beta blockers too. He has given me HCTZ to assist to lower my B/P while I wean and to help lose weight which I am motivated to do. Wish me luck!

I just don't know what to say. I had the Mirena inserted in May 2007. INSERTION WAS VERY PAINFUL......almost like having a contraction. My doctor had a hard time inserting it and almost gave up.....so did I. After insertion, i had a period the next week that lasted for 14 days. I went back for them to check it and he could not find the strings. Finally after about 20 minutes of searching he found it. My periods have gone from regular pre-mirena to 8 days on post mirena and in April 2008, I had 2 periods. I thought this was suppose to slow down or stop periods. I have gained 20 pounds in a year, started having migraines again, feel and look like I am 6 months pregnant, am very testy and irritable, cry at the drop of a hat, spot after intercourse, and have palpitations. Now I read that the Mirena can cause thyroid problems. I have kidney disease and do not need anything to deal with. I thought I was going CRAZY until I started reading posts on the internet. I wish I had known all this before I got it. I have an appt. to have mine removed June 28. That is the soonest I could get....If I could take it out myself, I would. Has anybody else experienced palpitations?

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.

Both my 19 year old daughter and my 30 year old step daughter were put on Yasmin. Both began having heart problems. The eldest had heart palpitations, a racing heart and dizziness. The doctor discovered that her potassium level had shot up and her magnesium was down. They put her on magnesium to help control the racing heart. It helped, but then she became pregnant and had to lower the dose. The 19 year old has had the worst side effects. She was fine on ortho tricyclene, but when her doctor switched her to Yasmin her blood pressure shot up to 170/118. She began having chest pain. We pulled her off the Yasmin, but she has continued to have uncontrollably high blood pressure. The doctor ran several tests and has found no underlying cause as of this writing. She began taking 5 mg. of Norvasc, but was increased to 10 mg. to manage the high blood pressure.

Hi all. I'm posting again after being off Advair for about a week. I've noticed a dramatic change in my emotional health. The anxiety that I've been suffering from for the last three months while on Advair has now entirely vanished. I feel like my old self again, and friends and family have also noted the difference. I won't ever take this medication again-- I'd rather deal with my asthma in a preventive way.

I'm on my third infusion. Up till recently? It was a wonder drug. I got all my energy back, no more random joint pain and everything was going great. Then my third infusion happened. And I get jimmy arm. It's like jimmy leg, where you can't stop it from bouncing. Only worse. It's like my arm just won't rest. The next night? Both arms. The night after? Chest pains, racing heart, breathing shortness, all kicked off at 3AM with a lack of sleep. This is all very new to me and I'm waiting to hear from my Rheumatologist if I should go to the hospital or not.

I am very skeptical of all of the claims I have read here. I am no advocate of GSK or any other drug company for that matter, but I think people are getting carried away with attributing their symptoms to Advair. The known side-effects are readily available, anything else is purely based on assumption. I agree that Advair may in fact have many more possible adverse effects than they let the public know, but let us be careful about making ourselves little scientific researchers and concluding a causal relationship based upon a single case study (and an informal one at that). Talk to your doctor about trying something with less risk, such as Singulair, Azmacort, Intall, Fluticasone Propionate, etc. Please though, be careful not to be so quick to claim generalizable findings based on your specific case. I myself am going to work with my physician to attempt a gluten-free diet and a less invasive medication therapy. Advair is not habit-forming or addictive, so withdrawals are doubtful at best. Read up on the pharmacology of Advair (salmeterol in particular), and you can come to your own conclusions. Best wishes to all of you fellow asthmatics!

I was on a Prednisone taper for 7 days (bronchitis). I have been off for 16 days now. I am still suffering from BAD headaches, head pressure and dizziness (also racing heart) - off and on??? Does anyone know how long it takes to get this stuff out of your system? My first day after finishing it my headache and dizziness got so severe that I threw up 7 times over the next 24 hours?

Is it something that I am eating or drinking that is 'reactiviting' the side effects of the Prednisone? I hate this.

Thank you.

Vanessa

I'd like to say that I think the Old version of Synthroid that existed
before 1982-83 was MUCH better than what is produced today,
I'd done quite well on Old Synthroid from 1975 to 1982 after
RAI treatment for a bad case of Grave's disease when I was
eleven years old....but when Synthroid was changed to be
more "cost-effective" for its manufacturer, my life was basically
destroyed--and I haven't recovered since then, despite trying many
different doses of various thyroid drugs.

Symptoms I've gotten since Synthroid changed in '82 include:
Severe breathing trouble that really limits what I can do every
single day; extremely dry skin in certain places--like legs and
feet; much poorer memory and thinking ability; much drier hair
and too much hair falling out; tendency to get chest pains whether
dose is too low, too high, or "normal," have had a lot of trouble with
blood pressure at times; getting red in face; too much weight gain
for what I eat; lymphedema (much swelling in legs and feet),
inability to sleep well; always feel congested or blocked up;
vision problems like black spots floating before eyes; sensitivity
to light; double or triple vision at times; involuntary eye-twitching
at times. I'm sure I've forgotten some things, too....

A very odd thing about Synthroid since 1982 (and the other drugs
that've copied it, since that time) is that it tends to give me
symptoms of both high and low thyroid trouble at the same
time, while also causing new symptoms that I'd never had in
the first place. Old Synthroid was much more clear-cut for me.
If the dose was too low, I'd have typical low thyroid symptoms
only (too tired, dry skin, etc), and if too high, I'd get only typical
high thyroid symptoms (too nervous, insomnia, racing heart, etc),
Much easier to adjust and work with than today's Synthroid.

At any rate, I was left with little working thyroid gland after my
intitial Grave's treatment, so I am (unfortunately) very dependent
on GOOD thyroid medicine to help me. In my opinion, I haven't
had any good stuff to take since Old Synthroid left the market
in 1982-83. Haven't been well to accomplish much since that
time--feel like I'm getting punished for being a thyroid patient,
which is ridiculous, really--because I know better medicine once
existed, and I want it again!

Have tried many avenues to get someone to produce Old Synthroid
again, but no luck--I'm not rich, famous, or politically connected,
so no one listens to me. But if anyone out there reading this can
help in some way, please feel free to contact me--maybe we can
work together to bring back a better treatment that would help at
least some folks out there who are really suffering. S.D.

wow and I thought it was just me.
I have been on doxycycline for 6 days and talk about nausea, headaches, tightness in the chest and throat I am also contending with sore limbs almost flu like, also lots pf frothy mucus and a racing heart.
I have severe reflux normally but this drug is making it a nightmare.
depression is normal for me but now I am worried that is going to get worse.

I was on singulair for years for asthma. At first it seemed like a big help and I didn't put two and two together for a long time that it was causing problems. hair loss, weight gain, racing heart, rising blood pressure, dreams, irritability, memory loss, leg and muscle pain, and much more.
I have gone back to using theodur (theophylline) it has worked for 50 years for me and many others without the side effects of singulair.

Back in the 90's when the drug companies first started promoting all these new asthma drugs, especially the puffer$$, they got together and got the fda to take off the combo medicines that contain theophylline off the market, saying they 'didn't work'. So they removed marx, quadrinal, tedral, quibron and a host of others from the market...to clear the path to market their new designer asthma medicines. They almost got rid of theophylline too, but the pulmonologists put up a fight as it is one of their important meds. Theophylline is a terrific bronchial dialator. They also removed theophylline from primatene, an old standby over the counter medicine for asthmatics.

The reason they want rid of the theo and related drugs is because the patents have run out and they can't make any $money$ off them.

So welcome to the nightmare of singulair and others. Hope this little history helps.

I've been taking lipitor for 2 and a half years and have recently started getting a severe stabbing pain in the front thigh muscle. It is so painful it stops you dead in your tracks. I have stopped taking the Lipitor for a week now and the pain has gone. I also have memory loss and dizzy spells but don't know if that can be contributed to lipitor. I also have problems with co-ordination and speech. As I am only 46 I don't think it is old age!

Maybe I'm not crazy after all. I'm a 55-year-old female who has been taking Advair for close to 5 years. I have adult onset asthma and was using Albuterol to control it until my allergist placed me on Advair. It does a great job on my asthma, but at what price? During that time I've gained weight regardless of my diet and exercise regimen. I feel like I haven't slept in years and I'm convinced that it will eventually kill me because that makes everything else so much more difficult to deal with. I'm having major hair loss, hoarseness (I really miss singing), heart palpitations, extreme fluctuating blood pressure, heartburn, lethargy, blurred vision, twitching muscles. I finally decided that I had to change something and I found this website last week. I quit Advair cold-turkey. Probably not the right thing to do, but I was really on the brink. It's been nearly a week and I'm having extreme dizziness, terrible vision problems and awful headaches, but I am persevering.

Been on Geodon, substituted for weight-gaining Zyprexa, 3 weeks. No more paranoia, clear thinking, but want to go off because of horrible insomnia. Racing heart while on too high a dose of Geodon. Doc won't let me off, so here I go myself....

There is an important point that everyone here is missing. I had been on Toprol XL for years, brand name. Recently, a generic version by Sandoz has been issued. It is the GENERIC metoprolol that is causing the side effects, the racing heart, etc. If you can get the doctor to write "no substitutions" on the prescription, and get the original Toprol, you will notice the difference. the problem is, health insurance wants to push the generic, so you will pay more. but it's worth it to feel better!

What started out as a simple visit to dentist became a nightmare. My BP was high l73/90...so I went to a doc to get something for the BP. I knew it had been creeping up. I should have been more vigilent and done my own research first. He prescribed l00 milligrams of the generic brand--metropolol. I questioned the dose, but he said it was safe, and I needed something to bring my blood pressure down right away.

By the third day I felt like I had a hangover when I woke up. I started feeling not quite right. Tiredness, depression, and headache. My BP got higher. On the 5th day my heart started racing, with a pulse in the l30's. I spent 6 hours in the ER. My pulse was in the 60's, but BP 210/110. They injected me with 5 mg of the stuff, and also gave me clonopine. My EKG had been normal at the doc visit. In the ER it showed abnormal with sinus tachycardia and First Degree AV nodal block. It returned to normal, and by BP dropped to 150/80 with the clonopine. My glucose was also high at 300. I could feel an immediate relief with the clonopine. Heart enzymes normal. ER doc denied that the Topol caused the racing heart. He said that's not a side effect..perhaps there was an underlying cause. He did say the episode could have been triggered by low oxygen to the heart. I think they all stick together----he's not going to say the first doc was an idiot.

They wanted to transfer me to the "big" hospital for cardiac workup. I refused, since I had an appt.with a cardiologist in a couple days, and the doc that prescribed his awful med. I didn't think my insurance company should fork out $50,000 for an adverse effect from a drug.

I had been doing heavy exercise the morning of the racing heart...it was after I sat down I noticed the increase in pulse rate. NO ONE gave me any warnings..not the doc, or the pharmacist. Both said this was a safe drug.

I cut the dosage in l/2 for two days, until I saw the cardiologist. He said ok to stay on the clonopine for now, and a diuretic. I feel much better, and BP has dropped to the l40's over 80 something...pulse near 80. I am going to do a stress test. Based on a heart scan, 3 arteries have 0 plaque, and two mild.

I read that this drug is not recommended as first choice for BP. In the UK they're weaning people off of it because it causes diabetes, and there's other better drugs out there. I did not wait to "ask my doctor" to take me off of it. I told him I am not taking it....I don't know how much longer he will be my doc. I don't think he should have started at l00 milligrams to begin with...and should have started out slowly at the least.

Caveat emptor (buyer beware) when it comes to this med...and do your homework, and don't be afraid to fire your doctor!

OMG! It's 4:45 a.m. where I live and I just found this site...what a Godsend. I thought I was going crazy! I've had almost all of the symptoms everyone has listed here the worst being insomnia,racing heart rate(at night)and feeling like I can't breathe! WOW! I have been on this med for almost 4 years now(10mg/day,down from 12mg/day with HCTZ)and I think it's time to STOP! I've honestly felt so horrible that dying didn't sound like such a bad idea...hate to say that but it's true. My Doc. does not think that this drug is causing these problems and just wants to give me more drugs! I'm a 36 year old female that used to be the picture of health...not anymore. I'm going to stop this medication a.s.a.p. and would urge others to do the same...the side effects are worse than the so called 'cure!' Please email if you'd like to discuss further. Thanks to everyone! You have saved me!