Lisinopril and diovan

I'm 54, started taking lisinopril in jan 09. I took for about 3 months and noticed a decrease in libido. My pressure was pretty much in control, so I stopped taking it. I started again around 1st of Aug 09. Approx 3-4 weeks later, I began to experience severe pain in my left shoulder and arm. It began to move into my neck and back. I went in for an EKG to ensure I wasn't having a stroke. It was normal. I experience dizziness and headaches. I wake in the night and my 2 left fingers on the left hand are completely numb. The pain in my neck is now moving to the right side and some shoulder pain seems to be apparent. I noticed pain in other joints as well. I'm unable to work out at the gym as I usually do due to the pain my my left arm. I highly suspect these symptoms to be caused by lisinopril. I've been taking 20mg and was just switched to 20 mgm Hct. a week ago. X-Rays were taken of my neck and shoulder last week. Haven't' heard from the doctor as of yet. I was on Diovan before I lost my job and health benefits. As a vet, the VA put me on the Lisinopril. The Diovan worked fine for me, too expensive for us vets I guess. I am discontinuing the Lisinopril as of today 10/24/09. I feel like I imagine a ninety year old would feel with these aches and all. I havent' admitted it, but I believe I'm feeling mildly depressed as well. Let's see what a week of purging this from my system does. f. D.

I am 61 years old. I started taking Lisinopril 10mg, once a day about 6-7 months ago. Because of cough, I switched to Diovan 80mg, once a day (samples from my physician friend). After running out of Diovan samples, I started taking Lisinopril 5 mg, once a day again about three months ago. For better BP control, I ended up again taking Lisinopril 10 mg, once a day about 5-6 weeks ago. I started to simultaneously suffer from having persistent, extensive and progressively worsening joint and muscle pains in my both sides of neck, both shoulders, both upper arms, left elbow, left lower arm, both wrists, both hands, all fingers, both knees and left calf muscles. I had difficulties walking, moving my arms, shoulders, doing anything with my hands at the peak of the pains about 7-8 days ago. In the night, my fingers were very stiff and uncomfortable that I hardly could make a fist and I had difficulties getting up to go to bath room because of pains. I felt like I were a 90 years old man. Even Cataflam and Advil did not work well to relieve the pain. As a retired physician, I started to suspect it was Lisinopril-induced side effects. I searched on Google and found this web site. Now, I realize that I am not alone. I got my Lisinopril from CVS Pharmacy. I immediately stopped taking Lisinopril about one week ago. All my joint and muscle pains have been dramatically subsiding (although not completely disappeared) without taking any NSAID pain killer. Even "cough problem" became much worse during the same time. I am convinced that Lisinopril I got from CVS caused my serious, extensive, multiple joint and muscle pains. Perhaps, FDA should look into this side effect: whether it is common ACE inhibitor related side effect or it is possible manufacturer, country origin of the product related problem (made in a non-USA country and imported by CVS?). I would never take Lisinopril again. Posted by myh810.

I was on lisinopril for appx 6 month, during which time I had a continual hacking cough, went on an inhaler and switched to diovan. Now a year later, every time I get a simple cold it goes right into bronchitis, I had never had bronchitis before this med.

Ayurvedic Herbal Treatment for Hypertension

Hello. I have been dealing with my hypertension now for approximately 1-1/2 years now and those of you that have read my findings through my previous posts know that I'm always looking for natural supplements to stay off of the lisinopril. I stumbled onto a new herb for bp. You absolutely have to try this. I went to see my doctor yesterday and I was having a really stressed out day dealing with a family crisis and my bp was 150/100. I left with a prescription, but I received my order of this stuff in the afternoon and I took the recommended two tablets twice a day and woke up this morning with my bp 108/69. This product gets shipped from India and takes approximately two weeks to arrive by registered air mail, but very much worth the wait. I have the link to order it and to read more about the herbal treatment. If you are interested, feel free to e-mail me and I will send it to you. Take care and good luck.

I was taking lisinopril and as far as my blood pressure goes, it worked great. However, after taking this drug (and Diovan and Benicar as well,) over time I developed Gastritis and GERD. I've switched to Micardis recently. Day 5 today and I don't get the sharp stomach pains I would get 20 or so minutes after dosing Lisinopril. IMO blood pressure is important to control. There's 100's of these type of drugs out there. I suggest to keep on trying different ones until you find one that works for you. This is number 5 for me (I tried Tekturna, which did not give me the digestion side effects, but was not effective for my bp.) I went with Micardis next because it's formulated differently than the Diovans and Cozaars and Lisinoprils, and so far so good. Wish me luck.

Well, let's see now.................
I am a 48 year old female who has always been healthy.
4 months ago I went to the clinic for stomach pain that was gnawing at me. That's when my nightmare started. I was told to go straight to the local hospitals ER room because my Blood Pressure was 238/127
I was kept for 2 days in the cardiac unit. Tests were run and they all came out perfectly fine. I was then put on 50 mg toporol along with 20 mg Lisinopril. I was sent home and couldn't hardly function. Nauseous and dizzy, I was hanging onto walls just to go to the bathroom. Doctor switched me to Diovan instead of the lisinopril but insurance would not cover it. So once again I was switched to Avapro taken along with toporol.
By the second day on Avapro I was itching extremely and my skin was on fire. I called the Doctor once again and he said to Quit the Avapro and just take the Toporol alone. Well, within 4 days I ended back up in the emergency room with an elevated bp of 204/107. Once again, I was kept overnight and put on Labetelol (an alpha and Beta Blocker).
I did quite well on this med for a month and then the bp levels started to rise once again. I called the doctor this evening and was told to take 20 mg of the Lisinopril I had in the medicine cabinet along with the Labetelol.
It's been two hours and I'm starting to itch from the Lisinopril now....sigh.
Thank God I go to the clinic in the morning!!
I am really getting anxiety problems from dealing with these meds!!
Hopefully I can get everything straightened out. I am willing to hang in there until I can find something that works. It is obvious to me that I need HBP medication. I just wish They could find the right ones for me without having to go through all this . To all of you that have high BP, Hang in there. If one med doesn't work, keep trying!!
God Bless All Of You!!!!

Alright, listen. There is a light at the end of the tunnel for those who have found this site. My story was posted on June 20th. I would have to say that I cannot trust any doctors for anything since then. This web site has saved me money from the idiot doctors and my insanity. Really. It is so scary that when you go to the doctor they will never investigate your meds you are taking and will send you through many tests and prescribe you medicine that you don't need. I went through 4 different doctors multiple times that prescribed many different things with no effect to my condition. I went off Lisinopril and went back on Diovan and it took 8 days before I noticed any improvement. During those 8 days I got more depressed because I didn't feel any better. Then my symptoms started going away. My anxiety and coughing started to decrease. By the second week i did not need the help of sleeping pills to knock me out due to the anxiety at night and the gagging and coughing decreased.Since then I am almost back to normal. I still though have some symptoms of coughing, but not that bad. If you found this site and taking Lisinopril, please take note that your doctor is probably wrong. You are not going to die. Get off the da#m med and start living again. It may take longer than me. Don't get discouraged.It may take more than a month or so. Stay strong. I am pissed off and would love to beat the s&it out of the ones that created Lisinopril. I know we are the small % that has the effects, but get it off the market. People are dead from this med and the others are going though Hell......I feel for the ones who have had family members that have died from allergic reactions. I had an undiagnosed throat swelling that took me to the ER. I know what it was now...Take care, stay strong, get off Lisinopril, enjoy the rest of your life...

Wow, is all I can say. I just found this website this past Thursday morning before going to my Doctor. I am off it now and back on Diovan thanks to this forum. Here's my story... I switched from taking Diovan to Lisinopril-hctz about 3 months ago because it was way cheaper. I started getting a mild runny nose, and cough that didn't go a way.It was getting harder to sleep as the days went by. I tried sinus, allergy, cold, and cough medicine with nothing helping. I went to a different doctor at a local after hours clinic and they gave me a steroid shot for allergies. I have never had allergies all my life. I am 36 yrs old and work outside for a living. I knew something was wrong and started to get a little worried. I went back to see my main Doctor on May 5th and he switched me from Lisinopril-Hctz to 30mg of Lisinopril because I thought I was going to the bathroom more often. I questioned the side effects again and was told you just get a dry cough and what I had is allergies and gave me a prescription for Astelin. Not long after, my hell began. I started having the EXTREME coughing, gagging until you vomit, stuffy runny nose, and I was starting to get a little anxiety. Not to mentioned scared at this point. I could not sleep at night due to the coughing fits. I would sleep best after I had some drinks at night, so that became my sleep aid. I got a respiratory infection late May and took a Z-pack and Lohist 12d. I got a little better. This past Sat I woke up with a sore throat and something like a cold. Sunday morning I woke up with the sore throat that was worse and a panic attack! I was freaking out, pacing around wanting to go to the ER. It took 3 hrs to calm down and fell asleep. Sunday night anxiety kicked in again at bed time and I didn't know why. I just knew something was very wrong with me and mentally I was losing it. I took some melatonin and still couldn't sleep because of anxiety and coughing. Monday I was afraid of what was going on mentally and started to question if I was safe to be by myself if a bad panic attack occurs. I scheduled an appointment to see my doctor on Thursday. Hoping I could make it till then. Monday night I took a melatonin trying to stay calm and keep anxiety down. Could not sleep, bad coughing and gagging, but started to wind down about 1:30 am when it started. I was laying down making my ears pop/click and for some reason I could not make my right ear pop before my left ear. All the sudden anxiety kicked in full force. It took a long time to calm down that night. I finally did get my right ear popping before the left one. Its sounds funny but it wasn't at that time. It was official, I have lost my mind. I did not sleep at all wed night before my appointment. I did find this website that morning before going and felt better after reading other posts. After talking to him I switched back to Diovan. He still was leaning towards allergies though. He told me to take benadryl at night and claritin during the day and my coughing may take about 4 weeks to see improvements. I had my hopes ups on Thursday, but after reading a lot of posts here I am still discouraged about the outcome. For those of you that had anxiety attacks at night, how long before those stopped? Also how long before the coughing and gagging starts to slow down or end? Is there anybody that stopped taking Lisinopril, but symptoms have not improved? I am glad I found this forum and happy to be back on Diovan. Right now with the way I feel with the sore throat, coughing, gagging, vomiting, sinus pressure, anxiety, I am still unsure on the outcome and what may come next....

I have only been on 20mg of Lisinopril for 3 days now and am having constant headaches, fatigue, dizziness, and very lightheaded.. I never got the headache even when my BP was up, much less any of these other symptoms. My DR. advised that if they don't go away after the 3rd day to stop taking the drug and take naproxen till I can get in to see her. Which will be this week! I refuse to take this drug with ALL of its side effects. NO OTHER DRUG I HAVE EVER TAKEN had EVER GIVEN ME THIS MUCH PROBLEMS WITH THE SIDE EFFECTS! Also, since taking this drug, I have cried more over stupid things than I can remember.

I've been on Lisinopril 20mg for a week now. I have been having the hoarseness, leg cramps, tired (no energy), getting no sleep, and cough. But what worries me most is my blood pressure has dropped to what I think is TO LOW, (example: 87/60, 90/58, 96/66 89/68. I called my dr. 2 days ago and explained my concerns. They told me to cut my 20mg pill in half and we will decide what to do at my next appt. which is in a few days. Even after cutting the pill in half, my bp is still running 96/67, 98/66. Should I demand to be taken off the Lisinopril and be put on a different medication?

I am a 31 year old male, in decent shape (play basketball, volleyball, workout at least 3 times a week) but I have a family history of high blood pressure and have had it myself as long as I've been tested. Went to cardiologist as a check up on my slightly enlarged heart, long story short, ended up on Metoprolol (25mg) beginning of 2008 and have been fine but no real help with bp. Then was put Lisinopril (5mg) a few months ago and my blood pressure was great at last checkup. However during that time I had a couple of weeks where I was very dizzy, that sort of feeling your brain is taking a second to keep up with your head as you get up, along with a fogginess and what seemed like sinus issues but I chalked it up to weaning off of a small dosage of Zoloft I had taken for over a year. I also developed "the cough" everyone refers to, but since it is winter in New England I chalked it up to dry heat, even though it was a choking cough unlike any I've ever had before. Also during that time I seemed to completely lose my sex drive, again figuring it was just something to do with the Zoloft or general anxiety. Then in the past week I started getting a constant headache, having really interrupted sleep, very foggy and out of it, tired, dehydrated, constipation, nausea, all things that I would normally associate with allergies or some kind of sinus/flu, but yet I couldn't really pinpoint anything that would be causing it.

Then I finally started looking up things about the meds I was taking and came upon this site, and guess what? Everything and every way I was feeling was described in hundreds and hundreds of posts on this site. I don't think my side affects were quite as strong as some have experienced (for instance the cough is very infrequent, like twice a day) but I have only begun my journey with Lisinopril. So despite the warnings, I decided to stop taking it a few nights ago, and almost instantly I began feeling better the next day and since then.

I have since called my cardiologist and he has recommended I switch to Diovan, basically saying that based just on the cough symptom alone, he wants me off of Lisinopril as this is a known side affect. Now I am left debating whether or not I want to continue down this path of trying different combinations of pills to poison my body in order to lower my bp. It seems like others have noted marked differences between taking Diovan and Lisinopril, where the Diovan has been much more tolerable than Lisinopril (with a great decrease in any side-affects) but I'm 31 and although I know it will be very difficult to reduce my bp on my own (believe me, I've tried) maybe I'm too young to start with the "last resort" of these toxins. Just reading about the possibility that Lisinopril was robbing my body of zinc or other minerals, so that my immune system is greatly weakened, likely being the cause for most of the symptoms, is enough to ward me off of pills altogether. It's a sad statement on the state of health care in America when I am left to basically make such an important decision on my own, because I can't trust that my doctors aren't just working in the interest of the drug companies to boost their income. I don't want to have to choose between a silent killer and a horrible existence filled with "side-affects".

In the end, based on some of the reports on here, I think starting on 40mg of Diovan will be fine, but I will certainly be VERY wary of anything unusual and immediately find other options.

I used to take Diovan, but I wanted a more economical alternative, so Dr. gave me Lisinopril. I am now experiencing itchy skin, especially on the back of my legs, cloudy urine, and experienced tendinitis on my shoulders. The tendinitis is especially aggravated at night time.

Side effects seem to be different with two different brands of Lisinopril.

First maker is International Labs Inc. seems to give me the heavy chest along with more sluggish feeling. Which results in some Ed problems as well. Terrible gas.

Where as I have some Lisinopril from Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. which seems to be better.

I was told by someone that the makers may use different fillers to make the pills which I could be reacting too ?

Has anyone else found this to be true, Plus what brands does everyone else get ?

Either way I have been on this Lisinopril for 5 weeks now not liking it much but did get past the terrible couch scratchy throat feel by drinking some milk first to coat my throat, someone told me and it did work.

Waiting to see what troubles show up next with taking this long term. Not sure I can afford the blood work it will require when they soaked me 625 plus 222 dollars for two visits to get this 4 dollar pill.

Maybe they just prescribe this to lower our pressure for when the bills show up for us Unlucky Unemployed people without Health Insurance !!

I was on Diovan HCTZ for a number of years for my high blood pressure. It worked pretty well, keeping my b/p to around 130/80, it had been 158/90. The Diovan, since no generic is available, is expensive but I did have a prescription plan at the time. I recently retired and asked my doctor to switch me over to a generic medication to cut my cost. He put me on lisinopril hctz 20/12.5mg. I took it once a day and had great results with lowering my blood pressure. No side effects until the third month, I then began to notice a great deal of hair loss. Since I am 58, 15 years post menopausal, dye my hair, I thought maybe it was the dye (unusual since I have been using the same product for years). I started washing my hair every other day instead of daily. This did not help, I still had to vacumm my bathroom floor daily. At this point I looked up on the internet and found this site about the connection of lisinopril and hair loss. Being an RN I decided to cut the pills in half for a week and see what happened. Sure enough, my hair loss stopped. I then went to my doctor equipt with this information. I am now on HCTZ 25mg daily and taking my blood pressure 2x/day. My b/p stays around 140/80. I know I have to go back to the doctor next week to discuss what to do next because this is not working. Luckily I HAD very thick hair otherwise I would be bald. Does the hair grow back? Does anyone have any other medication they can suggest that does not have this side effect? Too bad, I was doing so good on the lisinopril with my b/p and it did not make me tired like the diovan did.

I too have light headedness,dizziness,cough & ED problems. have been on Lisinopril 3 Months. Hated the stuff. Finally got my Doctor to change. Trying Diovan now.Why can't someone do something about this drug? Doctors just won't believe anyone! After 1 week I do feel a lot better,never really realized just how bad I actually felt on it.We'll see how the Diovan works,but am I early of this one too.

I got off Diovan because of diminished energy, drowsiness, and all-around lack of ability to focus after several years on it. I didn't realize it was the Diovan until I got off it and got on a weight loss med: Phentermine. I felt like I was 20 again. But that was short-lived of course because you can only take that stuff for 90 days, max. Diovan was bad for me. Then the Doc prescribed Lisinopril and I was on that for a couple of months until a week ago. I'd been suffering with a dry cough for a week when I told the Doc about the side effect and I've been off Lisinopril for 7 days. The cough is still but slowly going away. Bouts of coughing are no longer every hour on the hour but about 2-3 times a day and still all night long. I'm off of any BP meds now and my BP is 150/90, same as it was on both Lisinopril and Diovan. Apparently it takes a while for the Lisinopril coughing spells to go away.

My Doctor said I needed a different BP med since my pressure while on my diovan was 150/80. Lisinopril was so much cheaper than diovan and I was happy to not be paying 1.00 per pill for diovan. I never had one side effect from Diovan but I believe that all the symptoms I have been having in the last 12 days is because of Lisinopril. I started Lisinopril on 8/20 and by Oct 1st I was in bad health. First I had the cough start, I have coughed so much I walked around with cough drops in my mouth all the time trying to keep from coughing. Coughing kept me awake at night. Sometimes I would cough so much I would start choking and start gagging. Then 12 days ago I started have pin pricks on the bottom of my feet and horrible cramps in my feet and legs. Then I started having the dizzy feeling that would come and go. Sometimes I would get so dizzy while sitting down that I felt like I was about to pass out. It felt like blackness was creeping in on me and my vision would start to go black. I had terrible pain in my back on my left side and suffocations feelings in my neck. My doctor never even brought up that maybe I was suffering from side effects from this BP med. instead he sent me for a heart echo and stress test. With a heart monitor used for 24 hours also. Cardiologist said everything looked fine. I told him that I had just been put on Lisinopril about 30 days ago but he never said maybe that could be the problem. I don't understand how any Dr can be so uninformed about a medicine. Why didn't anyone mention that what I was feeling could be medicine induced. I have been scared to death I was having a heart attack or had a blocked artery and was going to stroke. Unbelievable to me. I am so glad I found this website. It validates what I was thinking. I stopped the lisinopril yesterday when a friend said his dad had symptoms like mine when taking this BP med.
Actually felt better today, no passing out feeling, felt like cleaning my house again. And the cough is almost non existent tonight. I changed myself back to my diovan since I had a few left and will talking to my doctor Monday about all this.

OMG -I'm 47 and I've been on for 6 months now and I've had a hunch for a few weeks but never thought I'd find this!! I was on Hydrochlorothiazide for 1 wk-had cramps in my toes so Dr. immediately took me off even though I said I felt great-but peed a lot!- He said this would be better for me..... EVERYTHING I've been feeling is the same as you.......I've just not been able to put my finger on it - I just felt "different", I thought it was me and I was getting "old" with a nagging tinkling cough, at the worst time "bed time"...ruins any sex life! I had fatigue, problems concentrating, headaches- back of my head, blurred vision- my eyes would kinda fog over- scared me to death so had tests but all was ok), I've been getting that "bummed out feeling" & didn't feel like doing anything but I've always loved Summer and Fall - going to the beach, riding motorcycles, swimming, my garden and to be outside, but now I kind of force myself to do. Then just this past week I've been feeling sick and nauseated, with an acid reflux vomit feeling and I've just had enough.......There are way tooo many coincidences here....... I have to get off of this stuff!!

Back again Oh my am so confused on what to do.. I was taken off this med(LISINOPRIL) at my extreme constant complaint- and put on another--well either I have atypical reactions to all these drugs or am still having side effects from the Lisinopril-- I am taking diavon now-- I feel even worse-- rash is back head hurts so bad I could cry and I am weak all the time.. I could pull every hair that is left on the top of my head right out! I now have that rash around my neck and upper legs- was told before it could be the shingles hey I never had them before,, never.. my nerves are shattered I cry a lot and am hesitant to change again-so I stopped this is day 2 and my headache has subsided
What are we to do I am at wits end.. I know I need something but what today I am at 140/90 going back up,, any suggestions? I started taking Zinc yesterday was told that I am experiencing LOW ZINC LEVELS DUE TO THE LISINOPRIL(HAS ANYONE ELSE BEEN TOLD THIS?)

Doctor just changed my prescription from Atenolol to Lisinopril. After 2nd, 3rd day of taking it, I developed the cough in the middle of the night. He said that this was one of the side effects, so, I wasn't too concerned. But then, after another couple of days, started feeling the dizziness, nausea, lack of appetite, and the FATIGUE! Decided to call him after taking 6 of those pills, to tell him about my concerns. He said to stop taking it. Prescribed Diovan now. Still feel like I've been run over by a truck, but
SO happy to have found this web site. I hate that so many others have been affected by all of these symptoms, and, affected for so long. Just made me feel somewhat better that I was not the only one feeling this same way. I thought I was losing it.

I took Diovan HCT for years without any side effects. We must do mail order with our health insurance and the providers website said that Lisinopril was an alternative to the Diovan that was available as a generic and therefore a lower cost. I spoke with my Dr. about it and she advised me of the "cough" and said it wasn't exactly the same but since I wanted to save as much money on scripts as I could I tried the Lisinopril. I took it for a couple of months and noticed being more fatigued and weak. Finally I got to the point where I was feeling like I was hungover 24x7 and started looking to see if there was any side effects from this different med I was taking and saw all the symptoms I was having from fatigue to palpitations to nausea to muscle weakness and cough. I went back to the Dr. and got back on Diovan and everything is much better now. My wife was on this medicine too for a while and she noticed the same thing but didn't put it together with the medicine. There should be some kind of advisory with this stuff or it should be taken off the market.

I am a 60year old female who was admitted to Mayo clinic after experiencing a hypertensive encephalopathy seizure. I was placed on lisinopril to try to bring my blood pressure under control. I have been on as many as five different medications per day with none controlling my extreme high blood pressure. After taking lisinopril for two days I developed a severe headache with floaters. My face became very swollen, especially my eyes, with unbearable itching and soreness. I also have had chest pains and it feels like my throat and insides are raw. My stomach hurts and it is hard to eat. I have only taken two lisinopril tablets and will not be taking any more. I see my doctor tomorrow and expect to be given a different medication. So far I have had no luck with any blood pressure medicine and I have tried about ten different kinds. If any one has had any luck with a prescription drug or an alternative remedy, I would love to hear from you.Thanks, Evelyn

Update and a question:

I posted about a week ago about some of the side effects I was experiencing from lisinopril:

-lightheadedness (including one fainting spell)
-some discomfort and tightness in my chest
-difficulty breathing (when this happened, I would force myself to breathe deeply and usually found that I was breathing OK ... just felt like I wasn't always getting enough air)
-feelings of panic
-muscle pain in back and neck
-diarrhea

I stopped taking it a little over week ago and my doctor wants to start me on diovan. After my experience with lisinopril, I want to wait a little while before starting a new med.

So my question is, how long does it take to get lisinopril completely out of your system?

I've felt some of the same side effects recently (slight dizziness, some discomfort in back and chest area). But that was after working in the Texas sun for a couple of hours in the morning. (I've heard that lots of sweating and dehydration can increase some of the side effects of lisinopril.)

Can anyone tell me your experiences after getting off lisinopril?

After 25 days on 10 mg/day Lisinopril the following symptoms: extreme dizziness all day, hypotension so bad can't even get out of car seat without almost fainting, night time dry cough (tickle type), unusual muscle tiredness in legs and back (I bike 10 mi/day, 5 days/week for years) and now a rash on both forearms!! Doctor took me off the drug yesterday and prescribed Diovan 80mg/12.5 to begin next week. Wants all Lisinopril out of my system. The most disturbing side effect was Confusion. Even had dreams relevant to the effect on my thinking skills. I imagined this must be what it's like for a person when they realize they have Alzheimer's. Two days off Lisinopril, a little hypotension, dizziness gone, confusion gone, but rash remains and is worsening. All of the above discussed with doctor. He moved me to his own choice for his high BP...Diovan. We'll see

I am a 62 yo female who was prescribed Lisinopril in February. Within a week I had such a continuous horrible dry, hacking cough that I trouble communicating with others. This cough was particularly bad during the night. I have had to live with water and cough drops as my constant companions. I can honestly say that I have only slept through the night once from February until last night. My PCP finally decided that I did not have a sinus infection and that a codeine based cough medicine was not the answer and switched me from Lisinopril to Avapro on Monday, June, 2nd. According to my PCP it could take up to a week for the cough to go away.

After a lifetime of good blood pressure, I was so reluctant of surrendering to the fact that I needed to be on blood pressure medicine but finally did so for the fear of a risk in having a stroke. My doctor put me on Lisinopril about 6 weeks ago. The good news is that my blood pressure is now 120/60 HOWEVER....I have had the most unusual, annoying, dry, itching cough that simply stops me in my tracks!!! It just sneaks up on me without warning and I suddenly feel like a lint ball is stuck in my throat and I can't swallow and the tears pour down my face. I cannot even walk into the post office without a bottle of water in my hand for fear of an attack coming on. The only relief I can get is to drink water. It really hits me at night when I am trying to sleep...so guess what I DON't get much sleep!!! I went thru 1 gallon of water 2 nights ago!!! Along with this condition, I have also felt extremely irritable!!!! I did have enough sense to know that the level of anger or the amount of tears I was experiencing seemed to be over amplified. Thanks to my good friend for caring enough about me to discover this web site so I can discontinue this medicine. No more high blood pressure but I may just choke to death!!!

When I first started taking lisinopril, I had several episodes of dizziness and almost fainted. That was when I looked up the side effects and was alarmed to find out that it is made from the venom of a poisonous snake from Brazil. I stopped taking it for several months, but my blood pressure kept climbing, so finally decided to give it another try. It didn't give me any problems at first. Just before Christmas last year, I had a bad cough and congestion, for which the doctor prescribed antibiotics and cough syrup with codeine. The antibiotics did nothing for it, but the cough syrup finally gave me some relief. Since then, the congestion got a little better, then worse, with the good spells lasting only a few days, compared to the coughing getting worse and worse. Finally when my throat was very wheezy with every breath, I decided to check the symptoms of lisinopril again. I called my doctor and told her I wanted to go off of it and see if it helped. That was 10 days ago. My throat is clear now, but I still have a lot of lung congestion. The crazy thing is that my blood pressure kept going up in spite of taking lisinopril. I've been taking atenolol for years, and now the dr put me on lovaza, which brought my blood pressure down to normal within a day.
Another thing when I was taking lisinopril, I began to wonder if I had fibromyalgia because I had so much pain all over my body. I don't know it the lisinopril caused that, but I don't feel nearly as much pain since I quit taking it.

My husband has been taking Lisinopril for about 5 years now. He was taking 1 tablet a day. He was feeling dizziness, and lightheadedness, so he went to his Cardiac Doctor. The Doctor checked his Blood Pressure and said it was high. Than the Doctor prescribed 2 tablets instead of 1. When he takes 2 tablets it makes the dizziness worse, so he went back to taking 1 tablet, and feels somewhat better, but it's not the best. Does anyone know of a
medication that he can take for the high blood pressure that won't cause dizziness? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you.

Smmr1321

I've been having ringing in my ears (tinnitus) which started at about the same time I started taking Lisinopril. Has anyone else experienced this side effect?

I am 58 with mild hypertension. Started Lisinopril 10mgs and started to cough and feel like I was getting a cold within 48hours. 4 days later I was in the MD office with what I thought was an Asthma exacerbation. We treated it with Solumedrol dose pack and xeponex nebulizer treatments. Two days later I am in the ER unable to stop coughing. My MD was on call and realized that this was due to the Lisinopril!! This dry hacking cough also sometimes produces some phlegm but I am exhausted. This is miserable. It appears from what I have been reading that Lisinopril has the worst record of the ACE Inhibitors for this cough side effect. I am an RN and had no idea that this could be so bad. No more ACE inhibitors for me...they go on my "allergy" list. There are other allternatives and I think the Calcium Channel Blockers are a better alternative.
Maybe it is time for the FDA to re look at Lisinopril????

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 didn't seem to have any side effects until the doctor upped my dose to 20 mg of lisinopril after 7 weeks at 10 mg.Then the gastro-intestinal effects started with gas,constipation and severe cramping for about 2 hours every night.I finally was told to quit the lisinopril and wait until side effects subside to try another approach.I would be interested in find a more natural way to control my HBP other than a drug derived from a pit viper's venom.

My doctor just prescribed Lisinopril for me. I'm supposed to start taking it today but after reading ALL OF THESE POSTS I am very nervous and don't really want to take it.

He also prescribed norvasc for me to take with the Lisinopril. Has anyone ever taken that??

I was switched to Lisinopril after Diovan was taken off the AF formulary. The next three weeks were HELL---constipation, heavy sweats, and a nagging dry cough. The strangest symptom was aching eyeballs and lids that were red, swollen, and scaly. I am now back on Diovan, and it is well worth the price!

ok lots of similar side effects for all. Some have turned to Diovan with luck. Have anyone else gone to another med besides beta blockers with luck? Ha anyone gone back to Zestrial with a difference as far as side effect?

I've just started my third month on Lisinopril. The cough I assumed was either caused by either my recent exposure to airbag powder in an accident or allergies that had to go untreated since most medications don't work with HBP. Sometimes I just can't stop. I'll be fine and then the tickle starts and then the hacking. At night, I try to sleep with my head elevated so I don't gag. I insisted on a followup visit with the prescribing doctor because of the strange tingling I was experiencing in my hands. Wake up fine, take Lisinopril and by lunch time my hands felt like they were "fuzzy". Skin tingling like from cold, but hands actually warm. Doctor didn't believe this to be side effect of medication, but it looks like from the comments I've read it could be. I've also experienced the tiredness or lack of energy, but then sometimes at night it's hard to sleep. I really would like to stop the Lisinopril (10 mg dose). I didn't like what I read about Diovan either. Anyone going holistic?

I am a 51 year old female that has experienced several side effects from lisinopril, especially when I started going into perimenopause at the age of 48. I am now menopausal, but I thought I was doomed to having hot flashes/night sweats, sleep deprivaton (wake up every hour or so every night), depression, forgetfulness, lack of concentration, bloating for many years to come. I discovered that the lisinopril was causing this when I went on a cleansing diet for a week in January and noticed that some days I felt great and other days I felt like crap. I realized the pattern was directly connected to whether I remembered to take my lisinopril. I started taking 20mg/day 7 years ago, was upped to 40mg/day 3 years ago and have stopped taking it for now so I can function normally, especially for my analyst job. I've been making some lifestyle adjustments (losing weight, deep breathing (I tend to hold my breath frequently), next I need to quit smoking) to lower my BP somewhat, but I am going to ask my doctor for an angiotensin receptor blocker (DIOVAN since some peope have mentioned here that they have been successful with that) when I have my appointment in 2 weeks. Uncontrolled HBP can cause more serious problems down the road, so I have to try to control it with meds for now while I continue my lifestyle adjustments.

Has any woman ever experienced side effects that could be confused with perimenopause or menopausal symptoms?

I just got home from the doctor's office. I was put on lisinopril 10 mg per day. After reading these posts,I don't think I will even start taking it!

Summary of what I've read so far...

On emotional level:
1. Anxiety/Depression
2. Fear of having throat/lung cancer
3. Fear of having a heart attack/failure/angina
4. Short temperedness
5. Vivid dreams/nightmares
6. Thoughts of suicide
7. Feel like we're going to die soon

On physical level:
1. Tingling/ pins and needles, on arms and fingers
2. Leg pains (cramp, etc...)
3. Chest pains ( various description...)
4. Shortness of breath
5. Back/neck pain
6. Trouble sleeping
7. Coughing, itchy/scratchy throat
8. Loss of sex drive
9. Dizziness
10. Lack of energy / feeling exhausted / fatigue
11. Muscle/joint aches
12. Night sweats / cold sweats
13. Hair loss
14. Nausea
15. Abdominal pain
16. Swollen feet/ankle
17. Palpitations

Alternative medicine without or minimal side effects...
so far, DIOVAN has been recommended.
I'm calling my doc tomorrow and will insist on DIOVAN...lol.

Feel free to add to this list.

Better health to you all.

God bless!!

I have switched from Lisinopril to Diovan and my flash headaches and malaise feelings have subsided while maintaining great BP. Would love to sue the makers of this poison since I had to spend $1900 on a MRI. Maybe a class action suit is needed to remove this crap from the market.

I believe Lisinopril is an ACE inhibitor, and coughing can be a side effect of an ACE inhibitor. I was treated with another ACE inhibitor a few years ago for my BP. My husband would tell me my coughing was getting on his nerves. I constantly would have very frequent coughing episode like I was always clearing my throat and sometimes so much that I would gag. Some nights I wouldn't get sleep because I would cough during the night and wake myself up. I talked it over with my doctor and he changed my blood pressure medication to Avapro which is an Agiotensin Receptor Blocker which after a few days after coughing for months the cough was gone!!! My insurance carrier would no longer pay for Avapro and now I am taking Diovan and still no cough, and my blood pressure is controlled!!! It is important not to stop taking blood pressure medication without talking to your doctor. Coughing is not listed as a major side effect, but let your doctor know about this coughing you experience, he should pick that up as a side effect of the ACE inhibitor, and if he agrees to change your medication you should notice a difference if he gets you off The ACE inhibitor soon after changing meds.

yes i am 22 and have been taking lisinopril for about 2 weeks now and i have question?

i was just wondring is there any one eles my age taking this med?

my side effects is dizznes,heavyness of the shoulder and chests a little bit of dry cough,dry mouth and throat,sleepy all the time, itchy throat and just feeling weird each time i take it.
can anybody give me some feed back?

Horrible! Due to a change in my employers insurance coverage (no prescription plan) I could no longer afford Diovan and my Dr. switched me to Lisinopril. This stuff is the worst. About 30 minutes after taking it and on into the next morning I cough until I have thrown up. I don't have a high blood pressure issue but suffer from type 2 diabetes and take it in combination with my metformin...until today. I'm stopping the Lisinopril before my husband has to sue the manufacturer after I'm buried from choking to death for no reason! Thanks to all of you who have confirmed what I have been feeling. I missed a day of work last week because I was too dizzy to stand up and now I know why. Here's to a good nights (cough free) sleep and a clear head.

I have been taking lisinopril for years (10 mg/daily) without any noticable problems. About 2 months ago, my doctor doubled the dose and changed me to the version with HTCZ (a diuretic) included. A few weeks later, I started having this tickling sensation in my throat making me have a slight cough. The cough kept getting worse as the days went by and I also started having this congested feeling in my chest. I would cough my head off and it wasn't productive. I would cough until I would get dizzy and almost pass out.

I finally went to the doctor think I had some lung infection or TB. I was given a TB skin test, antiobiotics, and a chest x-ray. The TB test was negative, the chest x-ray was normal, and the antiobiotics don't seem to have changed anything.

I was back at the doctor yesterday and she said she think it's the lisinopril and switched me to Diovan. I started taking the Diovan this morning. Only time will tell if it is indeed the lisinopril that was the culprit.

I have been on Lisiopril HCTZ for a week and a half now and the stomach cramps, gurgling, bloating and gas started yesterday.It really scared me. I switched from Diovan because of simuliar pains. I thought I had gallstones because of the pinching cramping pains. (also have slightly elevated liver enzymes) I had a sonogram and everything looked normal.I have also had the painful neck/throat this past week and my shoulder muscles started cramping this morning. I am going to go back on my old propanolol and diuretic tomorrow, just long enough to show myself it is these awful BP pills. The doctor told me I need to quit reading the side effects on the RX label. I told him I had been doing that once I started having symptoms. When it says contact your Dr immediately if you have severe abdominal pain, I think I need to take that seriously and drop the Doctor who tells me to not read the drug phamplet! Oh, did I mention that I had the Rash from Hell show up too. Again, a side effect that says to contact your Dr immediately. The severe rash was while on the Diovan and lasted a full week.

My main problem with Lisinopril is the coughing. Coughing, coughing. coughing. I will be fine for 2 to 3 hours and then start with this awful cough. People will actually turn away from me if I am out shopping and a cough begins. I presume they believe it is contagious. Sometimes I end up vomiting and I cannot catch my breath. Coughing at night is really a problem because of lack of sleep. Doctors believe my cough is due to allergies because I have post nasal drip. However, none of the medications they have given me stop the coughing. I never had this problem until I began taking Lisinopril. Lisinopril is my first Blood Pressure medication.

I started taking Lisinopril for my bp about 2 1/2 months ago and even though it did lower my bp, I started having strange side-effects. It started out with drowsiness throughout the day, no matter how much sleep I got. And, waking up feeling drowsy even after 8-10 hours of sleep. Then, I started getting strange aches and pains throughout my body, like I was getting over a stomach flu. My asthma also flared up and I started having to use my inhaler for the first time in almost 15 years (usually I just need it after exercise.) The side-effects continued to get worse over the next months with increased fatigue, drowsiness, coughing, anxiety, muscle aches, poor concentration, feeling like my nerves were "shot," headache, weakness, tightness in my lungs, numbness in my hands and feet, and just plain feeling bad.
I made an appointment to see my doctor because I thought there was something seriously wrong with me. It crossed my mind that I might be feeling this way because of the Lisinopril. I stumbled across this website and after reading everyone's testimonials, I decided to stop the Lisinopril. I haven't taken it in 3 1/2 days, and I am already feeling much better. I would rather try a more holistic approach to lowering my bp then taking Lisinopril.
I hope this helps someone else out there who might be going through the same thing.

I took Lisinopril for only 11 days and stopped due to the horrible night cough - ALL NIGHT LONG !! Wasn't getting any sleep, it was awful. I know I had some earlier minor side effects, but they were not as bothersome and went away - like diarhhea, urinating a lot, minor muscle aches. But this cough was something I couldn't put up with. The night after I stopped taking, I slept thru the night!

Can Lisinopryl cause insomnia? I have been experiencing insomnia, panic attacks, difficulty breathing and tightness in the chest for over a year. I am 67 years old and switched from Diovan which I loved. The switch was made because my health plan took the Diovan off their preferred list and my doctor prescribed Lisinopryl as an alternative. I don't like it. I suspect this drug has caused my insomnia for which I am now taking Lunesta at $50 a whack. I first took Ambien CR and it made me so nauseated I couldn't eat (like pregnancy) and I lost 8 pounds in a month. Also my breathing feels very cold when I inhale. Ideas will be appreciated. Laura