Lisinopril and hbp

I was diagnosed with hbp in January 2008 (197/112), my Doctor prescribed Micardis to which I had few side effects limited only to 2 weeks of muscle and joint aches attributed to the HCT found in Micardis - once the aches subsided I had no noticeable effects to the Micardis and my bp dropped to under 130/80 but my insurance insisted that they would not cover the Micardis until I had been prescribed an ACE inhibitor so my Dr. prescribed Lisinopril and HCT as a water pill, within days of taking the Lisinopril I started having a dry, gagging cough that was aggravated by laying down making sleeping a serious problem.
I have found that drinking hot water is the only thing that will temporarily cut the tickle.
I have also noticed that I have been having dizzy spells and have started sweating profusely at the slightest exertion.
Still waiting BC/BS to authorize Micardis after 2 months or I will have to try another ACE inhibitor that may not have the same effects - any ACE inhibitors found to not cause these or similar symptoms would be greatly appreciated.

I'm taking 10mg. of Lisinopril currently because I'm borderline HBP per my Dr. I'm tired all the time, and fall asleep at the drop of a hat. I will watch tv and by 8-9pm I'm out and my family can not get me to wake up and go to bed. I can hear them, and respond most times-but I just can't get up. Now my left hand and halfway up my forearm started feeling like it fell asleep last night. I don't cough much, but my throat and mouth is always dry and feels like I need a drink, I'm also having trouble having a bowel movement and I am more short-tempered than normal. I'm done with this medicine. I'm working on losing weight, working out, and staying away from junk food. Thanks everyone.

Doctor prescribed 10 mg. Lisinopril four months ago for borderline HBP. Since then I have suffered from an itchy rash, chest and shoulder pain , extreme fatigue , low concentration and memory loss , a dry cough so annoying that I live on cough drops and a strange feeling in my throat like a lump is always there , and most recently I have developed pain and swelling in the lymph nodes under my armpits. I also have dizzy spells so bad that I have almost fainted a couple of times. Once it was so bad that I could not even get out of bed. I am convinced that it is the Lisinopril because I did not have these problems before I started taking it. I am going to stop taking this poison and see a Naturopathic Practitioner. I have recently read that fish peptides also called bonito peptides have been used successfully in treating HBP and is a safe and natural alternative to those Pharma drugs that cause so much misery. I will keep you posted.

I am a 49 years old Hispanic who was given 10 Milligrams of Lisinopril a day for what i understood was to prevent some potential kidney problems I may be having. "Just to make sure the doctor said". After about a month of taking it and feeling tired and irritable, I decided that I needed to look this medicine's symptoms to see if that was the source of my being so tired, anxious and feeling like doing nothing but sleeping, when I am usually a very energetic person who likes to stay busy all the time. I am very surprised to know that this medicine is for treatment of HBP which I have none. My BP has always been normal so I don't understand what was the purpose of this medicine. I am taking myself out of this drug and calling my doctor tomorrow because he has some explaining to do.

the truth of the matter is that this medicine did make me very tired, irritable and depressed

Hi Gang,
Im on 20 mg of Lisinopril in the morning and 25 mg of atenolol at night. The Lisinoril is for my blood pressure and the Atenolol is for my anxiety attacks that i have. O.o But im still have anxiety attacks, and i don't know why. So ive had all the test, heart ultra sound, ekg's, blood work, treadmill ekg, halter monitor for 3 days. The works basicly. Im 40 and yes over weight. But i passed all the test with flying colors. Doc said he only ever wants to see me again, if im Really sick. Anyone know why im getting anxiety attacks (mine are rapid heart beats, and feeling like fainting) all of a sudden. When i started the lisinopril i had a minor cough, but not any more. Otherwise ive been pretty good with both meds. Just don't know what is triggering the anxiety!

Wow, I am so surprised to discover that Lisinopril is the culprit diminishing my sex drive. I have been going through therapy (after a messy divorce) the past 17 months and at the same time my doctor has been increasing my dosage of Lisinopril from 5 mg/day to 80 mg/day to combat my HBP. Just recently I underwent a vasectomy and have began to have a sexual relationship with a lady friend and I have been having trouble with my sex drive, it is almost non-existent after one sexual cycle. Suffice it to say that I have been very frustrated and have been wondering if the curtailment was due to my BP med or the vasectomy, now I see that once again I am part of the 1% that has this lack of sex drive issue. I will be scheduling a doctor's appointment this morning.

Thanks to all for being open!

I'm a 35 yr old male & I too have started this medication a handful of days ago to treat my high blood pressure which began due to a headache that came on so severe while having a bowel movement that i honestly thought i was dying since the pain seemed so severe and was so sudden (I thought my head was trying to collapse upon my brain or implode on itself which lead to vomiting the second time around). After a few days stay in the hospital (came in at 180/120) they prescribed 4 different meds for the HBP and one of them is this Lisinopril. Since taking it I feel not myself - moody, cloudy, a drunk-like feeling inside my head. It feels like reaction times are slowed due to not wanting to move too fast. I was hoping this would go away soon but I see i'm not alone w/ these feelings I also have arthritis in my back and I just can't believe all these side effects these so called 'approved' drugs have on the body.

Hello folks - thought I would post here as well.........I am on 20MG of LISINOPRIL 1 time daily. I notice during regimented times of the day I get the side effects. I take it when I wake up in the morning. I have been on this for about a year now...........it has lowered by HBP from 150's/80's to about 130/80..............regular........I am a 37 year old Male

Problem is the multiple side affects:

1. Tiredness - comes and goes all throughout the day - almost like I could just close my eyes and go to sleep anywhere.........feels like someone threw sand in my eyes.......
2. Shortness of breath
3. Sore Muscles - everywhere - it doesn't discriminate!!!!
4. Pain in the chest mostly the left side but sometimes the right
5. Headache in one spot in the head - doesn't last long
6. Wake up often in the middle of the night with dead hands or legs
7. Sometimes I just have a total memory blank on things I should know right away - usually only occurs when I'm getting tired.
8 Of course the panic from thinking something is wrong with me!!!

Anyone else with these set of symptoms????

Drop me a note!!!!

I've been taking lisinopril for about 4 months for HBP which I have had since I was 18 and I am 40 now. My blood pressure went down immediately--I can never remember the number but before nurses testing my bp would always say I was "a little high" and now they always say "it's normal." When i first started taking it I noticed I felt a little depressed, and I always felt lethargic on lisinopril. I believe that's just normal from taking something which reduces BP. I had bad diarrhea and got pretty sick for a short while a couple weeks ago but there was a flu that was going around. I noticed some dizziness and was pretty out of it, but I have felt those symptoms before I started on lisinopril. I am now worried from reading your complaints about this drug.I ran out of pills a few days ago and I feel much more energetic and with-it now, generally better although now I worry about the long-term effects on my body of my HBP. I currently have a headache and to be honest I still don't feel 100%. While I was on it I noticed some dryness in my belly and my poop seemed weird not normal--I had some bad flatulence and my poop would come out sometimes pretty sparse. I definitely felt different, especially in my digestion and lethargy, but did not have very very bad side effects. Still I'm thinking twice before taking it again. My father had some blindness in one eye that was apparently from long-term HBP, so I am concerned about long term effects of not doing anything about my BP--so I may go back to lisinopril or whatever else my doctor prescribes.

I have been on Lisinopril for about 2 and 1/2 months for borderline hbp. About 135/85. I have two cats which have always have caused some allergic reactions but I had that controlled with an air purifier. I really haven't had any bothersome symptoms until about 3 weeks ago when I noticed that I was wheezing during the day (while away from the house, so I couldn't blame the cat allergies) and I was getting very short of breath doing everyday tasks and just talking to people. Then I started noticing a strong post nasal drip and a lot of congestion during the night. To the point where I sounded like something from the Excorcist, my breathing at night was rattly and wheezing. It suddenly occured to me that all of this could be developing side effects from the Lisinopril. But I didn't want to give up so I started taking Claritin at night and in the morning to relieve some of the exasperated allergy symptoms. That worked for about a week, but then I would wake up coughing and finally last night the wheezing got so bad that I thought I would need to go the ER. Today the coughing started pretty badly and just taking my dogs for a walk was taxing and I started getting really tired and developing a headache (which never happens to me). After researching Lisinopril and now reading everyone's posts and symptoms and obviously experiencing this terrible cough and wheezing, I have made up my mind to go off this terrible drug. I can't live with this. I am only 42 yrs old and I feel like I am an 90 year old with emphysema. Bye bye Lisinopril.

I am 33 years old with borderline HBP, but otherwise healthy. I have been on lisinopril for about 2 years. I thought it was a miracle drug as well lowering my BP (110-120/75-80) with no side effects. The pill's appearance changed about 6 or 7 months ago and now is the faint yellow pill that says Watson 408 on them. They did not used to say that, and they used to be a different color. I immediately noticed side effects. For the past 9 months I have gotten stress tests, wore an event monitor for a month, corotid artery scan, been to the ER about 5 times, had bloodwork done etc...
My symptoms have been:
1. When at work the room looks darker, I am a programmer and it's like someone turned down the dimmer switch and I strain to see the screen
2. I have been suffering palpitations and the sharp stabbing pains on my left side and right side of my chest
3. Most recently I have developed headaches and just this week I went to the ER b/c I got dizzy and disoriented at work. The ER said it was a spell of Vertigo.

I never even considered that it could be the lisinopril, I guess that seems pretty silly but I thought that if that was it my doc would have told me. Instead they tried to put me on Lexapro and Zoloft and even gave me some Xanax. Tomorrow I have another doc appointment and will suggest to her (yeah she is pretty hot - looks like Angelina Jolie) that it is the lisinopril. I am going to insist that I get off of it. I will post what happens. Thanks to all of you for the valuable information.
God Bless.

I have been on lisinopril since august of 07. I have had no side affects except for a little dry cough every once in awhile. about a month and a half ago I started getting blurred vision, short term memory loss,(It took me about 5 minutes to remember what I had for dinner the night before) shortness of breath and the sharp pains along my left rib cage. I think I have figured out why I started getting these symptoms so late in my treatment of HBP. I believe it was due to the recent intake of a salt substitute. I saw on the warnings for lisinopril that you should avoid salt substitutes. I now stopped taking this medication and now my vision is back to normal and the chest pains and memory loss has gone away. I hoped this helps anybody that has had these symptoms because it is something I dont want me or anybody to go through again!!!!!!!!!!!!!( DON'T TAKE SALT SUBSTITUTES ON THIS DRUG)

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.

I AM A 28 YEAR OLD FEMALE WHO WAS JUST PRESCRIBED LISINOPRIL FOR HBP AFTER ANOTHER MED WAS MAKING ME SICK. I AM QUITE YOUNG STILL AND HAVE NEVER BEEN ON A LONG TERM DRUG. I AM QUITE SCARED TO START THIS MEDICATION AFTER READING ALL OF THESE THINGS WRITTEN BY YOU ALL. IF THIS DRUG IS SO HORRIBLE WHY DO DOCTORS KEEP PRESCRIBING IT? SHOULD I CONSULT MY DR WITH MY CONCERNS BEFORE STARTING THIS MEDICATION?

Help!! I need some advice. I'm 47 and have been diagnosed with HBP. I'm 6'2", 250 lbs. My Dr. has prescribed Lisinopril, which I'm suppose to pick up today. I've never been on any prescription medicine before. Don't have any known allergies. My BP averages 138/90 in the am and 170/117 in the evening. My fear is once I start taking this medication, am I on it forever? The side-effect described on this board are frightening. Any advice??

I am a 47 year old female recently diagnosed with high blood pressure. I started it 10 days ago and after 3 days I started had a tickle in my throat which made me have coughing, hacking and gagging to the point of vomiting. I can't sleep at night and during my work day which is constantly talking to people I have to excuse my self to have my "coughing fit". My head of course is pounding from coughing constantly. I saw the Dr. last week and she thinks I have a virus of some sort. After reading all of these side effects of everyone who has experienced similar symptoms I am 100% sure it is the Lisinopril. If I were truly sick the cough would have gotten better or worse at this point but it has stayed the same. I am so upset all the time about this that my blood pressure has probably increased! The cough has gotten so annoying that I stayed home from work today and I decided to stop the medication. I would almost rather die(drastic!) than deal with this horrible cough!

I have been taking Lisinopril for about a year now. My highest BP reading was 217/174--that was high as some of the nurses in the ER had ever seen! I was one of those that didn't have any HBP symptoms--I was in the ER because I had a crook in my neck that had me incapacitated. I started taking the Lisinopril and my BP is now within normal range (120/70) and hasn't been that low since I was in my teens. I do have the dull headaches, night sweats, stomach pain, trouble sleeping, constipation, and the dry cough but I feel like dealing with those things is worth it since now I don't have to worry about my BP going through the roof and killing me in seconds.

I am a 48 yr old male diagnosed with moderately high blood pressure (133/82) and Secondary Polycythemia. I was put on Felodipine for about 4 months but after experiencing some uncomfortable symptoms, was switched to 5mg of Lisinopril. I have been taking this for the past 5 months. The uncomfortable symptoms I had experienced with the Felodipine are increasingly getting more severe. The most annoying is a constant pain in my chest that moves around from side to side. The pain is always present, but varies in intensity from mild to very uncomfortable. I also experience pounding heart beat, flush feelings of my face and neck, mild nausea, and tingling in my arms and fingers. WOW. This site has confirmed to me that I am not alone in having these weird symptoms. I will persuade my Doctor to look into some other type of drug. And perhaps with treatments of my Secondary Polycythemia my blood pressure is automatically being lowered and I don't need any BP meds? God knows I felt better before I was being treated.

Approximateley 1 year ago, I went to the emergency room and was treated with lisinopril for hbp. The following day I woke up with a terrefic migraine and cramping in both legs. I learned via internet that it contains the venom of a Brazilian Piper snake. Now, one year later, I am still having the cramps. Patients should be told what is in the products that we are being given. I only had two pills but it has changed my life. I am still suffering with leg cramps. They are poisoning all of us.

Just started taking lisinopril (2nd dose today, 20 mg) for HBP. I have had HBP for about 15 years. I was taking HCTZ, a diuretic, plus atenelol. That stuff makes you feel miserable, depressed, paranoid along with major constipation and very low potassium blood levels. I changed doctor and he has a completely different approach. So far my only side effect from lisinopril has been slight weakness in my lower jaw and the nagging dry cough. I guess you have to get used to these and other side effects. Anything is better than being depressed. Maybe the side effects will lessen as time goes by. I'm optimistic.

I have read a ton of the posts in this category. I have been taking Lisinopril as an addition to my regular blood pressure medication for approximately 3 years, with absolutely no problems. My 10mg was increased to 20mg a week ago. Still no problems. It has only helped me. If there are any changes, I will definitely post it. I believe that symptoms can arise from reading an article. I actually know a couple people who read things, and suddenly they are convinced they have the problem or disease referenced. I call it an Epidemic of Diagnoses. Always seek a doctors advice before stopping medications. Stopping suddenly on certain drugs, can be more dangerous than taking them.

I have been on this drug for a year. I have never felt worse in my life. I am a 54 year old woman who works out daily and am not overweight but I have HBP. My side effects did not start until 6 months after being on this drug, so I didn't think right away that it was this drug.
I would wake up with severe leg cramps at night that would not go away. I had severe pain in the lower back and on both sides where the kidneys are. I thought I had a terminal illness. I could not function in my life at all. My dr. changed my RX to Benicar which is in the same family the results were worse than the lisinopril. I took myself off both drugs for two days and all symptoms went away except the HBP. I am now on amlodipine for two days so far so good no cramps no pain. The only side effect is flushing which is a piece of cake next to what I lived with.
I am also so happy I found this site I thought I was either dying or going crazy.

I am a 24 yr old male that got diagnosed with HBP on my 20th birthday. I frequently felt jittered, on edge, flused easily, extreme pressure in my head, headaches, not being able to concentrate, felt run down, among a lot of other symptoms, decreased libido. My BP still ran in the 130 range. I decided to do a trial of not taking it and monitoring my BP closely. I have found my BP to be the same if not lower so far and it has been 5 days. It may be too soon to tell, but i'm going to keep monitoring. I feel great so far. I can concentrate, got my drive back, I feel good.

i came across the site by accident and so glad I did - the light-headedness an fatigue are driving me crazy. Been on this drug for 2 1/2 weeks and the side effects are getting worse with uncontrollable anxiety - which is making my bp harder to control. I have a doc appt on friday, but I am going to stop taking this med TODAY! thanks all

BTW - i was diagnosed with hbp 150/90 when i was actually having an anxiety attack and yes i was holding my own arm up too!. So since i am prone to anxiety - this drug certainly doesnt help! Oh work up with cough and scratchy throat today too and the heat really bothers me

Boy! It is funny how all of us posting here have all these side effects and the doctors for the most part say nothing or keep an eye on it. I to have symtoms ranging from bad headaches, the tickle in the throat and cough with it, to lower neck across shoulders the pain is intense. I was started out with a 20mg dose and on july 2007. There are differences with me as i have a hard time now getting to sleep. I toss and turn most of the night. It is now mid september and the doctor has never called to ask how i was doing. My blood pressure has not gone down but up. ranging from 174/110 on sept. 9 to 158/104 on sept16 2007. so i am taking myself off this crap and doing something different if only what are for-fathers did most of the time........they lived with it. Any thing has to be better than this.....thanks for all your help!

I am a 72 year old male,who like every one posting here, has HBP, and
was prescribed,Lisinopril. I have been on this medication for 5 years but
just now found this web site. I have had all of the symptoms described by
every one but just thought I was getting ready to die. My problem is that I
have been on the drug for so long I'm afraid to quit taking it. My blood
pressure is very good. Does any one have any solutions.

Hello. I started taking lisinopril 20 mg about 1.5 months ago because of hbp and I also started taking toprol for rapid heart beat 1/2 a month before that. Although it did lower my hbp it made me feel lousy. I started getting anxiety all the time, aches in my body (stomach etc), nausea, dizziness, spaced out, and numbness in my hands. My father passed away about 2.5 months ago and so I figured that the anxiety was something normal given the circumstances. I thought that the other side effects were part of the anxiety. I felt as thought I was going to go crazy or die. I also started to become a hypocondriac thinking that if I had a pain in my stomach it might be stomach cancer etc. It was not until I found this site that I see that lisinopril and/or the toprol might be the thing that is causing me to feel lousy. I was always healthy and I never had anxiety. I understand that I shoud feel a little anxiety and sadness because of my father, but I don't feel a little anxiety, I get intense panic attacks. I feel as thought I can't get back to normal, I just feel as though I'm not myself. I want to stop this meds as soon as possible before I, too, get worse side effects. Please let me know if you all think that it is the medications or is this just part of the griving process. All I know is that I started taking this pills and all this started to happen.

how lucky am i , to have found this site...... started taking lisinopril about 5 years ago......... developed tinnitus.......... dizzy to the point, that i had to give up my garden. could not bend, and get up without almost passing out......... developed acid reflux. ( my cardiologist said it was from my hbp meds ) my reg dr. said " bull.".... he's nuts ) (sure on the staff at mass general, and he 's nuts ........)that was 6 mos. or so after starting lisinopril.......... now i have numbness from my elbow to my hands.. from my knee to my feet..........hands and feet warm...... cough........ cough has been worked up, as i am a smoker......... negative......has worsened in past year......... skin rash.. localized on back, but that all over feeling of itching........ new in past 6 months...... the big symptom.............. leg cramps......... so severe, i wake up crying at night., 3 to 4 times. so tired from no sleep..... cramps in back, hands....... after reading the comments on this site, i will call the pharmacist, and see if i can stop, or have to be weaned off........... i am 64, in excellent health . size 8....... used to run up the stairs in my home...... since starting all of the c--p, i feel as tho my health has gone downhill.......... thanks for all of the info from people like you.. this is a nasty drug.............. sue s
"

My Side effects: major heart palpitations, numb/tingling hands almost every morning upon awakening, fatigue, thinning hair, bloating/weight gain. I am 43 yrs old, not overweight & in good health other than my BP. I was on atenelol for about 8 yrs & switched to lisinopril aprx 5-6 yrs ago. HBP & heart attack run in my family (dad & brother both had heart attacks at age 40). The heart palpitations (I call them summersaults in my chest) have caused me to go to the urgent care & doctor more than once. Have had EKGs twice in last 3 yrs, wore heart monitor, etc. Said I have irregular heart beat, but nothing to really worry about. I started on 5mg, but BP continued to increase. Raised to 10 mg, but same thing. Now up to 20 mg & BP is finally better (but not low) at 120/86. I HATE being tired all the time as I'm the kind of person who is always going. I'm going to talk w/Dr. & see about switching to something else again... Thanks to all for sharing!

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?

Hi all
I was dx with hbp when I was approx 15. I was then rx a Beta Blocker and had lost weight and it seemed that my bp was great no need for meds any longer and was fine till I was approx 32 years old when my bp went to 157/120 my gp asked if thier was a family hx of hbp and of course thier is and then asked what family members were taking to lower thiers and the only thing I could find out was that everyone took hctz and the gp rx this for me and it has worrked till recently when readings were 157/110, 160/100, 147/127 ect very bad I felt horrible..fast pulse headache and chest pain also a feeling as if my heart was going to pound out of my chest!!! the dr rx a med called toprol and sent me to a internal medicine specialist who kept me on the hctz and the toprol and added lisinopril to the mix...OMG what a mistake after ONE dose I felt like I was a HUGE muscle Cramp Aching all over and upset stomache a HUGE headache my legs ached SO bad that I was in tears!!! The only thing different is the Lisinopril!!!

I'm taking 20/12.5 mg of lisinopril and have an RX for 50mg of toprol, of which I'm only now taking 12.5 mg of...thanks in LARGE part to my HBP getting better....think my HBP was hereditary and meds were overprescribed to begin with.....had some stamina and erectile probs, I dont think a man of my age should really have to be concerned with!!!! BLOATING is my biggest prob. I've cut down on what I eat, sodium intake, caffiene etc. Still at times, I look like a Sherman tank!!! Started HBP meds 7yrs ago, and have weighed around 200 lbs. for 10 to 12 yrs. I'm 6' 1" and 43 yrs. old...doc says my heart is in great shape. But the bloated stomach sucks, especially when I'm single, and trying NOT to be!!! I love my beer, and no offense to anyone, but looking like a beer-swillin big bellied bubba, dont get you many dates, if ya know what I mean!!!! Just wondering if anyone knows what I can do to alleviate the bloated look????

I have been taking lisinopril for 3 years. My cardiologist believed I had a virus that attacked my heart. He prescribed lisinopril for my hbp. It has worked to lower my bp but I am experiencing all or at least a majority of the symptoms that everyone is complaining about. I have on multiple occasions stopped taking the medication but experience extreme exhaustion to the point that I can not function. I did not notice anyone having a problem stopping the medication. Please if you have any information let me know my Dr. does not believe me. Thanks.

Glad to find your site. I have been on Lisiopril for 2 years (ever since my Insurance stopped paying for my Aceon and I had to have a substitute drug for blood pressure control). I have had increasing cough and horseness for the past 12 months to the point that I now have 24 hour symptoms! I also have been having leg cramps at night the past few months.
I will stop Lisinopril TODAY. Plan to monitor my blood pressure and see what happens. Does anyone see any problem with doing this?????

My husband used to take Altace fo HBP. It wasn't working so his dr. put him on Lisinopril in Feb. of this year, 2007. He had to keep lowing the dosage until he reached 5mg. It knocked him on his ass, he has no energy at all, no sex drive, we have not had sex since Jan. He is tired, tired tired all the time. He also coughs but is a smoker, wakes up at night with his t-shirt soaked. He has told his dr. this and he says it's where his BP gets low and his heart is pumping trying to keep up with his body. He had bloos work done and has found out he's anemic. I don't know if the medication has caused this or not. Since June 2007 he has had to have 2 blood transfusions, has gone through scopes, more blood work and we are waiting results of the lastest done Aug. 7, 2007. He goes for a CAT Scan Aug. 21, if the dr. isn't satisfied with that he's doing a bone marrow test. Could this be the result of lisinopril? Anyone else having these systoms?

Doctor prescribed, but wanted to check side effects before taking it, am glad I have! Anyone else that's a smoker with mild hypertension (140/90) taking this med? Now I'm afraid of taking it because I already have a problem with coughing and post nasal drip, choking sensation, near vomiting. Also am on Celexa 60 mg for depression and anxiety and certainly don't want to take something that's going to increase my anxiety! Any others taking Lisinopril and Celexa?

After taking it for a month, and suffering this relentless coughing, I won't take it anymore!
I have lost sleep, had people turn away from me, because of the persistent coughing.
I have just about decided to take my changes with a natural treatment for HBP. It seems every thing my DR. prescribes, has awful side effects.

Just started 5MG Lisinopril once a day at bedtime (about a week).
After looking up side effects, I found this site. I don't have hbp,never had. I was given this to help protect my kidneys (type1 diabetic). Side effects are: head ache, dizzy, muscle pain in legs and arms, stomach pain... This morning I was helping my daughter find her craft supplies. All of a sudden I was sitting on the floor with no sensation of getting there. I'm stopping this stuff. Google Apple Cider Vinegar uses.

Have been prescribed lisinopril for high blood pressure, stage 1...........
Am scared to start it because I really hate starting new medications.......
Asked the pharmacist about the safey of the drug and was told it was one of the most tolerable drugs out there for hbp.....cough was the chief complaint...............
Anyone else feel this way..........??????????????

Discontinuing Lisinopril:

Like many of you good folks that have been taking Lisinopril, I have discontinued taking the med after 10 days usage.

ONE WORD OF CAUTION: Please, please, please, go to a local drug store and purchase a blood pressure cuff. It doesn't have to be anything fancy... the manual-inflate, analog-dial type costs around $15 at CVS. If you don't know how to take your own BP, then let either a nurse or your local rescue squad show you how.... It's really quite simple. Different people act differently to meds and there is a real possibility that your BP could go very high. You need to check it several times a day. Also, after discontinuing many BP meds (including Lisinopril), your potassium (and possibly calcium) levels may drop, causing some really nasty side effects.

I've been an EMT for 25+ years and have seen quite a few patients (including my mother) "stroke out" due to HBP.... please don't let it happen to you. Discuss it with your doctor; there are many other HBP meds out there and one of them will no doubt work for you without causing side effects. Just don't disregard your HBP.

(Disclaimer: the above is a personal opinion and not offered as any type of medical advice.)

I have been reading all the comments and I can't help wondering if I am atypical, but I have not had any of these side effects. In fact the only thing that Lisinopril has done for me is to lower my bp. I was 130 over 90 and now 116 over 78, so it sure works for me!

Feeling like one is not all here, and, shortness of breath are a symptoms of thyroid system problems caused by lisinopril that I have had, along with weight gain, favoring sweet sugary foods (I've traditionally a meat eater, no dessert, no sugar, few starches).

The most likely action seems to be that the lisinopril creates a chemical toxicity that overdrives the immune system, which then runs the body low on or out of zinc and selenium. (Of course then there is the more direct lung dammage that lisinopril causes too.)

I have found the following helpful: Zinc, selenium, L-Cysteine, tyrosine, iodine, boron, and other trace minerals help and nourish the thyroid system. Manganese and molybdebum help the lungs function better (they are used in asthma treatment). Iron, copper, and chromium sometimes also helps the lungs work better. Sulfur (MSM), L-cysteine, and silcia (found in horsetail form or oceanic form) nourish the lungs as they are found in high concentration in the lungs. Calcium and magnesium, vit-e, vit-c, vit-b are also helpful. Since I'm in the hbp camp, I also try to get plenty of magnesium, which relaxes muscles including arteries, and potassium, which helps transport other nutrients into the cells.

I was on Lisinopril for one month and it took 18 months for the side effects to go away. The cough, the inexplicable weight gain, the exhaustion, the bloated tummy, aching muscles and joints, swollen eyelids, etc. Luckily, my doctor did listen to me and got me off it as soon as I could get a call through to him instead of having his nurse block calls and tell me that I could take codeine laced cough syrup. I explained to her very carefully to look at my chart--I am allergic to codeine. My doctor switched me immediately to Cozaar when I was able to talk to him directly. The pharmacist looked at what I had been on and asked why I was being switched. When I explained, he said that the side effects were commonly known and really affected people.

The coughing inflamed my bronchial tubes to where they were going into spasms. I was on an asthma inhaler for a month to heal them. That wasn't pleasant, either, because I didn't tolerate it very well.

I am at the point now that whenever I am put on a new medication, I immediately search the internet for side effects. I don't want to go through 18 months of misery because I wasn't told or the insert wasn't clear about possible side effects.

All you are Hypochondriacs. If one person says this medicine is causing this, then of course; you all have the same problem "some how." Isn't this weird? It is called the "placebo effect." Normally all the people involved in the testing are given "Lisinopril" (or some other drug), then the placebo group is given a vitamin supplement, the group receving the vitamin supplement is being told they are receving "Lisinopril." Mysteriously?, the "placebo group" is all feeling better and their symptoms are gone. This is due to the fact that all these people in the "placebo group" have interacted with eachother and have told eachother "I feel better" than of course everybody feels better. So WEIRD!! So, my point is this forum is all your peoples "placebo group." If you guys never heard of these side effects from this forum you would have never experinced them. Hypochondriacs all of you are. This is a very good medicine that is helping all of you make up for your peoples lack of self-disipline to control your diet or exercise enough to lower your blood pressure naturally. So be thankful. Lets not complain about false side effects because John has them. I wonder what the side-effects of that cheese burger are that caused high blood pressure. It is funny, I don't see a forum for that. So deal with your so called "side-effects" that are associsted with "Lisinopril" or go on a diet people. Get over it!!

I've been taking Avapro for HBP for years with few side effects. But my MD suggested I try LiSINopril so I could save money, since Avapro is fairly expensive. After taking Lisinopril for a week, I thought I was having a very bad episode of a condition I have called Irritable Bowel. I thought that maybe my underwear were too binding, so I went to Wal-Mart and got a larger size underwear. When I got home, even the XL underwear were binding! Then I realized that my whole lower abdomen was extremely swollen, as well as the pain in my lower abdomen. That's when I went online and saw that abdominal pain and swelling is a side effect. This stuff is poison, I agree! I'm stopping it tonight!

I am a very athletic and active 37 yo male. I suffered a shoulder injury that required surgery and I needed to get cardial clearance before my procedure could go ahead. I have really no medical history other than Mitrovalve Prolapse. The doctor diagnosed me with hbp and put me on 10mg of Lisinopril the first week of January 07. all was ok until after my surgery. I started experiencing the side effects in the last 2 1/2 weeks. Here is a list of symptoms Ive experienced in mostly random, erratic times.

-Mild Cough(thankfully)
-Loss of motivation
-Heart beating out of chest with elevated blood pressure(huh?)
-Pangs of anxiety and mild panic
-Hot flashes (like hearing shocking news)
-Weak in the knees (after flash)
-Mild headache (like caffeine headache)
-Shaky hands
-Irritability
-Cold and hot sensations in hands and feet
-Slightly cloudy vision and sore eyes
-Cramps in calves and forearms
-Random muscle ticks
-Sore neck (could be from my arm sling)

I went to the ER 3 days ago after an episode and got an ekg and it looked fine. The doc thought maybe I was withdrawing from alcohol from the way I was fidgeting. I was a mess. I felt like crap the rest of the day. I called my cardiologist and he (his nurse) suggested Atenolol in addition to my Lisinopryl. I cannot wrap my mind around that. Are they really trying to poison us? Since then I have been eating better and drinking plenty of liquids but I still get the pangs, just not as bad so far. It is affecting my daily life and I dont want it to affect my healing. After reading thru endless posts on this site I feel angry and truly feel I should find an alternative. Thank you all for posting!

I was prescribed Lisinopril after being diagnosed with HBP. I had been taking HTCZ and feeling fine. The Lisinopril immediately made me feel lousy, and I developed a terrible cough - keeping me up at night, coughing to the point of throwing up. I thought it was my asthma and renewed my inhaler prescription. That didn't work in relieving the cough. Finally, I just got so tired and worn out from coughing all of the time, I stopped all of my medications and added them back one at a time to see if I could identify the culprit. As soon as I added the Lisinopril, the cough came back. I'm stopping it - it cannot be good for you to cough constantly, and throwing up made the blood vessels around my eyes burst - making me look like I had been punched in the face.
I have a month's supply that's going down the drain today.

I started taking this 10 mg lisinopril in September 2006. Unfortunately, I came down with a cold shortly thereafter. I developed a terrible cough, that has persisted until the present. I cough 8-10 times a day; the coughing fits are violent and always end with a gagging episode. I have been to several doctors about the cough; my primary physician is on a medical leave, so I have been shuttled around. Each doctor offers to prescribe a cough medicine. None of them ever suggested a link to the linisopril even though I told them I was on it. After reading these postings, I have stopped taking this drug. I had only borderline HBP, 134/90 and it has only gone down to 128/84. The side effects of this drug are horrible and it should only be given with great attention to these side effects. I am seeing the doctor tomorrow and will be changing the course of treatment. People at work say that I sound like I should be in a TB ward, which is true. I just can't believe I have put up with this for two months and not one doctor suggested a link. My life has revolved around the coughing.