Lisinopril and pain relievers

I was prescribed this about two weeks ago. I knew I had high blood pressure and decided to work on getting it lowered. I started taking this and immediately had headaches in my temple...then numbness up by my cheeks and something that felt like hot flashes. I would get dizzy, was extremely tired, couldn't concentrate and had one of the worst cases of diarrhea I had ever experienced. My distant vision became very blurred. However, I thankfully never got the cough.

I spoke with the doctor about this and she said that there was no way this drug was causing my headaches. I'm scheduled for an MRI tomorrow and she wanted me to have a temporal biopsy, which I think is drastic.

I read an article from a medical journal that low blood pressure can cause headaches. This was just published last spring of 2008. I started getting the 24/7 headaches 3 days after I took Lisinopril. Aspirin or pain relievers never helped.

I took myself off of it two days ago. Yesterday I was so weak and tired with headaches all day long ...however today, I'm beginning to feel much better with much more energy. The numbness is disappearing in my cheeks and the headaches have greatly reduced.

I am thinking about a natural alternative to this ...losing weight...exercising and going on the dash diet. Unless of course the MRI shows something. I also thought about cutting the dosage of the pills in half or to one quarter.

HEY!! WOW!!! THANK YOU LORD! I thank everyone for posting! I have been taking Lisinopril for 2 days and just after two days I noticed the following, YES TWO (2) DAYS!:

Extreme Dizziness
Lightheaded
Increased Heart Rate
Awful Headache

At first I thought these were PMS symptoms but I have become great at combating these with exercises and fruit - as soon as I get my heart rate up and build a sweat and eat some fruit, I am fine. BUT I tried this the other day and I felt so groggy and fatigued. And I am a stickler for not taking medications, even OTC Pain Relievers, I believe in "Au Natural"... anyway I went to the park and walking up a simple hill, I felt like my heart was going to jump out of my chest. Then the headache seem to have gotten worse as well as the nausea. For breakfast I had a Kale Smoothie (OJ, Kale, Pear, Ice Blended) and didn't go for the walk until about an hour later. I consumed some water and started at a slow pace, but that didn't help. I also felt very tense and anxious and I thought WAIT A MINUTE! So I started to retrace my 'steps' of what I had eaten (Sunday Night: Red Beans w/ Brown Rice, Mashed Sweet Potatoes, and Turnip Greens) I said, okay nothing out of the ordinary there. Monday and Tuesday light meals such as a Falafel and Salad ... so I said let me read the side effects of this medicine and sure enough, the Nausea and Dizziness was on the printout from the pharmacy! I said okay this is it. I am not taking this stuff anymore, it's only been TWO FREAKING DAYS!! I'd hate if I take it longer. I am going to call my doctor to schedule an appointment to go over these symptoms, and opt for another prescription. In the interim, I am increasing my water intake and drinking prune juice as well as raw leafy veggies to help with the detox. And moderate walking to get my pores opened up. Thanks again and I appreciate all of your comments. Be prayerful and take good GOD care! LS, 28 year old black female