Lisinopril and shortness of breath

Lisinopril robs the body of Zinc. I have been viciously researching this med and I found that a lot of symptoms posted here are zinc deficiency symptoms. Maybe a zinc supplement will help especially with the hair loss.
Signs of Zinc Deficiency
• behavioral and sleep disturbances

• dandruff

• delay in wound healing

• diarrhea

• different kinds of skin lesions such as eczema, psoriasis and acne

• growth retardation

• hair loss

• hang nails

• hyperactivity

• increased allergic sensitivity

• inflammation of your nail cuticles

• inflammatory bowel disease

• loss of appetite

• loss of senses of taste or smell

• loss of sex drive

• mild anemia

• pre-eclampsia (toxaemia) in pregnancy and post-natal depression

• pre-menstrual syndrome, disturbance in your menstrual cycle

• reduced fertility

• skin dryness and rashes

• white spots on fingernails, transverse lines and poor nail growth

I started taking 10 mg. of Lisinopril on July 8, 2008. At first, I experienced extreme fatigue and weakness. However, this wore off after a few days. The dosage was increased to 20 mg. on July 21, 2008. I started having horrible symptoms on July 29, 2008: rapid pulse (as high as 118 b.p.m. while I was quietly reading), heaviness in my chest (which felt worse after I exercised), and shortness of breath. I had never felt so bad before in my entire life!!! I suffered with these symptoms until August 15, 2008 because I was hoping that they were just temporary. Unfortunately, they only got worse the longer that I waited. It is such a shame, too, because Lisinopril really did a good job of keeping my b.p. down.

This is the third day that I haven't taken Lisinopril, and I am feeling a little better. I am now on Metoprolol, which is helping with my rapid pulse. For those of you who experienced breathing problems while taking Lisinopril: How long did it take before your breathing returned to normal?

I am on 80 mg and have severe hot flashes pains in my joints and muscle, shortness of breath always

Here is a follow up- I have been off of the Lisinopril now for about 6 days. I am slowly feeling better and getting energy back. I still have some residual muscle burning, bouts of fatigue, bouts of depression. The shortness of breath is getting better also.
The irregular heartbeat is almost gone and the cough is now only occasional.
I have been taking vitamins such as vitamin c, multivitamin and drinking lots of water.
My memory and loss of words is getting better also.
I am forcing myself to exercise and lose weight. This med almost killed me.
I just pray that I don't have any permanent damage.
Also significant is the symptoms got worse when they were manufactured bu IVAX.

I forgot to say that I have also had such shortness of breath and irregular heart beat with occasional sharp chest pain that my doctor advised me to take a nuclear stress test. (which I passed with no obvious problems).

I am actually crying as I had no idea what was wrong with me. I have been on Lisionopril now for about 5 years at 40 mg/day.
During those five years I have been fatigued, suffered with GERD, dry cough. Of course my doc said to lose weight.
Last month I went on a diet and all hell broke loose. I lost 25 lbs and I don't know if the weight loss released all of those Lisionopril toxins or what but here goes:
Fatique, weakness, arm and leg muscle pain, absolutely no sex drive, rib cage pain, back pain, perceived shortness of breath. Heart palpitations, dry cough with mucus. I have a lump in my throat. It got so bad I went to the ER , they drew labs and my BP was elevated. They added labetalol to the lisinopril. I came across this site and I called my doctor and I told him that I wasn't taking lisinopril anymore. I feel as if I am having a slow death. I cant function, I cant work, I am panicky and nervous.
He said to monitor my pressure with 2x/day with the Labetalol.

I was on the maximum dose and I wonder how long will it take for this poison to leave my body. I can't believe what this medicine is made from. I am more than willing to lose weight and do anything to stop taking these poisons. I would love to hear your experiences. I need all the support that I can get.

I just don't understand the sudden exacerbation of all of the symptoms unless it is the weight loss. But my BP never went down even with the weight loss.

Exhaustion, joint pain, headache, ankle swelling, shortness of breath, persistent (cold) sores in my nose…

I am 52 years old and have taken Lisinopril for approximately 7-8 months. During the past two weeks, the majority of my joints have suddenly begun to ache. My fingers, especially index fingers, and one wrist are extremely uncomfortable. Other than the side effects listed in the comments on these pages, has anyone lost their eye brows? Sounds crazy doesn’t it but I first thought it was a side effect of hormone replacement therapy. I gradually stopped taking the HRT (ugh!) but continued to lose my eyebrows and now I notice my eyelashes are thinning. After trips to two dermatologists, neither had an explanation and both denied the HRT drug would cause the hair loss. I was and am extremely frustrated. I am not sure what made me research side effects for Lisinopril again but I finally saw something on an internet site saying that ONE percent of people could suffer hair loss. I’m sure my doc will be disappointed that I want off this medication. The only meds I take regularly are Lisinopril and Dyzaide (low dose). I have taken the Dyzaide for several years.

Took Lisinopril for one week, this was the only medication I was on at the time. I experienced light headiness, dizziness, motion sickness, rapid heart beat, chest pain, shortness of breath, numbness in my hands and arms. I suffer from some sort of bowel disorder, I have anywhere from 6 to 12 bowel movements a day normally, Lisinopril disrupted my bowels - they became totally unpredictable - make for the worse week of my life. My mother died the month before and I was already depressed, under enormous stress and most likely suffering from some sort of trauma disorder (PTSD) from watching my mother die in ICU screaming for 42 day. I became suicidal, to the point of sticking the gun in my mouth and cocking it. Guess I just don't have the guts to pull the trigger. I can sincerely say Lisinopril has changed me and it ain't for the better.

About 1 1/2 years ago my allergist recommended I switch BPM from Lisinopril to Atacand because of congestion problems associated with Lisinopril. I made the switch and had no problems with Atacand other than my co-pay was considerably higher. Because of this I asked my family practice MD to switch me back to Lisinopril because I remembered it worked okay. However this time - a couple of days after the first dose of Lisinopril I developed flu-like symptoms (aching, congestion, fatigue). I thought I was coming down with the flu AGAIN. After about three days I started having chest pain, a headache that wouldn't go away, blurred vision, dizziness, shortness of breath, very shaky, weakness, couldn't sleep. I thought I was on the verge of a heart attack at times. The fatigue and weakness worsened. I often felt that I couldn't get off the couch or out of bed. My legs felt like weights. It wasn't until I checked out the side effects on this website and read the comments of other users of the drug that I realized what was most likely happening. Needless to say, I called my doctor and asked to be switched back to Atacand. I'm more than willing to pay the extra $'s to feel better.

I was put on Lisinopril 10 mg after my blood pressure was deemed to high.The first thing I noticed was the shortness of breath, like I had ran a mile instead of only walking a few steps. Nest was the dry cough that kept me up all night. Also sick to my stomach the whole week I was on it. My doctor took me off the drug three days ago, I still feel like crap.How long will this "poison" stay in my system? I have never felt so bad in my life and I leave tomorrow for vacation!! I do not even have the energy to pack.

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 am a 41 year old male that has BP averaging 140/90 and spikes that were extremely hi 190/125 (which landed me in th ER). Lisinopril 10MG was prescribed last Friday. My BP came down immediately yesterday 111/75 today 109/69. That is the only good thing. I have a headache, dizziness, feel disoriented, had urges to urinate and nothing would happen. Yesterday while trying to walk, wash my trailer, or even chew a piece of gum whatever muscle I was using became soar immediately. They felt as if I had run a marathon or something. Today after one flight of stairs to get to my office I was short of breath and my leg muscles hurt. I had to go lay down at lunch because this stuff makes me so tired. It is like I have been poisoned. As I'm typing my fingers hurt and the metal taste in my mouth has me thinking I want to trash this stuff. The doctor says they haven't herd of these side effects and and they said to cut the pill in half.

I was put in this med about 6 mos ago in order to protect my Kidney, I had a transplant years ago. My BP was already low in the mid 120s/85-90 and this has dropped it to 120/80.

However on starting this med, I suffered many of the flu-like symptoms to the point where I was out of work for a couple of days. Since then, I have, in retrospect had malaise, depression symptoms, occasional shortness of breath and a general lack of energy.

And last night, the kicker, I was with my new girlfriend for the first time....yep, no work, at all, which led me to checking out the net for symptoms of the meds I was on.

I have been off of this drug Lisinopril for about 2.5 months and am still havening side effects not as bad but elevated heart rate and dizziness, tired all the time not back to myself yet. DOES ANYBODY know how long this takes to get past and what can be done to help it out of the body am getting sick of this. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you, Tom

I originally posted on 3/16/08. I visited the Dr. on Monday about problems with 40 mg Lisinopril such as shortness of breath, slight dizziness, fatigue. He said that I "need" to be on this medicine and that if I feel that the 40 mg is too much, to cut them in half and see how I do and come back in 30 days. I really feel like he is an honest and caring Dr. so I;m going to follow his advice and see how it goes. Any thoughts?

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 am a 39 yr old male and have been on Lisinopril 20mg daily for approximately 6 months. I found this site looking for possibly explanations for my symptoms because I feel so lousy. I have always been extremely healthy, physically and mentally fit however HBP runs in my family. I am 6', 160lbs and on no other medications. After what I have read on this site tonight, I am extremely anxious to get off of this drug.

My symptoms include: Difficulty swallowing, shortness of breath, anxiety, irregular heart beat and occasional high BP with pounding in my heart. My legs become numb pretty frequently (mostly in the AM) and I have difficulty walking. I am extremely dizzy which has caused me to stop working out at the gym which I believe has in turn lead to mood swings and loss of patience. I become confused and find normal tasks difficult. I, like many others experience an odd sensation that I am going to die. I have never been depressed and have never had any of the above symptoms in my life. Lisinopril is extremely effective in lowering BP but I am barely functional at this point and after what I have read, will be making a change immediately. I want to try to get back to exercising and will try to control my BP with diet, exercise, herbs and will do that while constantly monitoring my BP.

I honestly thought I had cancer or MS but I identify with much of what everyone else has said on this site and I am now convinced it is all due to Lisinopril.

Thank God for this site!!!

I've been taking Lisinopril for almost 2 years & Happy my BP has lowered. But I've been having terrible joint pain; that has been magnifying a lot lately. Even when I'm not doing anythings strenuous. Two of my fingers on the top ache terribly, the front of my shin is intensifying, my knees feel like they are going to go out on me, my shoulders feel like arthritis had set in & my neck is constantly feeling stiff, my feet hurt. I am overweight, but never have experienced anything like this stiffness & pain before. I was beginning to wonder if it were Candida related. I'm going to try going off of the Lisinopril for a while; monitoring my blood pressure & see if my pain resolves. I pray so; I feel like one of the elderly residents I help take care of.

I have been taking 20 mg. of Lisinopril for over two month. I notice that I have been experiencing shortness of breath and dizziness, and bronchitis. and a cough. I went to see a doctor and She said that was causing these symptoms was the Lisinopril. I have been taking celery seed extract and by the grace of God. I have seen my blood pressure go down. I believe we need to seek God to give us directions and wisdom when it comes to our health and many other issues.

For anyone having digestion problems while taking lisinopril....please read this!

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/446546_3

I am hoping this is what my problem is, as I'm to the point of not being able to eat anything, even bland food, without being in horrible pain. Cat scans and upper scope ran and all came back normal, regular blood tests are normal...but the pain I have after eating is not NORMAL! I go back to my regular dr. tomorrow and will let you know if he takes me off the lisinopril. My stomach problems started after starting 40 mg of lisinopril in June of 06. I will try to keep you posted on if it is the medication causing my problems.
I also have the anxiety, red rash on my neck, shortness of breath, lethargy, lack of concentration, etc. etc. It's scary to think medications can cause more problems than the actual health problem they are treating you for!

Thank God I accidentally found this sight. I changed pharmacies and my husbands pill looked different so I decided to look it up on the net. He has almost every side effect up here and we had different answers for each one. High heart rate, shortness of breath, dry cough, can't concentrate, anxiety, depression, feeling of something bad happening to family or him dying, bad dreams, erectile dysfunction, no patience, stomacher pain, just not the man that is my best friend. Now that we look back it started the same time he started Lisinopril. I that the good Lord that I found this so I can get my husband back. He was getting so bad I thought I was going to have to start BP meds cause he started driving me crazy. Thank you Jesus and I hope anyone going through the same thing finds this sight.

Hi my name is Janice and here are my side effects from taking Lisinopril. I have lightheartedness, nausea, stomach pains, chest pain, vomiting, headache, taste of iron, shortness of breath.

January 20,2008

ON this poison Lisinopril for 2 mts
Anxiety which is extreme Shortness of breath, with or without exertion
Pounding of heart, irregular heartbeat, upset stomach, food tastes different, sweating, chest pains, arm and shoulder pain, felt like I was going to die,
am still on 5 mg per day but after reading the above I shall not be taking it
again.

John P

I am a 61 yr old guy , who had a mitral valve repair , single by-pass , and modified maze procedure , four years ago ..... very successful ! I have been on and off Lisinopril a couple of times ..... usually 20 mg for runs of spiking blood pressure ..... never made a symptom connection ..... but this time .... I was so confounded by the profound feeling of malaise , & fatigue that made me feel weary to the bone ..... and most distressing is the shortness of breath ..... that seems even more debilitating than congestive heart failure ..... which is what I experienced when the mitral valve failed ...... all this has led me to this site , trying to understand how things could have gotten so dire so quickly ..... I am going to cease taking Lisinopril along with Lovastatin ...... and see what relief i experience . good luck to you ! Neil

My 82 year old brother was put on 40 mg of Lisinopril to lower his blood pressure. He was already taking Atenolol (50 mg) and also taking Simvastatin (40 mg) for cholesterol. With in two (2) days his fingers started going numb and hurting. It took us about 5 weeks to realize the systems started right after he started on Lisinopril. By that time all his fingers were numb and tingling, with lots of pain. He also had, nausea, shortness of breath, & upset stomach with diarrhea. After reading the same side effects on the website, he immediately stopped the Lisinopril. Most of the systems stopped fairly soon after stopping the Lisinopril except the numbness, pain & tingling in the hands. It has been over 2 months and with some alternative treatments he is finally seeing some relief from the hand problems.

This was my husband's experience, not mine. He started Lisinopril in October of 2007. After one month he started having anxiety/panic attacks, started having trouble concentrating on reading (which he loved), his memory was shot, he didn't sleep well, he lost his sense of humor. After two months, in one week's time, he spiraled into such a deep depression that he ended up taking his own life. I'm convinced it was because of the combination of Lisinopril, diuretic and Statin he was taking. He was a different person after adding Lisinopril and Simvastatin to his diuretic medication.

Started 10 mg Lisinopril, after 4 days I couldn't catch my breath. Had to sit and not even talk, in order to get oxygen in. Couldn't sleep, would wake up gasping for air. Would take 2 breaths and the 3rd would be a yawn to get oxygen in. It's been 5 days since I quit taking Lisinopril, and my breathing finally feels normal. And the doctor said this is not a side effect of the drug, just a coincidence.

In fairness, I have two friends who have been on it 15 and 20 years respectively. Also a 95 year old aunt, and she suffers from shortness of breath but blames it on other things. I wonder.

A doctor at my health club said his patients have had great success with Resperate, a biofeedback machine, for blood pressure. Will give that a try next.

I have been on Lisinopril for approx 3mos and heard that the side effects can come months after starting med. I now have the most annoying dry cough, shortness of breath. I am telling my doctor to take me off this.

I was first diagnosed with hypertension in the late 80's and have been on several different medications to treat it. I think that Lisinopril is the worst that I have been on. I have extreme fatigue and severe dry and burning mouth, sore tongue and difficulty breathing and flu like symptoms. I have anxiety and PTSD so my symptoms have been blamed on that. With all these symptoms,
I sometimes wonder if it would be better off to have the hypertension.
Sometimes my mouth and throat is so dry and sore, I can't eat and I have difficulty breathing which is not addressed with asthma medication. Daytime symptoms are bad at night but when night time comes, it is almost impossible to sleep.
I would be interested if anyone has these symptoms and would like to hear from you.
Jenny

LISINOPRIL(KILL
Just started Lisinipril about a week ago, fatigue, dizziness and head aches are all killing me anyone know of a fairly decent BP medication? HELP

I was prescribed Lisinopril and have taken it for 4 days now. I am so bloated. I have shortness of breath. I will call my doctor to see what she says but at this point I am stopping the meds. I would rather die than have this horrible bloating with diarrea. I can hardly breath.

Here’s a little update from my last post, I hope it may be useful. The reference to snake venom set me thinking, as around six years ago I suffered anaphylaxis after being stung by a wasp on the end of my tongue. I was rushed to casualty as my head and ears swelled up. I was coved in a red spotty rash and although the major symptoms subsided after a day or so after treatment , it after several weeks before I was back to normal. I now carry adrenaline in case of a similar incident. Many of the symptoms were similar to what I have experienced over the last month, the shortness of breath, the red spotty rash ( forgot to put that in the last post. I still have the spots on my arm and back!) , painful joints, blurred vision etc….

So it got me thinking, is there a connection? It would be interesting to note if any of those posting here have similar intolerance to insect venom.

A quick Google brought up a reference to a paper by Janice L Stumpf, Nadine Shehab and Anish Patel in the Annals of Pharmacotherapy Vol 40 No 4 p699-703 titled ‘Safety of Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors in Patients with Insect Venom Allergies’

In the conclusions it states ‘….it seems prudent that patients with document allergic reactions to insect venom avoid ACE inhibitor therapy, if possible..’

I’m convinced that I was slowly going into a form of anaphylaxis brought on due to allergic reaction to linisopril, I now know what I will be telling my GP, as I’m sure many doctors will be unaware of this link. Make sure that if you suffer from the same intolerance that your doctor is made aware.

Hope this helps.

I have been on Lisinopril for about 6 months now. Was taken off of Labetalol after having side effect of persistent congestion. So now on Lisinopril I'm experiencing shortness of breath, wheezing, hands fall asleep and go numb to the point where I can't even feel my fingers, and starting two weeks ago I had vesicles on my feet that I treated with Elidel and they responded, then I got extremely itchy skin on my ankle and lower legs which is not going away with lotions (I have always had dry skin, but never itchy like this). Is this due to poor circulation due to too low of BP? What's the deal? Has anyone had these symptoms? Is there another drug that has no side effects? Does reducing the dosage of Lisinopril help eliminate side effects? Is it possible that Singular, Rhinocort or Elestat (all for allergies) can cause any of these symptoms? I'm tired of my body negatively reacting to drugs that I "need", especially the BP drugs. A heart attack or stroke is certainly worse, but these "side effects" are ridiculous! Help! Any ideas? I'll check back in to read your responses. Thanks.

I am a 65 year old man in reasonably good health. I had never experienced BP issues until recently, and when I found it was elevated, went to my internist about 2 months ago for that, and a general wellness assessment. After many tests, he determined that excess weight, and the BP should be addressed, so I was prescribed a fluid pill Chlorothalidone 25 mg and lisinopril 10 mg. After a week or so, I noticed a marked effect regarding the taste of food. Things I always ate ceased to appeal to me. Otherwise, I was feeling decent. About 3 weeks ago, I went back in for a checkup, and my BP was not responding to suit him, so he increased the lisinopril dosage to 20mg per day. Within 2 days or so, I began having trouble sleeping, tossing and turning, and having spazzed out dreams to the point of halucinations, and was up and down all hours of the night. More significantly, it felt like my guts were being blasted by a flame thrower, or for a better description, a leprechaun slinging a chain mace around in my insides 24/7. During this process, I have experienced momentary vertigo, and have lost what I feel is 75 percent of my energy. I am not a couch potato, and work 5 days a week. I am sluggish in the morning, and by 1 or 2 in the afternoon, could lay down on my office floor and go sound to sleep. I now have chills and flu-like symptoms off and on throughout the day. I have taken every conceivable antacid, pepto, milk of magnesia(which oddly seems to help) where nothing else does. The bottom line for me is that I feel this drug has transposed a fairly healthy person into a virtual zombie within about 6 weeks. My wife found this site on the internet, and after reading these responses of so many of you, having absorbed your comments, with the exception of the cough and shortness of breath, I am suffering identical effects. I will not be taking this medication again, and also will not take a brush-off from my physician. I have determined, because of these increasingly debilitating side effects, it would be far better to live with high BP or switch to another medication, and and at least drop dead in peace and comfort in a relatively high degree of normalcy, rather that what I have been going through. It has been rather easy for me to be able to tie my symptoms to this medication, given the information I now have on it, because in all my life, I have never experienced what has been happening to me in the last 5 or 6 weeks, described best in my mind as having constant influenza. I have taken my last lisinopril, and will see the internist next week in this regard.

I am hoping that this will help at least one person, to get off of lisinopril
There is a big difference between "side effects" and actual symtoms that are happening to most of us that take lisinopril.
Side effects usually occur shortly after taking a certain medication.
i took lisinopril for 2 years and gradually all the symptoms escallated and continued to get worse over time. i tought i was dying, i did so many test to find out what was wrong with me, cost a fortune, eventually i realised that all of these things were being caused by lisinopril.
I had shortness of breath,muscle weakness, joint pain, after every meal i was so bloated and a very heavy feeling at night , i could hardly turn in my bed because of being so weak and felling heavy, and the worse was this lump in my throat that got worse every day until i could not swallow or even breath i decided to do MRI ,found nothing , i ran out of lisinopril medication and this immediately got better, i have stopped taking for 1 month and i feel a lot better but still trying to recover from these "side Effects"

Just yesterday my Doctor gave me a persriction for Lisinopril, because my blood pressure was high while I was there (always high tho when I go to the doctor) She wanted me to start with HALF of a 10MG tablet to start with before bed. I did....and I had the worst night of my life. Pressure in my chest, pain in my chest and around my shoulder, fatigue, shortness of breath. I barely slept. I will NOT be taking this again!!!!!

UPDATE FROM MORE4SURE :) .... i have been off Lisonopril now for one week, and i feel so much better i can hardly believe it! i occasionally get a little pain when i breath, and still an upset stomach alot but im hoping those issues will go away eventually. as for all the other problems i was experiencing during the 4 months i took Lisinopril, non stop coughing, constant headaches, blurred vision, shortness of breath, fever/chills/body aches etc, etc.. pretty much all gone. i no longer wake up every day tired, weak and unable to function normally. FEELING GREAT!! life is good again :) i hope my situation will help someone else who is having problems with this med. please feel free to email me ****** good luck and good health to all...

i have high BP and was on a med that worked well but was rather expensive, so i asked my Doc if we could try something more affordable. he put me on Lisinopril and within a few days of starting this med i had headaches, coughing, upset stomach and dizzyness. i assumed this would be temporary as per getting used to the new med, but it only got worse... and by 2 months later i was also having shortness of breath, constant fatigue and trouble sleeping. i looked up Lisinopril side effects online and called my Doc to say that i was having many problems with this med, he assured me it was not the Lisinopril and to keep taking it. on Sept 28th 2007, i went in to see the Doc and my BP was still a bit high so he doubled the dosage of Lisinopril. 2 days after i started the new dosage i had such serious breathing problems i was literally gasping for air and had to go to Emergicare, my BP had come down and the Doc at Emergicare said the breathing problems were just seasonal allergies and prescribed some Prednisone which he said would help. he also said i might want to come in for some Nebulizer treatments. i continued to take the double dosage of Lisinopril and was so sick every day that i no longer even cared what happened to me. i had a constant pounding headache, chills/body aches, blurred vision, nausea, weakness, coughing, fuzzy confused feeling, and i felt totally exhausted...breathing was still difficult and at night just rolling over in bed caused me to gasp for air. well 2 days ago i could not take it anymore and called my Doctors office to firmly explain that the med was making me VERY ill, they said they would get a message to my Doc right away and in like 5 minutes they called back and said STOP this med immediately!! well it's been 48 hours now since the last dose of Lisinopril and i feel much better already. i still have a headache but the other problems are fading down to very mild. i can even breath again YAY....i only hope that in a few more days i will feel normal again. to ANYONE reading this dont take this med, it will make you very, very sick!! and for those of you who actually are on this stuff please pay attention to how you are feeling and tell your Doctor right away, dont ignore the side effects.. make your Doctor listen and tell him how you feel even if it seems like mild issues bcause it will get worse!! good luck and peace to all.. :)

I was prescribed lisinopril after I underwent open heart surgery for aortic valve replacement last July. Initially I was on 40mg, and was successively reduced to 5mg, which is where I am now. Basically, my dosage would be lowered after I would start to complain about side effects (dizziness, fatigue...), which my cardiologist would attribute to my recovery -- i.e. my blood pressure would stabilize, hence the higher dosage would lower it too much). Well, now I'm down to 5mg, and I feel worse than ever. I'm dizzy all the time, I have severe aches in my joints -- particularly in my knees and elbows, stiffness in my hands, pain in my feet, extreme fatigue, weakness in my arms, shortness of breath, and mild chest pains. My cardiologist maintains that it's not the lisinopril, yet after running full bloods, my primary doctor can't find a single thing wrong with me. I tried getting off the lisinopril for a little over a week, but I didn't feel any better. So, my question is this: does anyone else feel as crappy as I do, and how long does it take to get this drug out of your system? I'm only 34 yrs old, I'm not overweight or otherwise out of shape, and this is really affecting my ability to work and to spend quality time with my wife and 10 month old son. Ugh.

I had a pain and lump in my throat for months and feeling sick and weak and tired and pain all over my body, Shortness of Breath, Chest Pains, i did did all kinds of test barium meal, endoscopy, CT scan, ECG, Ultra Sound u name it and all negative, i stopped taking lisinopril for 2 days because i ran out , the pain in my throat immediately dissapered, i got my energy back ,the bloating feels better and i dont feel like i was dying and feeling like i was 90 years old (I am 42yrs old) LISINOPRIL IS BAD. and should be taken off the market. I have spent hundreds of dollars trying to find out what was wrong with me Thank God i ran out of it.

PLEASE READ MY STORY!!!....My Doc switched me from Dyazide to Lisinopril Hctz 20/12.5 in Jan'07 for my high blood pressure. The first day after I started taking the medication, my BP dropped very LOW and so did my heart rate-53. My blood pressure readings continued to be consistently LOW for months, but Doc kept telling me it was OK. Had other side effects; Cough, lethargy, swollen LIP, (daughter called me Duck Lips!) sleeplessness, lightheadedness, hairloss, muscle fatigue. All symptoms I attributed to Menopause. (Except the duck lips)Over the summer, I developed slight Edema in my extremities whether I was exercising or not, thought that was weird. Told Doc about it, she ordered Blood work done to see what inflammation level is. Lab Report showed; INCREASE in BUN & Creatinine levels with eGFR level DECREASING. These levels are indicators of Impaired Kidney Functioning! Doc not concerned, tells me not to worry, just a "Bad Test Day." She increases my dosage to 20/25. Within 4 weeks of the increase, I experienced 3 bad episodes, 2 of which I went to the Emergency Room and should've for the other. In all the episodes I experienced Chest pain, Shortness of Breath, Severe Headache, Dizziness. I'm thinking I'm having a Heart Attack or Stroke because I'm a very high RISK. Tests come out normal, docs however, concerned about my LOW Blood Pressure readings but None of them tell me to discontinue the Lisinopril HCTZ. Have a 4th episode two weeks ago after walking/hiking about a mile and a half, stopping periodically to rest and drinking plenty of water on the way. After I completed my walk, I again rested for 45 minutes. I stood up, became very Dizzy, developed Shortness of Breath, Bad Headache, Profusely Perspiring, Back pain. Dummy me drove 10 minutes to get home (Should NOT have done that) Had daughter call 911. Was admitted to the hospital with SEVERE Dehydration, Dangerously LOW Blood Pressure-63/34, and going into Renal Failure which blood tests confirmed. I'm given IV fluids plus Potassium Chloride. Hospital takes me OFF of Lisinopril HCTZ and puts me on Lisinopril at 5mg!!! Had a hunch, Told the Docs at the hospital against their advice, "I'm NOT taking the Lisinopril!!" Upon discharge my BP remained in the 80-90's/40-50', except when I threw the doctor out of my hospital room because he wasn't listening to me. My Dystolic rose to a whopping 66. Went to my Doc for follow-up in two days. My BP was 146/98. Told her what I told other Docs. She convinces me to try Lisinopril 5mg for 30 days. Took it for 2 days, still bothered by what happened and searching for more information. Got LUCKY, Found this website!! I threw the bottle away. Went to a Nephrologist that specializes in hypertension. My hunch/intuition was correct!! He told me in RARE cases, Lisinopril will "cause" renal insufficiency. Discontinuation of the medication will reverse the negative effects. (I hope) Current Blood work states levels within normal reference range.

Looking for a good Medical Malpractice Attorney.

I have been taking Lisinopril (5mg) daily along with atenolol (25mg) daily more than three years ago. I had a host of sysmptoms such as extreme fatigue, itching, shortness of breath, dizziness, numb fingers, etc. My doctor put me on this regiment after i had to stents put in my heart. I didn't have a bp problem. I had a coleterol problem, but she said i would need to be on these meds fo the rest of my life. I was ruched to hospital when i couldn't get my breath. I was told i was suffering from depression and anxiety and put on Clonazepam and Citalopram. This only added to my fatigue and i have had sexual side affects to boot now. Before i took Lisinopril i was playing softball and spending time with my children. Now all i want to do is sleep and no matter how much sleep i get it is not enough. I want my life back!!! After reading your posts i have decided to stop taking all the meds and hopefully find the person i once was. Thank you all for opening my eyes. I am not crazy after all.

I'm 40 yrs old and was prescribed Lisinopril on July 2. For at least a month or so I've been experiencing constipation and headaches on occasion. The leg cramps happen every night though. My scalp has been very tender in areas, my throat is sore, I have the nagging cough, my vision seems to have gotten worse, and my skin itches miserably. I have headaches, which I thought were sinus headaches, but sinus meds didn't help. Yesterday the itching got so bad, I took Benadryl, which helped...I also slept VERY well...I went to the Dr today. He looked at my arms and back which were red and splotchy. He told me to stop taking the Lisinopril and we'll watch my BP. I'm hoping that all these things go away soon. I was beginning to think it was all in my head.

I have been taking Lisinopril for several years. I am 52 years old. I have had terrible scratchiness and coughing at night. As soon as I lay down it starts. I am sweating terribly for no reason. I worked with a personal trainer all last year but could not lose any weight. I have gained weighed and very large waist. After reading this column I feel that all of these side effects are coming from taking this pill. I am also taking Zocor so that is what I am looking up next. Have a dr. appt. this week and I am getting off all of this..... I am so excited to think that there is a reason why I couldn't lose any weight and only gain. My stomach also looks bloated quite a bit. Does the sweating relate to anyone else out there? I didn't hear too much on that from other writers. Please let me know!

I have found since taking this drug that my bowel movements are very difficult. I am not actually constipated, but feel almost impacted. I have never experience this problem before, and attribute it directly to this drug. I am curious if I am alone in this problem.

Thanks

I have bipolar, and for a year I was willing to attribute my symptoms to that illness. I started the lisinopril when I moved and made a bunch of life changes, so I didn’t connect the onset of the symptoms with the med. Every night, though, I would get sick around 5 or 6 PM (I took lisinopril in the morning): nausea, headache, body aches, extreme lethargy, shortness of breath, fluttering feeling in my chest. These symptoms were so bad that twice I went to the emergency room. (Unfortunately, I presented as a bipolar patient with anxiety, so my treatment was less than comprehensive.) I swapped out all my bipolar meds to rule out drug interactions, but never touched lisinopril because I thought of it as a “safe drug”. My PCP (who prescribed the lisinopril) referred me to a cardiologist who did a battery of tests. I stopped the 30 day heart monitor after 3 weeks because every time I had cardiac symptoms, I checked out fine. The only option left seemed to be that the symptoms were psychosomatic, which scared me because I had no idea how to tackle that. I finally decided to investigate lisinopril and found this site by accident. It was amazing to read all the posts that were similar to my experiences. The day I discontinued the lisinopril in the morning, that night I did not get sick. I waited until I had been well for a week before concluding that the symptoms were indeed side effects of this med. It’s been a couple of months since I discontinued the lisinopril. And I have not been sick once, though I do struggle regularly with the bipolar. (I do monitor my blood pressure regularly: there’s a reason why everyone tells you to do that!) I feel stupid for not suspecting lisinopril earlier (I’m the kind of person who has a PDR and quizzes doctors on pharmacological modes of action) but I just thought that someone would flag it if there could be a problem.

I think those of us with a chronic illness tend to try to make symptoms fit within the framework of our known disease models. I’m writing a book and would welcome input on any aspect of bipolar or about dealing with chronic illness in general.

This site is a blessing. Congratulations on finding it!

Hi all,

I am 53 and from the UK. I was on Lisinopril for 13 years. First 5mg, later 10mg then a few weeks ago 20mg as my BP was 169/90. Afetr 8 days of taking this dose I felt strange and felt as if I was about to fall down when walking. Also had a feeling I was kinda walking sideways if that makes sense. Anyway, went for check-up with health worker at docs surgery and after 8 days on this stuff instead of my BP being reduced it was up to 210/120. The health worker took my BP 5 times and looked cncerned while trying to reassure me not to be concerned. She went of to consult the senior practice nurse and made me an appointment for the next day to see my GP. The next day I told my GP how I was feeling and he said he didn't know why my BP had gone higher on the double dose of Lis but to continue taking it along with nother drug he prescribed called Amlodipine 5mg, a calcium channel blocker. After another couple of days I felt very ill. Palpitations, dizzy, and a feeling every ten minutes or so as if my chest was puncched from the inside, a very uncomfortable feeling indeed. I decided on a process of ilimination and stopped the Lis but kept taking the latter drug. Almost imedietly I felt better even though my BP was round about 146/85. I started to realize that symptoms I had for 13 years were probably due to the Lis. Symptoms including, waking suddenly, literally choking on acid as my throat closed in a spasm, Strange nightmares, food sticling halfway down my gullet causing extreme discomfort etc. On top of this, nearly two years ago I was diagnosed with auto immune disease and had radioactive iodine treatment on an overactive thyroid, an overactive thyroid that instead of making me lose weight, made me put it on. A while later I was diagnosed as having type two diebetes which I tried to control with diet. Now since stopping the Lis my blood sugar readings have never been better, in fact I wonder now if I was ever diebetic at all. The most upsetting thing is, I now wonder if the thyroid malfunction was caused by the Lis. I feel much better like a veil has been lifted from my mind, no longer moody or having foggy thinking. I hope I have not gone on too long. I wish you all luck with your meds. I have started taking Hawthorn berry capsules which it's claimed help to lower BP naturally. My BP today is 140/80 but does fluctuate.
Lawrence

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!!

Hi,
A cardiologist prescribed Lisnopril 10mg for me three days ago because my BP was above 160/90 even though I was taking HCTZ. All day yestersday, I was extremely energyless. I went to the gym to see my trainer, but could not lift a finger to exercise. I feel like I have a fever, but I do not have one. I've had headache since yesterday. I slept 10 hours last night, but woke up still extremely tired and unable to function properly. I have dizziness, uneasiness, shortness of breath, tightness in the chest area, and I feel strain around my eyes. Today, I went to the emergency room, because I knew something was seriously wrong with my heart or that my blood count was low. There was nothing. After reviewing several postings on this site, I realize these are side effects of Lisinopril. As of today, I am off this. I wil see my physician on Monday. Hopefully, she will understand.

I was prescribed 10mg/day for 140/80 BP. Started with 5mg/day. Almost immediatley had less energy and trouble sleeping. After 1 week terrible nightmares and no sex drive. After 2 weeks (still on 5mg/d) had a flare-up of Crohns. Stopped the lisinopril for a month while taking prednisone for the Crohns. Then restarted the lisinopril and the same thing happened. These are the only two flare-ups I have had this year! No more lisinopril for me. This drug is worse than the illness it is supposed to correct.