Toprol-XL and tiredness

My doctor took me off metopolol (genericToprol), and my last dosage was a week ago. I suffered weight gain, tiredness, and muscle fatigue during my 18 months on the drug.

I have 2 questions - how long will the drug remain in my system, and has anyone who experienced weight gain while on Toprol or the generic, lost any weight after stopping it?

Thanks, Tony

I am 36 and take 100 mg of generic Toprol a day. I was put on it due to many ( I mean 30 to 40) palps a day. I had been on Atenolol for about 5 years and the doctors told me it had simply quit working. I had an echo and a 24 hour holtor monitor and both came back negative, yet I felt like I was dying daily. My palps have diminished with the medicine, with a change in diet and running 5 or 6 days a week for about 3 miles. Caffeine and alcholol have almost been excluded. I do have cold hands and feet and have had much trouble losing weight. Stomach cramps and an upper right side cramps have been an issue. After reading your posts I think we need to get off this stuff

Weight gain,muscle pain/tiredness especially in the lower legs. Fatigue/lack of energy, moodiness. Also intestinal bloating/gas.

Getting adequate exercise is problematic given I can't get my heart rate into my target area, and the almost constant pain and dead feeling in my lower legs. It gets to the point that I have to stop walking and wait for the blood flow to reach my lower extremities. I am assuming this is a large contribting factor to my weight gain.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

I was given Metoprolol, a generic for Toprol-XL several months ago, for high blood pressure. It was prescribed after I was determined to be allergic to Lisinopril. ( It caused a cough that lasted 3 months; I sounded like a TB patient.) Anyway, I have been taking Effexor for years, for anxiety attacks. Now that I take Metoprolol along with the Effexor, I am so tired and drained all the time, that I am contemplating quiting work. I go to the grocery, come home and lie down. I can't seem to have energy to breath correctly. My Dr. won't believe that this has anything to do with meds. I have now developed blood and mucous in my stools, diarrhea, and very urgent BMs. This all started after taking these two meds in combination for about 4 months.

I'm a 53 year-old male and do regular Cardio Exercise every week and have for 31 years.
A cardiologist put me on Toprol XL 25 MG on November 22nd. The Doctor prescribed it because I add heart irregularities and palpitations which resulted in me going to the hospital as I didn't know what was happening and never had heart palpitations before in my life. I went to the emergency room and they got me stabilized but brought in cardiologist. My heart returned to normal function in a few hours and was result of taking a decongestant as well as Lisinopril 5 MG. I had just started these drugs and had been on them for three days when the heart palpitation instance happened. The decongestant is ... I had done a two hour hard workout at the gym which I do regularly 3 times per week and then the heart irregularities started on day 3 of taking the two drugs. A cardiologists now has stuck me on this Toprol 25 MG after that day because it helps with irregular heart beat plus my blood pressure was a bit high around 140/90. I immediately started noticing side effects from the Toprol 25 MG but stayed on it plus the Lisinopril 5 MG and 325 MG Aspirin for about 12 days at that dose. I started side effects like tremors, tiredness, constipation, strange dreams, anxiousness, impotence, and struggled to do my workouts etc. I made some lifestyle changes like eliminating caffeine, alcohol, etc and that plus the medicine reduced my blood pressure below 120/80 a bit. I stopped the Lisinopril on December 3rd and my blood pressure is still normal and reduced the Toprol to 12.5 MG at the same time. I did research and the doctor also thinks the irregularity was due to the Decongestant and Lisinopril I had taken for 3 days as both have heart irregularity and palpitations as a side effect. I decided I want to get off the Toprol XL altogether and let my body go back to normal functioning. All my problems were brought once I started taking medicine and the only real problem I have is high blood pressure which I can control now with life style changes and natural supplements. I called the cardiologist's nurse and she said not to do anything until I see the doctor on December 18th. I had already decided to cut the dose in half to 12.5 MG on December 3rd anyway and the side effects got better, but then I had instance the other night after taking a spin class at the gym whereby my heart beat stayed up around 82 bpm for several hours and normally is 59 pbm. I also felt anxious and couldn't get settled to sleep real well. I read on the warning label that your not supposed to work out during the process of reducing the dosage so I guess I will have to stop working out until I'm off this stuff. I have been an exercise person for 31 years doing at least 5 hours of Cardio Exercise per week and then racing bicycles in the summer months doing 10-12 hours of Cardio Exercise. I really want off this drug so I reduced to 6.25 MG today and will stop working out I guess until I'm off. I feel a little shaky and feel sort of like I could faint if I did to much exertion since reducing to 6.25 MG today. I was wondering how long it take to get off this Toprol since I was only on it for 12 days at the 25 MG dosage and should I keep cutting the dosage and go down to 3.12 MG after a few more days and then eventually off after a few days at 3.12 MG? Then how long once I'm off should I wait to return to my rigorous exercise routine?

On December 5th, I reported that, after stopping the Metoprolol, I was having some minor withdrawal symptoms. As an update, this week has not been good. I've had tightness in the chest, sleeping poorly and some gastric problems. It is now three weeks since the last dose. How long does it take to become symptom free?????

43/male...been taking Toprol XL for a year, started on 50mg, now a 100mg, makes me want to sleep all day, nothing but gastric problems, blood in stools constantly, burning of the rectum. depression, just tiredness & lack of energy all the time, most of all high liver enzymes !! Has anyone had elevated liver enzymes?? Taking only 50mg a day trying to get off this junk.

I too am having many of the side effects listed on this site including chest pains, fatigue, shortness of breath, foggy head, dizziness, to name a few. I am wondering if anyone has had heartburn or an increase in heartburn while being on this drug. They have recently switched me from Toprol to the generic form, Metaprolol. More of these symptoms seem to have come on since switching to the generic. Any thoughts?

PEOPLE, PLEASE DO NOT DISCONTINUE THIS MEDICATION SUDDENLY, IT CAN BE DANGEROUS!!!

I have been reading about this medication here for some time, and I feel concerned when I read about someone deciding to just quit taking it suddenly. I personally intend to quit as soon as I find a doctor with enough knowledge to help me wean off of it in a safe manner. I've been on it for two years, and the side effects have grown worse than my original health problem, so I understand wanting to just up and quit taking it, but after learning the hard way, I've found out it's not so easy.

Do your homework, read and learn about the potential 'rebound effect' and by all means, talk to your doctor before doing something that may cause you to be in danger ( as in having a heart attack)...if you don't believe me, learn for yourself, the information is easily researched.

Blessings, and good luck...

I have been on Toporal XL 50 mg daily for 3.5 years. I have SVT & A-fib. I had ablation 2 years ago & it was not successful. Now I also take flecanaide 200 mg daily.
Since I started this drug I have gained 15+ pounds and have been working out harder than ever before...so frustrated. I experience all the same symptoms: fatigue, tiredness, especially walking up stairs, IBS, lethargy, on and on. I've tried to ween off but keep going back because my heart starts racing.
I'm going to try again.
Alcohol really triggers the rapid heart rate so I'll have to give that up too. I enjoy a little red wine and now that's gone!
This is such a drag.

I am a 34-year old women who started 50 mg of Toprol-XL 4 days ago for a rash of panic attacks I experienced earlier this week, after having high blood pressure and occasional panic attacks in the last 3 months. Since then, I've had migranes for the past 2 days, bad allergies, stomach pain, loose bowel movements, slight difficulty breathing, frequent urination, and tiredness/lethargy during the day with trouble sleeping at night. I was already feeling strange my 2nd day on it and called my internal medicine doctor, who, of course, told me to stick with it. At this point, I'm ready for safer, natural alternatives. I'm will call the doctor tomorrow to tell him that my mind is made up and ask for instructions on how to wean off of it safely.

I am a 38 year old female and was put on Toprol XL for anxiety/rapid heart beat/stress. I have experienced weight gain, hair loss/thinning, tiredness, walking up/down a flight of stairs takes all the energy I've got and I need to sit and catch my breath, memory loss, loss of sex drive, gas/bloating problems, lack of activity due to fatigue. After I began reading these comments I can't believe that all the symptoms I'm having is due to this medication. As I was reading everything was coming back to me and I kept saying to myself, "That's exactly how I feel!" Just like most of these people! I'm not alone! Thank God for these posts! I'm going to stop taking this medication, gradually of course. I'll have to deal w/my anxiety/stress in other ways.....Prayer!

I have been on toprol for almost 30days 25mg. I have been having anxiety, panic attacks especially at night. My body feels like it can't settle down and my heartrate is always faster than normal. My heartrate is normally around60's to 70's now it over 90's and I'm very tired and the first syptom I notice was tiredness. I am short of breath a lot I also thought it was allergies because my nose was stuffy but now I know it is this medication. I was doing just fine on my other B/P meds and I'm going back on them ASAP!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you all for sharing these horrible side effects I hope everyone gets off these meds and on something different.

I've been taking toprol xl 50mg once a day for a couple of years now for "hypertension" along with atacandHCI 12.5 mg . I have gain A LOT of weight and it is very unusual! I was a vol. wrestling coach for 20 yrs. so I stayed fair to very active. I also work all day in my business as a jeweler so I don't get around as much lately. After reading posts on this sight, I am CONVINCED that My meds. are the majority to blame! I get edema if i don't watch the salts, but I took a bunch of copies from this sight to my Dr. and he about called me CRAZY! This weight problem didn't start until I took this stuff. I also am experiencing sleeplessness, frquent trips to the bathroom at night ( probably from the diuretics I NOW have to take), tiredness, and overall lack of energy. I will be seeking a second opinion about my meds and condition and will up date afterwards. STAY AWAY FROM THIS MEDICINE!!!!

Wow..thanks for this web site! I'm taking 50mg of Toprol a day. I've gained 75 pounds...while on a diet! I have NEVER been this fat in my life. I've had problems with dizziness, tiredness, and trouble sleeping. I called the pharmacy and was told these are very rare problems. He said he would'nt blame the weight gain on Toprol. As far as wakeing up around 2am and not being able to go back to sleep, he said to take it in the morning and not at night. He said "if a person gets a hang nail, they have to list it as a possible side effect".
As I read the problems on this site, I see I'm not alone. What should I do? Can I quit taking this drug and how?

I too have experienced tiredness, I've felt a couple of times as if I'm gonna pass out. Two or three days after I started taking the medication, I began having spasms on my back. I'm also taking the medicine because of my blood pressure.

my side effects include HEAVY menstrual flow,muscle pain,leg & back pain,tiredness,weariness,depression,nightmares,dazed,confused,double vision,blurred vision,in a "fog" all the time,cant remember things from one room to the other,screeching in my ears,muscle & joint pain,insomnia,VERY,VERY tired all the time,loose my temper quickly,no energy,weakness,no desire for sex,lethargic

I only took a couple of the Toprol samples the doctor gave me. I stopped after these 2 rather than take any more. I would describe it as "tiredness in a bottle." Even when I cut the second pill in half, I had the same reaction. I am a Type A personality and go full speed all day and cannot take anything that makes me feel anything other than full of pep. Even though retired (to give you an idea how old I am), I like to be busy all day all the time. This medicine is not for me. Do you have an alternate w/o this side effect?

Thanks.............

I'm 56 yr old male. Started Toprol XL 25mg day for hypertension 2 months ago. I have experienced some of the common effects, like tiredness. But most annoying are muscle pains at tops of both arms; difficult to do many simple activities like getting dressed. Anyone else notice this?

I have been on topral xl for several years now and my doctor has been telling me the symtom are not from topral...vivid dreams, tiredness, pain, depression, weight gain 30 lbs, and now my musles lock up thought i had a form of ms but doc's test ruled that out, fuzzy thinking, cough...any one else have a problem with not being able to use musles

I have been taking Toprol 100mg for 3 months now for tachicadria. I am also taking 50 mg of Elavil(Amitriptyline) for cronic pain. Between the two, I think I have had every thing listed here. The bigist thing i have noticed is Tiredness, Weight gain, Lethargic and depression. I take the medications at night 2 hours befor bed. Some times i just cant waik up. I have tried all different times to take the meds and have found this time to be the best. I will keep taking the meds until something comes along that works better.

Shortness of breath and heavy feeling in the chest area, indigestion has increased and a feeling of tiredness and my heart still feels like its coming out of my chest while taking toprol XL 25mg for 3weeks. My MD feels it might be anxiety, but i think its from the toprol. I go back to the MD tomorrow. Prior to my hysterectomy (partial-still have tubes), i did not have high BP and I think my BP is not really high, now. Prior to surgery it was normally anywhere from 115-120/70-80. After the HYS, I went to the ER for shortness of breath and pounding heartbeat. It was found that I had a DVT in my right leg, so they started me on Lovenox injections, which was discontinued and Coumadin 6mg. At the same time I was given toprol 25mg daily due to pounding heartbeat (but still was in range under 100) and Davarcet for pain. I stopped the Darvecet after 2 days of being dc'd. It worked for maybe a couple of day after but by the weekend I was calling the MD again due to shortness of breath abd pounding heartbeat. An ultrasound, ekg, echo of my heart and nothing was taken of while I was in the hospital for 2 weeks. Help! anybody experiencing the same feeling?

Short term memory loss. Tiredness

I have been on Toprol XL 50MG for 6 months for Right Ventrical Outflow Track Tach (RVOT) am 46yr male.

Side effects:

1. Weight gain (180 to 195) despite dieting
2. Tiredness
3. Very Low heart rate (Resting heart rate is now 40)
4. Just started having Vertigo (Extreme dizziness when sitting up)
5. Chest pains
6. Familiar Tremors have stopped (This is a benefit)

The RVOT symptoms have subsided but I'm not sure that it is worth it.

I AM ON 150 MG PER DAY AND HAVE BEEN FOR ABOUT 2 1/2 YEARS. LATELY, THE DIZZINESS AND TIREDNESS AND LACK OF ENERGY HAVE BEEN MUCH WORSE. I ALSO HAVE ACTUALLY PASSED OUT COLD TWICE IN THE LAST MONTH BECAUSE ALL OF THE SUDDEN I FELT EXTREMELY OVERHEATED AND BLACKED OUT. ANYONE ELSE HAVE THESE SYMPTOMS?

i have been taking Toprol for about 5 years. i have all kinds of side effects that i just thought were due to normal aging: tiredness, heartburn, flatulence, back pain; shorness of breath which i have always had a bit of, dry eyes and sometimes dry mouth. i started at 100gms but felt like i would fall asleep walking. dropped down to 50mg and for a year cut the pills in half (my own prescription!). changed docs, am back at 50, but still have all the side effects - oh yes, WEIRD dreams. i want to get off.

my side effects are a horrible tiredness that does not subside.weakness,diarrhea,chest pains.my doctor doesnt seem to think these are important.i do any one know how to help me?

Hi! I have been on Toprol Xl for about a year and a half now and I haven't gained weight but tiredness is a big issue.... sometimes I am so tired in mid day that I feel like I am going to fall asleep right where I am at. I noticed that my BP has been low and it scares me to take toprol and then for my BP to go even lower than it already has been, but then I'm afraid not to take it and for my heart to go crazy and raise my BP sky high. My Dr. said that on toprol XL a person needs to slowly get off it. I don't know, I am confused. What should I do? Anyone?

soreness in chest and breast. feels like glands are swollen but arent. tiredness sleep alot. pain under arms and in groin area.

I have been on Toprol XL (25mg) for about a month and a half. It was perscribed because I was getting more frequent bouts of rapid heartbeat from mitral valve prolapse. After taking this drug, the immediate first effect was tiredness. Then after about a week I had more pain in the right calf area of my leg. I had some pain in the leg previous to this, so I didn't think much of it. But it got rapidly worse within a couple weeks. In addition, I started to develop severe pelvic/hip/buttock pain on the right side. I was having trouble getting up from a sitting position, getting in and out of cars, and trouble standing on my feet for more than 5-10 minutes. When I asked the cardiologist about it, saying that these symptoms seemed to coincide with the beginning of taking Toprol, he told me that it sounded like sciatica and had no correlation to the medicine. So I went to a different doctor who perscribed anti-inflamatories and physical therapy. But none of it helped, and, in fact, the symptoms got worse. After about a month and a half of all of this, essentially alot of pain and not being able to walk, I decided to wean myself off of this drug (a week of 1/2 dosages). The pain is virtually gone and I can now stand on my feet and walk again (all within the span of a couple days).

I just started Toprol XL 25mg about 3 weeks, and am due to see Dr for a follow up on my BP. It has lowered my BP but have frequent voiding not diarrhea (as someone else noted), tiredness, bloating. I will ask the Dr what this all means and if there is another pill that would be better.

When an ophthalmologist friend heard that my PCP prescribed 50 mg/day for PCV, he warned me to watch out for depression. I experienced the typical nightmares during my first weeks on this medication. I allso experienced such tiredness that just the thought of the effort it would take to move from one room to another was practically overwhelming. I asked my PCP for permission to reduce dosage to 25 mg and later to 12.5 mg (lowest available). I understand withdrawal from this drug, like HRT, must be reduced slowly (allow several weeks between changes in dosage). I continue to experience great bouts of sleepiness during the daytime and insomnia at night. Headaches, weight gain, pain shooting from ball of feet into all toes when I walk, giving me the sensation that all toes are on fire (like blisters), wanting to claw at my skin from a sensation of itching, and periodic blurred vision are on my list of complaints. I also thought I'd made it through hot flashes but now I find myself dealing with huge wringing wet series of flashes 24/7. I don't want to forget the shortness of breath that wakes me often during the night and the dizziness that periodically comes out of nowhere when I bend over to pick up something or move too quickly from a sitting position. I can't tell you the number of times I've brought these symptoms to the attention of my PCP and each time I'm given the impression that because I'm female in the final stages of menopause (10 years and counting), it's mostly all in my head. The only other items I knowingly place in my system are B-12 time release 1000/day due to removal of several inches of my ileum (the body's manufacturing source for B-12) which housed the remains of my shattered appendix and a periodic aspirin. Go figure!

Depression, Severe Joint and Muscle Pain especially feet, hot flashes tiredness and lack of sex drive.

I'm a 54 year old woman and have been on 50 mg Toprol for 1 year. It's done great things to drop my blood pressure down to normal range. But I've experienced weight gain, muscle aches, aching feet, tiredness, lack of clarity when thinking, hot flashes, occasional nausea and occasional dizziness/light-headedness. I'm also on a mild dose of xanax which helps with nervousness which I guess is also associated with Toprol. My sex drive still remains strong though.

I take 100mg of toprol XL per day. Have had rashes, tiredness, wild dreams, hot flashes, hands and toes cold all the time. But the good thing is my bp and heart rate are low while taking toprol.

I seem to have a quiet consistant tiredness that I can usually push through. I can't seem to lose weight. My tachycardia is much better.

I noticed a weight gain and tiredness. I'm being weaned off of the Toprol and am hoping to have more energy and lose the weight. But now I'm experiencing severe itching and what looks like dozens of mosquito bites -- due to a change in chemistry with a lower dosage???