Warfarin Sodium and medication

I stumbled onto this site while trying to find a reason for these headaches I get sometimes for no" apparent" reason. Imagine my surprise to find your testimonies about your lives on warfarin sodium.At 38, I had surgery to repair a congenital defect of the aortic valve and had to have a hema-shield graph to repair an aneurysm of the aorta. That was in Oct.2002. Warfarin has been a part of my life since then. I was also put on anti-depressants because my family Dr. thought I was depressed since I repeatedly complained of not feeling well.(I took myself off the anti-depressants a couple of years ago.) Extreme fatigue , serious memory issues, thinning hair,dizzy spells and numerous other ailments continue to plague me.Add to that a large weight gain ...and, well, you get the picture. If anyone knows of an alternative to taking this "poison", PLEASE, PLEASE let me know. I just WANT MY LIFE BACK!!! I actually cried after reading this blog. As I explained to my husband, I suppose it was from the sheer relief of knowing I was not going insane!!!

i have been on warfarin since April 2008 when i had a clot in my left leg. since, i haven`t really had much going on until last week. i was rushed to the hospital by ambulance. i got dizzy and had a very cold wave rush up my body twice. when it was over, i couldn`t hear anything and my temples were tingling and my heart rate was elevated along with my bp. the er drs didn`t seem concerned with any thing that had to do with the dvt or the warfarin. their response???????? you drink too much coffee. WELL. i haven`t had a cup of coffee for almost a week, and have also quit smoking. i am still dizzy. my head feels heavy. i get little cool rushes that almost take my breath away, i don`t feel like ME. i feel like someone has taken over the me i knew. my family doctor has done liver, mono, hepatitis, b12, folic acid profiles, all negative. had a ct scan yesterday, normal. having an echocardiogram next week and having a holter monitor put on for 24 hrs to monitor my heart. i have done nothing but sleep since this episode. my husband is scared to death i`m gonna die during the night, he wakes up just to check on me. i haven`t been sleeping very well, as i`m afraid i`m not gonna wake up. i am only 40. i am not ready to let my life go to pot because of a drug that all the doctors insist is "safe". well i don`t know. call me stupid, but if its so safe, why do they kill rats with it????????????

horrible...started taking coumadin in November of 2007--it is now July of 2008 and in recent weeks I have had the most horrible bruising all over my body--deep maroon and deep purple and HUGE! One covers my hip on my back completely and I have others all over me. I have been having severe fatique, widespread pain to include my entire abdominal cavity, my lower and upper back, my sides, sudden headaches, and a general feeling of malaise, weakness in extremities...I am not taking this medication EVER again and I have an appt with my heart doc in a few days. I feel like I've been run over with a paver and aspirin is obviously a better choice for me. What's the use of preventing clots if your quality of life is s__t. After all, it is basically rat poison. Seriously, folks...look at the ingredients on both.

I was on Coumadin for a blood cloth I had last year(I originally started on 2.5mg and kept getting bumped up higher and higer as my PT/INR tests kept coming back).

I had most of the symptoms described here. The three worst being fatigue, memory loss and hair loss.

I remember constantly being tired on this medication. I had to go back to work after a few months and I remember not being able to lift much of anything and being extremely tired.

When I would take showers I remember running my hands through my fingers and literally pulling out clumps of hair. Each and every time. I thought I was going nuts.

The worst was the memory loss. I had severe short term memory loss like you wouldn't believe. I would be fine one minute and then space out and I literally could not remember what I had done the day before.

My father has been taking Warfarin for 13 years now 2.5mg a day. He's been complaining of headaches, heavy feeling in his head, dizzy spells, extreme fatigue,swelling of his legs, spontaneous numbness of his fingers, blurred vision, cold hands and feet, loss of balance and memory loss. I have spoken to his Doctors and no one believes him that the Warfarin is doing this to him. By the way, he was diagnosed with AF 13 years ago.

Does any one experience the same symptoms? what can he do? he is 77 years old.

To everyone who has posted here I would like to let you know that most of the symptoms you are complaining of are listed on the United States of America Food and Drug Administration web site (google search fda) as side effects of Warfarin. Also is listed the drugs that will interact badly with Warfarin like steroids with my doctor put me on. It is a hard site to navigate my wife and I spent 4 hours finding all the information I needed to print and can now stuff it in my "it cant be the Warfarin" doctors face and ask him why he has not done his homework on this very dangerous medication. Please remember that your doctor is YOUR employee. I hope this helps all of you as I feel your pain having shared many of your side effects myself.

Jimmy

I've been on Warfarin since Feb/04. I had 2 blood clots form in my leg and traveled in my lung and was dignosed with APS. At first I was on 12mg a day for about a year, now I am regulated at 10mg a day. For the last 2 months my INR count has been high (blood too thin) and was on 5 mg for 2 days in July/07 and then back to 10mg. This month Aug/07 my dr took me off my meds for 2 days, then back on reg 10mg. I will go back and check my INR in a few weeks.
I haven't experienced hair loss, but I have experienced migraines, weight gain (a lot!), blurred vision, black out with vision, and slight memory loss. And I am only 40 yrs old. Just wondering if you or anyone else has experienced any of these side effects.

Hot hands joint pain

My second run in with a blood clot resulted in passing out on my way to pick up my 8 yr old daughter and being rushed to the ER because of a PE (near death), I'm thankful to be alive however (no reason for PE and being on coumadin for the rest of my life) I feel so tired now, I don't want to go to work, I can't concentrate, I suffer from dizzy spells, I'm always hungry (weight gain), nausea sometimes. before passing out I was working out, doing Taebo, the balance ball thing, walking. Now I feel like I'm and old woman. I'm 32 yrs old and taking #5 coumadin and I feel so bad the majority of the time and yes the doctors say "it's shouldn't be the coumadin" but I think it is my whole world has changed and I'm just trying to get back to being the fun, outgoing, active me. I miss myself so much, its like I'm depressed. I MISS MYSELF.

I have been on warfarin for about two weeks as blood clots were found in my lung. I would like to hear from others who have developed rash ( non itching) on arms and now legs. My doctor does not seem to think it is linked to the medication, but really there is no other explaination.

My 79 YO father began taking Warfarin following a TIA 2 years ago. It has caused him some fatigue but lately he has been experiencing quite bad swelling of the feet and ankles and also a lot of joint pain not present before the medication. Are there any alternatives to this medication?

itoo`am experiencing fatique,shortness of breath,headaches,red facial blotches,foggy memory difficulty putting my thoughts together to articulate,bruising easily,dry skin ,dehydration with diarhea,cough and chest pain and (pressure) . I have mentioned these symptoms to my doctors who insist they aren't side effects of warafin , however prior to taking this prescriped medication , these symptoms were'nt experienced ............also most are listed as side effects on web site......dp.

Has anyone ever experienced upper back pain with warfarin?
This is what bothers me. No headaches for me. Discolor in the feet and lower legs. I have been on this drug for over 2 years. Doctors say the back pain is not related, but I did not have this before I took this medication.
Am also on blood pressure medications. Coreg, avapro and take 2 different fluid pills.

Extreme lethargy, exhaustion, difficulty concentrating, occasional dizziness, anguish, headaches after taking Warfarin for 4 months, average dose 7.5 to 8.0mg daily.

Doctor and nurse said problems might be due to Tramadol I was taking at same time (for arthritic pain), but when I stopped the Tramadol for two weeks, there was no change. Doctor and nurse said NOT a side effect of Warfarin, but when I stopped taking Warfarin for a week, the symtoms went away and my family saw right away that I was "back to normal".

I am very upset that these very distressing side effects of Warfarin are not stated on packaging or by medical profession. I know of two other cases similar to mine in the UK.