Beta blocker/Bisoprolol withdrawal and breathlessness

Hey Peter, have your symptoms gotten even slightly better?

I'm so tired of these freaking chemicals!  Everything they give me produces crappy side effects and then it's a b***h to get off them.

Freaking Pharm companies need to be oblietrated!

 

Peter, breathing issues were my main problem on Bisoprolol and Nebivolol (both Beta blockers).

I had a feeling that my lungs are not working properly.

A normal person takes around 12-20 breaths per minute (while resting).

I had a feeling that I am taking 5-6 breaths per minute. And that it takes way too long between two breaths.

As if lungs were dead, or drugged, or sleeping.

Often I would tell to myself: come on, breathe! What is happening? Why aren't my lungs breathing?

And I had a feeling that a brain is not sending signals to lungs to breathe. But then, since Beta blockers affect our central nervous system which controls the heart rate and breathing rate (autonomic nervous system), you will get a clue what is happening. Drugs were meant to only affect and slow down a heart rate. But I guess that lowered breathing rate is a side effect in some people, as you can see.

I was taking Beta blockers for 2 years. I am now 7 months off from drugs, but even now on some days, I still have those breathing problems (but they are milder than back then).

So if it helps, it seems that our breathing mechanisms are slightly damaged and there is a chance that it will stay that way forever or that it will take a few years to get back to normal.

My GP has also sent me to lots of tests regarding lungs.

But lungs were fine.

I knew that it was from BBs, since I never had that problem before these drugs.

 

Sorry to sound dramatic but no, they are getting worst by the week, I was told to go to A &E by my employers on Thursday, the trip to my place of work to see Occupational Health was enough to make me so exhausted, they thought I was going to collapse. My lungs permentantly have a feeling of my breath being snatched away, a constant hollow feeling. I feel so ill all the time now, like when you are really drunk but not enough to be sick and you cannot wait until the next day comes so it is over, but it never is now. The doctor as usual wouldnt hear of it that the Beta Blockers I have been off now for months could be to blame, so she asked if I had ever been exposed to aspestos, and that it is pure co-incidence that my lungs felt this way as soon as I started taking BB. I wonder if the NHS are so afraid of being sued, that they do anything but admit they did something that damaged you. Bare in mind that BBs are supposed to be weaned off, I was told to stop taking them cold turkey, on three occasions in the space of just a couple of weeks.

As an example of the state I am in, got up this morning, had some cereal, than sat for half an hour or so in the sun watching my baby Goldfish in their bucket, I was feeling so ill that I checked what my heart was doing on my hand held ECG, whilst not the reading I took this morning, click on the picture below to see what my ECG reading looked like, my heart beat was 111 just sitting there. I really think I am deteriating quite quickly now.

Thanks Bob, Sometimes its like you said, I forget to breathe and have to make a consiece effort, but then maybe I get it wrong and take far too many breaths, when I talk to people now I have to keep stopping to take a few breaths. See the above comment I posted to Islybot for more details. I do tell the doctors about you guys having the same problems, but they just ignore it, they dont want to know.  Even my family are keener to belive the doctors rather than me. If it is ok I will post your comment on my facebook feed so they can see I am not just making things up if that is ok please? 

I get other maybe more serious side effects from the BBs though. When I first took them I said they made me feel like a dunk zombie, well that feeling is getting worst and worst, my brain is becoming more and more numb.

Hi, Peter.

Since you won't post my real name, I see no problem.

Post it and I hope that it will help you (English is not my native language, so sorry if there are some mistakes in my post which you will post on Facebook).

About how you need to stop and take breaths while talking to people, I felt the same way when I have quit Bisoprolol the first time.

And in the 2nd attempt of weaning off (one year later), I still had those problems again.

In my opinion, that is a some sort of a withdrawal. We get breathless on any activity and during early weeks/months, sometimes even talking to people is a problem and you get breathless.

I am now 7 months off drugs, but I still get those breathing problems and I am breathless while talking sometimes.

So, you see, I have a lot of the same side effects as you.

Either is is just a coincidence, or we suffer from the same mysterious disease, or we both suffered from beta blockers side effects and leter from a withdrawal.

One more time, I never had breathing problems before taking Beta blockers.

If you had quit Beta blockers, my personal opinion is:

1. that your lungs aren't breathing because you are still feeling the effects of Beta blockers to your central nervous system (I have those even after 7 Months)

2. plus, you are suffering from a classic strong wothdrawal after quitting drugs cold turkey and this is why you have very high HR for Months and why you can't do too much activity. And this is why you are breathless.

Again, I have both of these, 7 Months off drugs and I weaned off for 6-8 Months.

Do you know whether you can have similar symptoms when you quit ACE inhibitors ( lisinopril) cold-turkey? Like bp fluctuations, shortness of breath, tightness in muscles, nerve tics here and there or overall "edgy" feeling that your whole nervsous systmes is tense and wears you out?

 

Hi Bob

You can read my short heart history on my profile, I have had heart issues since I was born. Have been on Bisoprolol 2,5mg for more than 10 years (so maybe I'm used to them by this time).

I also experienced some breathing issues in the begining, but I had big panic attacks then, and the doctor said it was, due to,  the panic attacks.

I do not have any breathing issues now, and/but I am not so aware of my breathing anymore and much more relaxed about my heart.

Just a strange experiance I have now and then: When I am very tired (and relaxed) I sometimes get the sensation that "I forget to breathe" and then I get this thump or schock of breath! (maybe it's just that thing you get before you fall asleep? 

 

Hi Peter

Did your doctor (the one that gave you the BB) ever say that breathing complications could be expected ?

Do you tink there's any research about this issue?

Janco

No, none of them did. The first BB was Bisoprolol, but even though I halved my dosage to 1.25 by cutting the tablets in half, I was sent to hospital when I nearly collapsed and my heart beat went down to 42 after oxygen was given. I was told to stop the Bisoprolol five days before an EP study, nothing about weaning off them. Of course I ended up in hospital with Ventricular Tachycardia so they gave me a huge amount of Bisoprolol with only three days left before my EP study, I was then told to go cold turky again and the EP study didnt work because I had Bisoprolol still in my system. They then claimed the Bisoprolol had given me anapalctic shock and put me on Sotalol instead. I googled this and found it to be a rather dangerous drug that should be administered and observed over three days in hospital, the NHS just sent me home with a prescription without even trying me on it. I didnt take it for a few days as I was so worried but got a call from the hospital as they are remotely monitering my heart, they told me I had to take it as my VTs were dangerous, so I did and promptly got a cough that I still have four months later. My Gp told me to stop taking the Sotalol, cold turkey again. Now I have a permanent cough and dyspnea but the doctors refuse to acknowledge that it has anything to do with BBs, they say they are out of my system now. Even when I say I got the breathing difficultiues only when I started taking BBs, they say it is just a co-incidence, now they want to test me for aspestosis! I wonder of the NHS are so worried about being sued that they run a mile at any suggestion their drugs might be damaging! 

Denys, hi

I have experiences only with Beta Blockers. I don't know too much about ACE inhibitors.

I tried to google it, but there aren't too many infos about a withdrawal from Ace inhibitors.

 

What did you do to combat the adrenaline spikes? Did you have red cheeks? Fatigue? What did you do?

Sorry for a late reply.

Well, it lasted for a few Months.

I was taking Magnesium, and very small daily doses of Valium (a doc gave me Valium to fight with a withdrawal).

You can try to google some natural teas and foods which can lower anxiety.

I don't have any solution except: time and Valium/or some natural supplements which relaxes your central nervous system.

Sorry for a late reply. 

I wrote a reply for this a few days ago, but probably forgot to post it.

I had similar problems as you.

I never had breathing problems before Beta blockers.

Then I had problems while I was for 2 years on Beta Blockers.

GP has sent me lots of tests, I was fine.

When I stopped taking BBs, my breathing started to work normally again.

Beta blockers are influencing our central nervous system which controls heart rate, blood pressure and breathing.

These drugs are designed to only slow down our heart rate and lower a blood pressure, but as you see, in some of us they are affecting our systems in a brain which control breathing (autonomic nervous system).

That is all I can tell.

In my case, this was 100% surely caused ONLY because of BBs.

Because I was fine both before and after drugs.

Docs can reply me: it wasn't because of drugs. I know how I felt and I will listen to my body.

I am having this problem. you don't know how much relief it is to know that other are having this "my body forgets to breath" phase. Hope it gets better for all. I stopped 2 weeks ago. Has been using Biso for 3 weeks only.

AM IN HELL NOW...