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I know its was amlodipine!

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Nigel
Nigel

I am a healthy 58 yr old and normally very active. BP was rising over the last year or so to 178/98 and so this Jan my Doc put me on Amlodipine 5mg. Thats when it started. Firstly with a loss of energy, then total loss of stamina, I felt like a Zombie all the time. As the month progressed I started to get forgetful, dizzy spells, very tingly left hand and painful joints all througfh my left side. BP did not drop as fast as hoped so Doc added Lisinopril 2.5mg. Hey... off with the faries now! After two weeks I could not concentrate on anything people were telling me and to the point that I was becoming detached from the real world. And that was only after a couple of weeks on the cocktail. I decided to trial which drug was causing this and first removed the Lisinopril for a few days then swapped over to stopping Amlodipine. Cor.. what a difference. Almost the next day after stopping Amlodipine I started to recover. After just one week people at work are now saying 'welcome back' and I know what they mean. BP not down yet but I am never going near Amlodipine again, its a wrecker!

Has anyone else had anything like my reaction?

42 likes, 815 replies

815 Replies

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  • theresa58668
    theresa58668 Nigel

    Posted

    Hi! I have been on Amlodipine for 7 days now and I feel like crap! A couple weeks ago my blood pressure spiked to 222/120 and went to the doctor and they put me on Lisinopril 20 mg. After 3 days my blood pressure was still pretty high so my doctor told me to double the Lisinopril to 40 mg a day. That still didn't work so she added the Amlodipine, which as I said, I have been for 7 days. It has definitely worked to lower my blood pressure, it is close to normal now. The reason I found out my BP was so high was that I was going in for an injection in my knee because it hurts all the time and I can hardly walk on it sometimes. Then because of the knee problems I got heel spur pain in the same foot, so I've been dealing with that. They said they could do my injection as soon as my BP goes down, so I am going to make an appointment to get that done, but in the meantime now I have absolutely no energy and I can hardly walk down the hall at work without having to stop and sit down. My legs feel like jelly and I haven't been able to sleep at night. I don't have any trouble going to sleep, but I wake up almost immediately and stay awake on and off all night. My legs ache really bad. I don't even have the energy to clean my house or cook supper. I feel useless and I have never felt like this before in my life. I called my pharmacist and told her my symptoms and she said to give it another week, that the symptoms usually get better. Well mine seem to be getting worse. What do I do?
    • sharon34402
      sharon34402 theresa58668

      Posted

      HI theresa58668,

      It ceases to amaze me that doctors and pharmacists alike do not understand that people react differently to drugs and some people will notice side effects much sooner than other people because of that sensitivity.

      if you started feeling that bad after they added the amlodipine, then I would guess that that is probably the culprit. I would definitely call your doctor's office and complain to them about the symptoms you are experiencing. Those are definitely side effects that are listed 4m load of pain. Not everyone gets those side effects! I know when I started complaining about my medication my kidney doctor told me that it couldn't possibly be the drugs. After I stopped taking the to drugs that were causing my symptoms, they totally disappeared. If that isn't a side effect, then what is it? I know it's not my imagination. I got so depressed because of the way I was feeling from the drugs. I was waiting for the doctor to offer me an antidepressant because of it and the answer would have been no, I know what's causing the problem. Nobody wants to feel sick all the time. I was so nauseated that my appetite decreased by 75% and I lost 10 pounds in less than a week. I can afford to lose weight, but not at the cost of ruining my health from taking drugs.

      Good luck and let me know how it goes.

      Sharon

    • theresa58668
      theresa58668 sharon34402

      Posted

      Thanks for your input Sharon. I just don't know whether to wait another week like my pharmacist suggested or call my doctor now. Maybe the symptoms will disappear in another week? I seriously doubt it since they seem to be getting a little worse every day. I am not a lazy person at all. I'm not one to just sit in front of the TV at night and watch TV. I am usually up doing something around the house. My husband's bosses son was killed in a car wreck last night and I told my husband I really want to make a cake and send it with him to work tomorrow to give to the family, as I am famous for a really good apple cake, but when I think about havig to go the grocery store and walk to get the ingredients I need, and then going home and standing up in the kitchen to make it, I just can't seem to make myself do it. That is not me at all! I just hate that I feel this way. I also have noticed my pulse being higher when I am taking this medication for some reason. Don't know if that is another side effect or not.

       

  • maz17565
    maz17565 Nigel

    Posted

    Have been taking blood pressure tablets for last 10 years. Shortly after starting taking blood pressure tablets I developed type 2 diabetes.  Could not control sugar levels.  Terrible aching and tiredness.  I missed taking tablets by accident a few times and found sugar levels came down and other symptoms went. Told my doctor who panicked and said I musnt stop taking the pills so I went back on them. Sugars went back up.  I have now stopped taking Amlodipine several times and on every occasion symptoms have gone and sugars have gone down.  I have now stopped taking Amlopidine for 4 weeks by sugars are around 8-10 instead of 18-20. I dont ache and can now sleep through the night which I havent done for years. I feel so much better BUT the doctors have scared me into thinking I am putting myself at risk.  I have also managed to reduce my insulin. Im hoping I can reduce my weight now and I hope my blood pressure is not sky high.  If I go back and tell my doctor what I have done I know he will tell me to go back on the tablets. Has anyone else done this and found a big difference.
  • ihateamlodipine
    ihateamlodipine Nigel

    Posted

    Oh my gosh, I am sssoooo glad to have found this website, otherwise I would probably still be taking these nasty things! I was taking 2.5 mg a day for awhile just because I start off any medication this way just in case (I get very nervous taking new meds!) So I soon discovered there were no side effects and bumped it up to the 5mg I was originally prescribed. I had read that some people take half in the morning and half at night so that's what I started doing. Everything was perfect (when I say perfect I mean NO side effects that I noticed, no real difference in my bp really either, maybe tiny but not much at all) for about 2 weeks maybe? One Sunday I woke up with my heart racing and beating OUT of my chest. I do have pretty bad anxiety which is of course exacerbated by any sensation that seems to be abnormal (heart wise), but this was different, I have a pulse ox and I put it on, not really wanting too because I knew it would only make my heart race even more
    • ihateamlodipine
      ihateamlodipine

      Posted

      Oops sorry! Anyway, my heart was racing and it was going 160-170, I seriously though Iwas having a heart attack! I was getting ready to go to the hospital and after about 20 minutes it calmed down, this happened almost EVERY single night/morning for about 10-12 days..I was seriously in tears and gave my doc a call and she couldn't see me for a month! All the nurse would say was to go to ER if I felt like I needed to. Whatever! I was so scared, I didnt know what to do. After googling amlodipine and heart racing iIfound this site!!! I just didn't understand if it was the med why didn't it do it before then, so i just did NOT think it was the med. After reading all of the posts i was convinced though and didn't take it that morning or that night and my heart has thankfully not done that again. I have always had 'spells' of a tachy episode (with anxiety or panic attack), but not THAT hard or that fast, and i could always get it calmed down really quick but not with this med! I will NEVER take this med again! Thanks to everyone for sharing your stories and helping me and others to realize the truth about this med. It may be okay for some and not have any/many side effects but for me IKNOW this was my problem! Blessings and great health to all!
  • Merlin
    Merlin Nigel

    Posted

    It's sometime ago when I first posted as to my reaction on taking this drug. Since then I have used many different methods to balance the Blood presume to what was I am told "Normal".. I have now come to the conclusion that each and everyone has their own "normal" presuure and what's called "normal" by Doctors does not alway work as normal for everyone. I was told a range of 140/80----120/80 was normal. However through Diet-Exercise and a healther life syte, I am at 76yrs  145/85, and that to me is normal but can go to 160/95, and still be OK with me. Best to check yourself and remember Panic-stress-and keep thinking about high B/P can make things worse.
    • rozanne321
      rozanne321 Merlin

      Posted

      Hi Merlin and everyone else.

      I agree what you said about the 'normal' range. And I am also glad that you have used different methods to balance your bp. Sometime ago, I posted that my doc wanted me to be on this medication. Well, at the end of  February, I took my 2.5 mg of and the following morning, my first stool was a grey color, hard and bulky. I stopped taking my med from that moment on. I have since been keeping a food diary, measuring my foods and everything else but take the meds. I started doing this at the start of the year.I went to my doc in February and my bp was 186/90. I went to my doc on 4/16 and my bp was 148/90 and I had lost 4 pounds in 2 months! Now that the weather is getting better, I plan to stat taking some walks. She still wants me to get the upper number a little bit lower, but congratulated me on the 28 point drop.! I try to keep my intake of sodium to under 1,000. mg. And I don't use the salt substitutes either. I just turned 54 and I feel just fine not taking the meds and doing things other than how the doc prescribed. I am not telling anyone to stop taking their medications!!! NO WAY am I doing that!!! For me, doing what I have been doing is helping me get the results that I got this past week at the doc's office.

      Everyone is different and your body responds in different ways. Have a nice day everyone!

    • Merlin
      Merlin rozanne321

      Posted

      Hi, Rozanne "Everyone is different and your body responds in different ways. Have a nice day everyone!" totaly agree, and that's the secret. Most Doctors assume that when people come to see them we all fall into a sort range. Well as I postsed I didn't and so spent time working out why I had what was called High Blood pressure, and it did range to 200/101 sometimes.

      But I was over weight and concerned as to what was a high reading. But while entering Hospital for a minor OP, they read my B/P and it was way over the limit as to what they would allow. So they gave me a couple of what I describe as "Horse tablets" and after a 20min rest it was down to the level they would allow the OP to go ahead. That told me I controled my B/P or could. Since that time I have used Herbs and other methods but my real result was to lose weight and take up a punishing Gym work out twice a week. It worked and now when visiting the Doctor "rare" they don't even bother because they know I take it seriously enough to keep it within what has become my limits. Likewise I aslo say don't give up medication but do check your life style.

  • maz17565
    maz17565 Nigel

    Posted

    Posted 7 days ago because I stopped Amlopodine and sugar levels went down.  Since then I have not been back to my dr but I have stopped one of my insulin injections completely. Still been taking my sugar levels daily and guess what they are stable for the first time in 10 years at 7. I sleep at night. Side affects have gone. Still feel tired sometimes but Im 66 still working and looking after 3 teenage grandsons full time. We all get tired but not like when taking Amlopodine. This may be due to a lower sugar count BUT it only happened when I stopped the blood pressure tablets.  Going to my local LLoyds pharmacy tomorrow to see what my blood pressure is. Avoiding my doctor and diabetic nurse at the moment because they tell me this is not possible it must be something else Im doing.
  • Merlin
    Merlin Nigel

    Posted

    I check blood /Sugar levels (at home) and range within 5.7/6.6 most of the time. One thing I have resently learned that is the body is a Chemical factory, and there are times we "go out of Sync". I check Blood pressure at least twice a week and still range about 150/85 depending on mental state, and that is the important factor.

    But as one gets older we sometimes need a boost. So I am starting a Vitamn B complex just to see if it helps. As I posted at 76yrs old you need to "think Body" and check.

  • gill72653
    gill72653 Nigel

    Posted

    After a month on amlodipine i developed visual problems, colours distorted, 'halo effects', I saw the reflection of sun on holly leaves as molten silver and took photos, when i looked at the photographs later there was nothing there, just holly! 

    I went to see the optician who ran all sorts of tests. He said if i had tingling in my hands or headaches he would think i was describing the symptoms of neurological illness, perhaps a tumour! When i got home i read the amlodipine small print and there it was , vision problems as a possible effect of taking the meds.

    Another issue was constriction in the throat, after two nights unable to sleep as i felt i was choking I saw the GP yesterday. He said i should have gone immediately there was a problem and that i was to stop taking amlodipine.He has prescribed felodipine . I have to wait 3 days before starting it. Anyone have experience of that?

    • sharon34402
      sharon34402 gill72653

      Posted

      Hi gill72653,

      I never heard of the visual side effects; however, the side effects you describe with your throat sounds like angioedema and is life-threatening. If you ever experience those types of symptoms again immediately get emergency medical attention

      I reiterate what I have been saying from the beginning and that side effects vary from person-to-person. They list some side effects as less likely, but anyone can have the potential side effect.

      Hope this helps. Good luck with new prescription.

      Sharon

    • gill72653
      gill72653

      Posted

      thanks for replying to my post. after only a couple of days without AM my head is clearer, concentration better, throat isnt constricted, eyesight still a bit below parr.  My blood pressure  came down to below 130 yesterday. I am going to test it again in a couple of days and if its still in that range and i feel ok i probably wont start the felodipine. I am taking hawthorne and also grape seed extract and listening to Bach!
  • maz17565
    maz17565 Nigel

    Posted

    Had blood pressure taken yesterday 1st reading 178/84 2nd 166/88 amd 3rd 147.88. Going back next week.  Rowlands Pharmacy gave advice without nagging.
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