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Lisinopril Causing Significant Problems (or Seems to be

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PBF2.0
PBF2.0

I have had problems with stress induced high blood pressure for years. In general, my blood pressure stays about 130/80 give or take 10 points. Only when I am anxious or in the doctor's office does it go up. Even then, it doesn't stay up. She will check me at the beginning of an appointment and it will be high (160/110, 170/115) and then by the end it will be back down to normal as I am about to walk out the door.

This past week I got another white coat reading so she upped my blood pressure medication. I am currently on Diltiazem 120mg once a day prescribed for ectopic heartbeats that cause me anxiety even though they have been verified by three different cardiologists as being benign.

She did briefly put me on Lisinopril, 5mg once a day a few years ago along with the DIltiazem, but it started making me feel run down and I stopped. This past week, the number in her office was high and I got a high reading at home. So my anxiety kicked in and I went in gung ho with the desire to lower my blood pressure.

I took 5mg of Lisinopril twice a day for a week along with my Diltiazem (all the while my average blood pressure was still in the 130/80 range.) After about a week things started to falter.

On Monday, I had a woozy spell in which I almost passed out and decided I had to ween myself off of them. I called the doctor and told her I couldn't take the dose any more. She allowed me to stop taking it, but said if my blood pressure went back up I'd need to go back on it (but she advised a lower dose.)

In the last four days, I have experienced some odd sensations. Tuesday and Wednesday were the worst in general with my days spent feeling weak and fatigued. My arms and legs had a feeling about them that I would describe as someone had spent too much time in the gym working out even though all I had done is my standard aerobic workout.

Yesterday and today were better overall, but smaller things crept in that caused me a lot of anxiety and depression. I have noticed throughout the week, if I start to get hungry I will get weak and my ectopic heartbeats will begin. They get worse until I eat something and then they tend to improve, but the anxiety remains with me.

It's actually worse mentally today and yesterday since I thought I was improving then turned around and had to deal with this feeling again.

A friend of mine reminded me that I also started reducing my sodium to under 2,000mg a day. She said it is possible I have given myself an electrolyte imbalance of some sort since I have heard Lisinopril can mess with that. There is also the idea that it could bother my blood sugar.

So altogether, at this point I don't know if I'm having spells in which my blood pressure is too low, my electrolytes are messed up, my sugar is off kilter, or if this is just a lot of anxiety that's causing a boat load of problems. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

0 likes, 2 replies

2 Replies

  • steve84269
    steve84269 PBF2.0

    Posted

    i see this was pistes a few months ago so I hope your symptoms have resolved i was put on this drug 5mg once daily, and lasted only 3 days on it

    l'll keep the explanation non medical, but I experienced a slow heartbeat (no pain) but MULTIPLE runs of extra heartbeats

    i had hours where every 3rd or 4th beat was a palpitation my GP started to go down the road of anxiety, saying I was maybe just more aware of these palpitations, but it wasn't that, it was a new side effect of this new medication Lisinopril

    2 weeks later at Cardiology I was given a 24 hr ECG in that 24 hr period, I was almost unaware of any palpitations and was hopeful that it had just resolved

    i handed back the ECG machine and awaited the results I was eventually told I had had about 4,000 palpitations that day, but that was at the high end if normal, and they looked benign Over the next couple of month these palpitations thankfully stopped, but, no real explanation

  • joshuapryce1987
    joshuapryce1987 PBF2.0

    Posted

    Address the triggers to your anxiety. Once you do this you will have more power against these "side effects"

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