My Propranolol Nightmare

Hello all,

This is going to sound crazy but please consider all the information.

I was prescribed Propranolol in 2007. My dosage was 40mg three times daily and it was prescribed for panic attacks.

Anyway, shortly after taking the medication, I noticed my heart was beating slow so I attended A&E where they confirmed ‘sinus bradycardia’ was a reaction to the medicine.

Anyway, since discontinuing Propranolol, I still experience symptoms I can only describe as feeling ‘beta-blocked’ still and my endless search for answers is still going on.

I’ve had tons of ECG’s, which still show sinus bradycardia at rates of as low as 38bpm (this could be nocturnal though) and as low as 48bpm when waking / resting. Now I have been to A&E numerous times, been to my GP (who have been helpful). I’ve seen a cardiologist and they all say the Propranolol is out of my system but from doing my own research, the only way I can still be ‘beta-blocked’ is if I overdosed!!!

I really don’t understand what is going on tbh but I’ve researched medical cases of toxicity and my ECG’s surprisingly match up to a rare case from 1988. But still! Nobody will treat me I guess because of the length of time!

My symptoms are feeling light-headed permanently, weakness, feeling strange (like there’s no adrenaline), dizziness, sometimes confusion. As I said, my ECG’s show ‘sinus bradycardia’ with incomplete bundle branch block. They think it’s because I’m young, fit and healthy but I know my problems were drug-induced but I’m at the point where I don’t know who to turn to!

I currently have a loop recorder implanted in my body to monitor my heart rate 24/7 but at present I’m still not convinced it will yield a diagnosis. Because the clinical picture is overshadowed by the fact I’m not on the medication anymore and you expect it to be out of the system. But what damage has the drug left behind?

I’ve been reading through the stories about Propranolol on here and I can honestly say, it still feels as though I’m on the medication with the lethargy and tiredness I experience along with my other symptoms on a daily basis!

As I’ve said, I’ve tried letters to doctors, different A&E departments, doing my own research etc but nothing. I have a feeling I may be stuck ‘beta-blocked’ until something bad happens! Which it did in November 2020 when I started having non-epileptic seizures!

Can anyone help? Suggest something… I don’t know. It’s driving me crazy a bit!

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