Medication side affects after NSTEMI

[mynamesnotnigel]

Hi,

Male, 47, I appear to be suffering a few side affects of medication following a minor heart attack (if there is such a thing) that was treated with a small stent, 9 months ago. (Atorvastatin, Lansoprazole, Ramipril, Clopidogrel, Bisoprolol, Asprin)

These include regularly waking up during the night after extremely vivid and busy dreams, these are often quite fun and rarely scary, but getting back to sleep can be tricky.

Pins and needles in my lower arms and hands, almost exclusively at night. I sleep on my side and alternate during the night, it`s more often than not on the arm I am not laid on! I recover quickly after a bit of a stretch and a shake. Sometimes just a tingle, sometimes feels completely dead, but it`s every night without fail and getting worse.

Other side affects such as extreme fatigue, dizziness and nausea during the day have subsided a lot and I rarely feel any of these now.

My GP and a visit to A+E (referred by 111 after first few nights of pins) have ruled out anything immediately life threating and a electric shock nerve test thingy at Neurology dept. has ruled out obvious nerve damage or carpal tunnel. I dont have another Neurology test booked for another 12 months and getting anything more out of my GP is tricky to say the least. I`ve been left to deduce that if not obviously life threating, than I`ll just have to put up with it. They have hinted there are alternatives, but nothing has been offered.

Apart from the lack of sleep bringing me down and the worry of it all happening again suddenly, I feel better than I have done in many years. I quit smoking, improved my diet somewhat and changed jobs from something rather sedate to cycling 3 miles each way and gardening all day. Certainly fit enough for the DVLA cardiologist examination.

*I wonder if it`s really necessary to be on so many meds if they are having such a negative effect.

I had my attack and was treated while on holiday in Wales I`m still waiting to see an actual NHS cardiologist in England. I was seeing a nurse/ pharmacist at my GP surgery regularly while they were titrating up the Ramipril, but that`s all stopped now I'm on the full dose, all done through appointments that are a 4-5 week wait where they`ll only talk about one thing and demand you make a separate appointment for something else even though I had assumed it was related.. Trust is waning somewhat due to once receiving a call demanding I double my dose of Bisoprolol after misinterpreting my notes from cardio rehab team (I only just managed to spot there mistake), being told to pick and choose from a list of anti depressants whichever I may fancy after reaching out about my anxiety! (I declined and opted for CBT elsewhere, which was also a bit meh) and recently being told they are going to increase my statins despite not having a blood test in over 5 months. Even during the angioplasty, the canular popped out unnoticed by anyone, so all the meds they were giving to keep me sedated were ending up on the floor, I dont know how it usually goes, but for me that was one of the most traumatic experiences of my life. I know the system is on it`s knees, but I just feel a tad let down, abandoned is too strong a word, I dont know. I know there`s all the info I need out there in leaflets and reading materials, but it`s just too much for me to digest and absorb.

There`s far too many little worry bugs about odd feelings, any little tingling or random pain, any time I feel slightly light headed or lethargic makes me wonder is it happening again. But, what will be, will be. I`m doing my best for me and my family and I guess that`s all that matters. If I just have to put up with these side effects then so be it, I`ll ride it out. I`m struggling with the usual stresses of life, (bills, a perhaps not 100% sympathetic life partner) as well as having a young autistic Son and the daily challenges that brings, so this on top is almost (but not quite) too much sometimes.

So... I guess the question is, am I expecting too much? Should I be pushing for a closer eye on this or is this just par for the course?

[TasteLessFood4Life]

Try not to worry buddy - I dont think you are being demanding or unreasonable and I am sure many on here will share similar concerns and frustrations.

Bottom line - there is a lot to take in a very short space of time - health and lifestyle changes, external pressures, realtionship/family challenges,.- it can all add up.

I would say that the anxiety levels do get better with time, but still good to switch off from time to time. No one wants to be thinking about heart issues 24/7 365 days.

In a perfect world - you would expect the NHS to provide a superior service at all times. Sadly, with the constraints that it operates under - they have to pick and choose and prioritise the most in need at the expense of people like you and me. There are also many antiquated methods within the NHS, reluctant to move on with modern times - I wonder who is keeping these in place.

Anyway wish you good health and hope you will get the attention and care you need.

[mits123]

HiSide effects of any medication can be par for the course but that doesn't mean we have to suffer them.

You are on the standard cocktail of meds for what happened to you but they can be changed or tweaked.

I had exactly the same as you, NSTEMI and 1 stent and from what I have been told the clopidogrel will be stopped after 12 months, the rest are for life.atorvastatin is most likely the cause of your weird dreams, I could fill a book from the one's I have had but it would probably get me sectioned, as you say not scary but definitely weird and sometimes feels like your brain never switches off, this drug is also well know for giving us aches,pains and cramps.

Bisoprasol can cause tiredness and dizziness and ramipril is well know for it's cough inducing side effect

You should have a blood test, preferably every 3 to 6 months to see how your cholesterol is doing and regular blood pressure checks, these can be done at home and sent into your surgery.

Also a discussion with your GP or surgery pharmacist on alternative medication, to which there are a few, to help relieve any side effects should be had and a chase up of the cardiology referral.

If your surgery is unwilling to do this then perhaps it is time to change GP's, this is easily done and your medical notes will go with you.

I agree with you about CBT, it is not for everyone and you have to have the right mind set to be able to benefit from it. Antidepressants are usually personal choice of the GP, taking in to account the patients needs. I found sertraline to be most helpful but everyone is different

I think once you are on the medication and/or dose that suits you the other stressful parts of your life, coupled with all the brilliant hard work you have already done, will not seem as hard to overcome.

I wish you well with your recovery

[GFFF]

Hi, after my STEMI, like you, I was put on a cocktail of meds & told I would be on them for life. I started to get terrible postural hypertension and after recording my BP for a week, had my beta blockers reduced, then a few months later had one removed completely. Try to keep a diary of symptoms and check & record your BP daily. When you do eventually see a cardio, they will be grateful you are armed with facts & it will help them with a medication review x

[Pinksock2]

I don’t have an answer for your medical worries, I am sorry, but when I got home from my procedure my sleep was not good - one of the side effects of my heart attack is breathlessness, so I wanted to eliminate any feathers or other allergens in my bedding, and I had to come off HRT so waking regularly with night sweats, so I decided to overhaul my bed, to make the little bit of sleep I do get as easy as possible.

I ordered all of the things I got from Amazon, to make it as easy on me (and as cheap) as possible. I got new pillows (just slumberland) and a silk filled duvet, but relevant perhaps to you, I also got the thickest mattress topper I could find. I know you didn’t need it before, but maybe your circulation isn’t what it was before, and anything you can do to get the blood going to your arms etc might help? It has helped me a bit, and also now if I get breathless I know it’s not an allergen, it’s my heart, and it’s good not to have to guess.

Re your anxiety, if you don’t want yet another medicine have you been offered talking therapy? Details about this are on the nhs web site, if you think it might help. Studies have shown that talking helps some people more than medicine (although I am more of a take-all-the-pills kind of person)

Have you been offered the excercise re-hab? 6-8 weeks of working out in a hospital gym? I am on that currently and it is helping me worry less about it happening again. Might be worth asking for if you haven’t.

Good luck with it all

[DWizza]

Hi , I had Nstemi & quadruple bypass last July, similar cocktail of meds . Just posted some of my experience of the meds /side effects and the “zombie” feeling that started to wipe me out regularly on Blossom588 recent post if you take a look 👍🏻. Mits123 has pretty much nailed it too .

I really had to keep on top of my situation , I felt dreadful during the episodes , I felt like I was shutting down, didn’t want to move yet I was supposed to be walking , rehabbing . I’d made such progress and then seemed to be getting worse . It took quite a while to get somewhere, trying to get appointments, frustrated by the GP surgery online triage system that was really frustrating. Eventually got my my statin changed after a trial stoppage of a month and felt awesome 🤦🏼🤣. Now on my 3rd statin with a view to titrating dose up to (if needed , got blood tests booked for June) to a level I can tolerate.

[Callie456]

Hi, I had a HA just over 12 months ago and have been on similar meds cocktail ever since. When I had my HA I had pins and needles down both arms. Following the HA I found I was getting random pins and needles in my arms and hands, often at night like you. I'd wake up feeling them even though I wasn't lying on my arm funny. Sometimes I even wake with a completely numb arm. At first I thought I was having another HA, went to hospital, had everything checked, heart was ok, brain MRI was ok, nerve conduction study I had a few months later was ok.

The pins and needles happen frequently in the first few months, then it seemed to decrease a bit, then got more frequent, then decreased again. It's never gone away, but I am used to it now. They never could find a cause. So it's either the meds or some weird effect of the HA itself, which is what I think. A HA can affect nerves and things, so that seems like what must've happened. My physio thinks this is probably the cause and she said we'll monitor it, but as long as it doesn't get worse she's not worried. It might be temporary as nerves can heal, so I'm just getting used to it now and not stressing about it. We've ruled out anything bad, so I guess it's just one of those things!

These days it happens at night when I'm asleep/on waking, if I have my elbows bent or am holding my phone for awhile. The strength and sensitivity of my hands is also a bit reduced and I don't feel heat sensation quite as well.

It's good to hear someone else has a similar experience as it is an unexpected HA effect if that's what it is.

If yours gets worse though, or you get other symptoms with it, definitely see your GP.

Beta blockers are well known for vivid dreams, so probably that's the bisoprolol.

Best wishes xx

[mynamesnotnigel]

Thank you all for the kind responses, means a lot to know I`m far from alone!

I think I just needed to spend a bit of time venting on the keyboard last night, I find it challenging to put in words how I feel at the best of times, so taking time to write it down, even if nobody replied, has helped me process my feelings somewhat. So the actual advice from you all who are or have been in a similar situation has been invaluable.

I did 4 short sessions of cardio rehab that gave me a good start, keeping up with my fitness with my work now, but unsure when to gauge when I`m pushing too hard.

I have been keeping an eye on my BP at home, always within the "normal/ low" range, if not on the extremely low side not long after waking. Keeping a diary of these readings and symptoms is a great tip though. I`ll make a start on that immediately.

Overall things are on the up! With a couple of tweaks, I may just be able to put most of this behind me for good!