Bisoprolol / Dizzy SPells and Struggle more with exercise

[Zacky19]

Hi. I am on 2.5mg of bisoprolol twice per day to slow my heart rate down. I've not gained weight but experience some dizzy spells plus struggle more with exercise but my heart specialist advIsed this will ease over the next four months.

[Hidden]

Hi,

I've now been on Bisoprolol for almost 10 years - 5 mg. I was originally prescribed to take it in the morning but found far too many side effects and my GP then changed it to be taken at night.

After which point life got better and better.

Either way, whichever/whatever, it is a drug that from my experience still needs time for your body to adapt to.

Look at it this way, if your heart RATE intuitively wants to bang away at 110, 120, 140 , 160 bpm and you have something that slows this down to around 65 ( as is my case), then whats going on inside you is one goddam almighty tug of war - of course your body is gonna react !

I would suggest that as long as you aren't dropping like a stone and are being sensible, then give it time as you've been told.

Equally, if you are taking it in morning you could enquire about taking it at night when, in theory at least, you might sleep through the side effects. Hoping of course it doesn't impact on your quality of sleep.

John

[Thomas45 in reply to Hidden]

I found the idea that 'rhe body will get used to it,' to be a myth with several prescribed drugs. When a NOAC brought excruciating pains throughout my body, I was told that my body would get used to it. It didn't. After 12 days a GP saw me and took me off it.

As for Bisoprolol it appeared to work without any side effects until Christmas Eve 2017, after taking it for 7 weeks when the intermittent but several times a day painful rashes started. Then the GPs decided to take me off of Bisoprolol. Nearly two years on I still have urticaria.

If any medication causes problems see your doctor.

[Zacky19 in reply to Thomas45]

Hi Thomas,

Thank you for your comments, will keep any eye out.

Regds Steve

[absolutepatsy]

May I say, in my experience, it didn't ease, along with other side effects, numbness in my hands and feet, unable to walk up a couple of stairs without gasping for breath, weight gain, dizzy spells, aching legs. I had to try another 1 drugs before Atenolol finally gave me back some sort of normality. Don't put up with side effects of Bisoprolol, not everybody gets on with it, give it a try and if it doesn't ease then go back to the heart specialist and have it changed. Good luck.

[Zacky19 in reply to absolutepatsy]

Many thanks for your helpful tips!

[JanettePearson]

Please get a blood pressure monitor. I am on Bisoprolol and kept going dizzy. Went to the doctors and my blood pressure was so low she was surprised I was still standing!! She immediately halved the Bisoprolol dose and the dizziness is not nearly so bad. I also find that healthy eating with lots of fruit and veg helps the AF and gentle exercise rather than all out aerobics. I love walking and aqua fit and that suits me fine. Listen to your body and rest when needed. Good luck.

[CDreamer]

Many people do not get on with Bisoprolol. I tried to ‘let the body get used to it’ and it caused so many problems that I now have a red alert on my medical file so no-one even suggests they prescribe it for me.

I think we get more posts like this about Biso than any other subject - I think that says it all!

[Zacky19 in reply to CDreamer]

Many thanks for your comments, i got your point, will stick with it for a few more weeks and re-consider changing.

[Zacky19]

Hi John,

Thanks for the advice!

[Finvola]

I struggled with Bisoprolol for four years, starting on 2.5mg and having it reduced to 1.25mg. It made me breathless, tired and, on the higher dose, useless. On the lower dose I had to pace myself and couldn't perform more than one small task at a time and I couldn't walk uphill at all.

My GP changed me to 2.5mg Nebivolol and it was like a magic potion - I have normal range of activities, less breathlessness and feel 'normal' again after 15 months of taking it. Nebivolol doesn't act on lung tissue, only cardiac whereas Bisoprolol is wide ranging on tissues.

Bisoprolol suits some of us but others struggle with it badly.

[Desanthony]

I never got on with bisoprolol. Started out on the higher dose for about 6 weeks it was halved and still couldn't take it. Seemed to start off OK and then after 3 weeks the dizziness and dreadful fatigue started . Carried on for another three weeks - maybe longer but didn't get used to them. I couldn't even get downstairs without getting breathless and dizzy. When I was on the lower dose my wife range the Doc when I was coming downstairs gasping for breath and holding on to the bannister for dear life and the Doc said don't take another one and come and see me. Can't remember which medication he changed me to then but in the end theonly thing I could take that didn't have any effect was low dose digoxin - tried the higher dose and that made me bad too. Thankfully since then I have had two successful cardioversions and once I get over my knee replacement I am looking into getting an ablation.

[CDreamer]

You can only speak for yourself, glad it worked for you but it certainly didn’t for me - ablation is NOT a cure and is at best a treatment for relieving the symptoms of AF and improving QOL.

[djmnet]

I've been on my very low dose beta blocker (metoprolol) for 9 months and experience this as well; and it's not getting any better. I'm about to wean off over the next week or so.

[djmnet]

Stop repeating your constant remarks about ablation being a cure. It is not. You've had two yourself, and I'm willing to bet you'll be having another sometime down the road. It is NOT a cure.

[CDreamer in reply to djmnet]

Here here....

[djbgatekeeper in reply to djmnet]

If you ignore him he will go away.

[Susangibbons]

My consultant advised me that an ablation wasn’t an option for me after a cardioversion didnt work.

I trust him and didn’t question why.

We were going down the pacemaker route for me as my heart was dropping so low at night, until we tried a tiny little tablet digoxin which has worked for me very well indeed.

I think everyone is different and there are so many variations on heart conditions it’s impossible to say that a particular medicine or treatment will work.

The secret is finding what does work.

[Susangibbons]

I have been on Bisoprolol 10mg and perindoprol 8mg for way over 15 years, my doses of Bisoprolol have been as high as 12.5mg and low as 7.5mg, I take it at night , it keeps my heart (along with digoxin plus a few other tablets) at around 80bpm.

Sometimes I feel very tired, mainly I have little energy but I dont have other side effects and am not sure its down to the drugs, partly down to being overweight is my guess.

But my brother had awful side effects, stopped taking it (his decision as the hospital says some beta blocker is better than no beta blocker) he lost 3 stone of excess fluids and his high blood pressure is gone due to weight loss!

You gotta try these drugs. But they dont suit everyone.

[foxglove]

Lots of interest in this post re. bisoprolol. I'm on1.25 mg taken in am. Don't have dizzy spells but I have Raynaud's which bisoprolol makes worse . I have asked dr. to change but she claims all beta blockers affect circulation. I am tempted to try taking at night but must put past dr. first I suppose. My annual bloods and health check due but maybe see what nurse thinks! Pleased that you raised point.

[Susangibbons]

It wasn’t low all the time, it was high during the day and at night was dropping low.

Digoxin has helped it and although its irregular still it doesnt reach the highs & lows it did before.

[Susangibbons]

No idea now I dont measure it.

Its around 80bpm when I have ecg or use kardia machine.

[Susangibbons in reply to Susangibbons]

I should have said, the Bisoprolol & perindopril is for my dilated cardiomyopathy and the digoxin is for my PAF

[healme]

I struggled with excessive fatigue and dizzy spells on Bisoprolol and was taken of them after 4 months but we are all individuals and react differently so check with your GP

[dani777]

I think your reply to C Dreamer was quite rude. This is supposed to be a support forum. You don't need to negate his or her own personal experience with something. I have read other accounts on other sites where people also feel ablation didn't work for them. You say that for "65%" of patients ablation is a "cure", even if that's true, that means for 35% it's not a "cure". Chemotherapy might knock out one person's cancer, but not someone else's. Surely you would concede that. And you make it sound as though having a second ablation is as easy as a trip to the seaside therefore implying there's no excuse not to have one, in effect laying the blame on the patient. It's quite possible that some doctors are loathe to even do a first one let alone a second one. And perhaps some patients don't wish to go through a second one. Whatever the case, someone's personal experience with something is their own and just as valid as anyone else's. As is their decision to either have a procedure done, or not. And some might not have the option eg the NHS in the UK might not be as willing to do this procedure as a private healthcare company that is based stateside.