Bisoprolol Withdrawal

[AndyDuk]

Hello all,

I’m coming off Bisoprolol, and are down to 2.5mg a day from 10mg , after getting the all clear that my last cardio ablation fixed my AF ...

But , I feel awful. Worse than when I was on flecinide and Bisoprolol. Tierd, achy , out of breath at times and some dizzy spells . Yesterday I was out on mountain biking and ended up crashing as I felt lightheaded . Luckily only my wallet was damaged! I’ve been mountain biking for years and had no real issues with the Bisoprolol / Flecinide combination .

I wore an Quardio ECG yesterday and my heart rate was great with no alerts yet I still feel rough .

I’ve spoken to the chemist and my heart consultant and they have told me their are no side effects . Clearly there are .

Has anyone else experienced this ? I’ve decided to stop mountain biking until I feel a lot better . It does frustrate me as it’s my one thing I do which relieves my stress and just a ride out into the forest , sit down on a log and admire the view is the best stress relief ever!

Now has anyone else experienced this ? Any timescales ? Or should I be going back to my GP and just resting . Any suggestions are welcome !

It’s so frustrating . 9 years of AF on an off and now I’m floored even worse by the withdrawal of a drug used to treat AF ! The initial elation has turned sour and I just want my outdoors life back ...

Andy

!

[jeanjeannie50]

Hi Andy, over what period of time have you been reducing your Bisoprolol. Have you stopped your Flecainide at the same time too?

Jean

[AndyDuk]

Hi Jean, so the flecinide was stopped on the advice of my consultant 3.5 weeks ago and I’ve been halving my dose of Bisoprolol since then on his advice . Looking at my ECG measured over a period of time there is no reason for me now to be on heart medication .

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to AndyDuk]

Your heart has been reigned in, from it's racing, by your taking quite a high dose of Bisoprolol and it now has to adapt to functioning without that drug. It needs to find it's own correct rhythm again.

You say you felt light headed when out cycling, feeling that way can be a sign of low BP or lack of water. Make sure you are drinking lots of water to keep your BP up and also flush out the Bisoprolol. I'm afraid I think the way you are feeling is a withdrawal phase you just have to get through. However, why not have a word with your GP and see what he suggests.

[checkmypulse]

I also had 'withdrawal' symptoms and that on only coming off 1.25mg Biso! I had to try every other day, then cut in half, then every other day on this dose, then every second day, took about a month. I was only on Biso, not the Flec. Others on this site have just stopped even on high doses and yes, the medics say no side effects, obviously not in our cases. As you've been asked what period of time has elapsed?

[HiloHairy]

This is a good time to talk with your physician.

Stopping any beta blocker causes anxiety and raised heart rate and can interfere with sleep. Short term use of a very low dose benzo or gabapentin may help. However, if not done carefully enough stopping either can cause similar problems.

[Bpsan]

I was also on Bisoprolol 2.5 and was told I could stop. I did and had exactly the same symptoms I wasn't warned or told to take it every other day or cut pill in half etc. So yes there does seem to be a blindness with professionals here.

[Finnart]

Hi Andy, I had a very bad withdrawal symptoms coming off Bisoprolol, and that was a really low dose. I think it has to be done very gradually. I found it took about six weeks before I felt better and the withdrawal symptoms stopped, Take care.

[Hidden in reply to Finnart]

Hi Finnartin

I have recently started to withdraw from Bisoprolol 2.5mgs at the rate of .1 mg per week. I am still on approx 2.2mgs a day and having strange moments through the day but the anxiety attacks are the worse don’t think I am ever going to get off them. How do you cope with you side effects and do you feel anxious

[Finnart in reply to Hidden]

Hi Nannyknitting, I really sympathise with what you’re going through. I had awful side effects coming off Bisoprolol with anxiety being a big part of that. You will get through it though. It sounds as though you’re going about it the right way and coming off very gradually. Just try to keep telling yourself that the tablets are the cause of your anxiety and that it will pass, even if it takes a while. I am fine now and you will be too. I’ll be thinking about you and sending a hug.

[Hidden in reply to Finnart]

Thank you so much for your reply and support I am just going to take one day at a time and hope that I can get to the end and start to live a normal life again

[Finnart in reply to Hidden]

Just hang in there. Things will definitely get better soon.

[Paulbounce]

I can only speak from my experience. My cardio took me off it on the day I saw him - just stopped and no side effects. However it seems to effect others much more.

I would talk to my doc about cutting down more gradually as it seems to be affecting you in this way. Why not give him/her a call to see what they suggest ?

Hope you get it sorted.

Paul

[Nixey]

I was on 2.5 mg bisoprolol for hight heart rate and palpitations for nearly 2 years made me feel tired all the time and out of breath when I excersised. Decided to halve it to 1.25 for a while and spoke to the doctor she said I could just stop it but I had read not to do this. I came off it gradually eventually only taking a grain of it and when I stopped I still had withdrawal symptoms of hight rapid heart rate jumping in the chest, light headedness, horrible drug to come off of. I am 5 weeks off it and still suffering with strange rythm at times hope it goes soon. It is better than it was at first but doctor's definitely do not realise the affect this drug has on the body. Hope all settles down for you soon.

[Hidden in reply to Nixey]

Same. Plus nightmares, insomnia, swollen hands. Horrible drug. God help us all.

[Auriculaire]

You have probably come down too quickly. I am weaning off Nebivolol at the moment an though doing it very slowly ( and was only on 1.25mg) I am still getting withdrawal symptoms - mild dizziness , some gut disturbance and in the last couple of days hives. Some days I feel ok , others definitely "off" especially if I do too much. Do not try to go from 2.5 to zero. You are likely to feel even worse. You just have to accept that you are one of the people who gets withdrawal symptoms and grit your teeth for a longer withdrawal. Your system is having to get used to cope with more adrenaline without it being blunted .

[Hidden]

It could be totally unrelated to stopping the bisop. There are loads of horrible viruses around at the moment. I'm on my second in 4 weeks, feeling very washed out, lethargic, dizzy and breathless

[Rocky-athlete]

Hi Andy. I came off Metoprolol, another beta-blocker, replacing it with Diltiazem, a calcium-channel blocker, about ten weeks ago.

Since beta-blockers block beta-adreno(line)-receptors, they upregulate, meaning more adrenoreceptors form on the cell membranes in the heart and other organs. I asked my electrophysiologist how long it would take for them to downregulate after coming off the beta-blocker and he said: “The number of adrenoreceptors is based on RNA expression, so it could be three months before they return to normal.”

I have a histogram of how much arrhythmia I experience and for nine weeks it has been a steady decline from almost 0% before stopping beta-blocker to 50% of the time Right after (not pleasant) to a week ago 5% of the time. This week was worse, but I have had a lot more stress.

I want to research what other organs have these adrenreceptors and the impacts of those having upregulated while on beta-blockade. Simplifying, it seems bet-blocker withdrawal should be similar to having much more adrenaline (stress) in life, decreasing over three months.

Best wishes that this passes soon.

R

(11 months post 2nd ablation)

[Hidden in reply to Rocky-athlete]

3 months? Omg