Fast or slow metaboliser ?

[Peony4575]

I had horrific problems coming off antidepressants after a short time and having an awful time with beta blockers . I think I am going to be asked to ant coagulate and have decided am not going to without being tested to see how I metabolise drugs because the consequences could be dire . I will pay if necessary . Only 9% of population are slow metabolisers and I suspect these are the ones being told they must be the problem because most other people are fine on the drug . There are much cleverer and better trained people than I out there , anything to add ??

[HiloHairy]

I also had a terrible time with beta blockers. My time on metoprolol left me 2 years later with a bit of an anxiety problem being treated by small amounts of clonazepam. The current cardiologist at my local Kaiser (They come and go faster than I change underwear) is slowly pushing me towards anticoagulants, clearly insulted that I just don't accept them on his say so. I'm very worried that they'll sap my energy like every other cardiac related med that I've tried.

[Peony4575 in reply to HiloHairy]

Am so sorry it’s you too. DOAC being pushed in my direction also. What I have learned from this latest disaster for me is dont take anything lipophilic which crosses the blood brain barrier and I want the enzymes responsible for metabolising drugs tested before I take anything else . I will pay for it if necessary .

I changed from Biso to atenolol yesterday as been having such an awful time . Atenolol is hydrophilic and slightly longer acting. Yesterday went well but this morning I have bad anxiety and an elevated HR so presume am somehow withdrawing from the Biso . Six weeks ago before beta blockers I was happy and healthy. The problem is I can’t get off the beta blockers the withdrawals have been too awful

[HiloHairy in reply to Peony4575]

At least for me The path away from beta blockers was much like it was in quitting nicotine; very very slowly titrating down from the ongoing dosage to zero. I suspect it's the same for heroin addicts as well.

These days I use metoprolol and diltiazem only when I'm having an afib event.

[Peony4575 in reply to HiloHairy]

I aspire to that position . Dare I say withdrawal is easier for heroin addicts because it’s shorter term pain . Mind you . I will never crave beta blockers !!

[CDreamer]

You may have already seen this but I thought it aptly described what you experience re Beta Blockers and anti-depressants and shows that there is a reason why we all react very differently.

breakthroughs.com/foundatio...

[Peony4575 in reply to CDreamer]

Thank you very much . No I hadn’t seen it. It is excellent and describes the problem prrfectly. Switched to decaf years ago because cappuccino gave me palpitations and am equally rubbish with alcohol. Prior to this I had a very occasional ( talking months) glass of champagne/Prosecco now of course on the wagon. Although I have an excellent blood lipid profile the cardio prescribed 20mg Atorvastatin because my mother died of HA. It is sitting on the shelf . Am not adding anything else into the mix. They do like to overmedicalise/prescribe . I will be sticking to the Benecol. I know now what I need to do to protect myself going forward but not how to extricate myself from my current predicament. No help is offered when things go wrong

[Auriculaire in reply to CDreamer]

Thank you for posting this. Should be obligatory reading for all prescribers. They maybe would not be so quick to dismiss side effects or attribute them to nocebo effect.

[Peony4575 in reply to Auriculaire]

Yes blame the patient . Mess you up and offer no support apart from more drugs . I will say how I get on with accessing testing . It is known how all drugs are metabolised and I will be asking the question and looking up the smpc in future

[Auriculaire in reply to Peony4575]

I think it is not very likely you will be able to get tested on the NHS.

[Peony4575 in reply to Auriculaire]

You are probably right. I ll pay for it. It’s too important for me

[belindalore in reply to CDreamer]

Thanks for posting this. I always thought there had to be something to the way we all metabolize these meds. And I've read that these meds interfere with metabolism. The reason why our nutrients are depleted. The reason why so many of us just cannot tolerate these drugs. I honestly think if I had continued taking the metoprolol I wouldn't be sending this post. I felt like it was literally killing me. I would love to have every Dr especially the cardio Drs read that article. So sick of third rate uncaring Drs.

[Peony4575 in reply to belindalore]

Thank you for replying. How did you get off the drug? Because all though have symptoms and it disagrees with me I can’t get off and see no alternative to a long slow taper

[belindalore in reply to Peony4575]

I tapered off. As far as I've read here that's how most people do it. Told my cardio I'd use it as a pill in pocket. Depends on how bad your condition is too.

[Peony4575 in reply to belindalore]

Thanks for that . Can I ask how you ve tapered? I ve had a few failed attempts. Cardio said I can come off just can’t get off . The rebound is awful

[belindalore in reply to Peony4575]

I could hardly tolerate the metoprolol. I kept lowering my dose til it was down to 6.25 mg twice a day. I am one who just cannot tolerate prescriptions of any kind. At that small dose it still bothered me. I started taking it every other day for a week then every couple days for a week til I just stopped it. Drs will say it leaves the body in 24 hrs when you stop it. Not so for everyone. CDreamer has a post on here about how we all metabolize these meds differently. Drs don't seem to take that seriously. I still had side effects for awhile. But I'm still on Eliquis and have side effects from it. Not fun. Good luck to you. Try and find posts from others to see what they did.

[Peony4575 in reply to belindalore]

Will do and many thanks for your help. Am exactly the same cannot tolerate drugs have had some horrible experiences. Best wishes

[belindalore in reply to Peony4575]

Best wishes to you also. It's not fun when Drs don't listen and just want to drug us to death. I've said so many times before we patients are more than symptoms. Vitamins, minerals everything that makes us function correctly should be tested. And Drs don't want to do that. Can't be bothered by what's so darn important. It just boggles my mind. The oath Drs take says they will do no harm. Well as far as I see that, they may as well not take the Hippocratic oath anymore.

[Peony4575 in reply to belindalore]

Agreed !!!!!!!!

[belindalore in reply to Peony4575]

I do tell people about Dr Wolfson. He is in Arizona. I think you're in the UK? Dr Wolfson is a holistic cardiologist since 2012. Years before that he was a number one cardio Dr. Won numerous awards. Dished out drugs and performed hundreds of procedures (like ablations). Watched his father(also a cardiologist) die at an early age. And just felt something was wrong with how cardio Drs were treating people. He met his future wife who is a chiropractor. She told him he wasn't treating the whole person. Only their symptoms. He realized she was right and that's why his father died. Drs treating his father just prescribed pills. Nothing about testing for deficiencies of nutrients or something else. His father never learned those things in med school and neither did his son. And neither do any of the Drs we see. That's a travesty. Dr Wolfson quit his practice married his chiropractor, who also said how important it is for the body to be in alignment. They started a new holistic approach and he's helped lots of people. He does not and will not tell anyone to quit taking their meds. He says talk to your Dr. But he also knows most Drs aren't going to listen. They only know pills and procedures because that's what they're taught and that's what makes them money. The one bad thing about Dr Wolfson is he is high dollar still. But he doesn't take insurance cause insurance doesn't pay for natural treatments. And he does have people who work for him. So he's got overhead. I have his book. There are some on this forum who know of him and have read his book. He charges just shipping and handling. He has a lot of good information. But he does stress talk to your Dr and if he doesn't listen find one who does. Oh if only it were that simple. I'd have another Dr yesterday. I'd say that pertains to a lot of other people in here. The book is "The Paleo Cardiologist" by Dr Jack Wolfson. If I had oodles of money I'd go see Dr Wolfson. It's not a fun trip when we can't get appropriate help.

[Peony4575 in reply to belindalore]

I think I have read about him. Yes am in UK . Don’t think many doctors have adopted a holistic approach more a pills for everything approach . There isn’t much money in the system and they are under a lot of pressure. I think a tailored approach to people’s health is a long way off and you do have to be your own advocate

[belindalore in reply to Peony4575]

Thought you were in the UK. What I've found is that your medical care is not always up to par either. In the USA it's insurance companies and big pharma ruling over the Drs. Even the Drs who really care and want to help are pressured by the insurances and big pharma. And people here have the gaul to talk down your medical system when the truth is it's not any better in the USA for a lot of people. I'm off to run some errands while I feel half human

Don't know what time it is there. It's 12:20pm here. Midday. So have a great rest of your day😊 Take care.