Is anyone on furosemide for water retention?

[riverside22]

I've just started with it, but don't seem to be peeing much more yet. Wondering how long it takes to get going, as the swelling in my legs abdomen, etc quite bad now.

[10gingercats]

It did not work for me....even a high dose. It was only when Spirolactone was added to the Furosimide did the fluid reduce and then disappear very quickly.

[riverside22 in reply to 10gingercats]

Thanks for the info, quantity seems to be going up a bit now, slowly.

[Ducky2003]

I usually find taking it on an empty stomach eliminates more fluid than when I've eaten.

[ILowe]

You need to experiment a bit, and it is OK to experiment, provided you do not take more than the prescribed daily amount.

I find that if I take it first thing in the morning I get little urine. But if I have a mid morning coffee break then go for a walk then take it, the medicine kicks in. I also find that late afternoon is a good time, after my siesta and hot drink.

Drinking and activity sometimes primes the pump.

If you are on a blood pressure tablet, the lower blood pressure works against the furosemide.

My GP told me to take it the same time every day, since that is kinder on the kidneys. There is another medical viewpoint, that you need to experiment, and need to keep changing the time when you take it. This paper is quite technical but means you can challenge a GP with it. "Improving diuretic response in heart failure by implementing a patient-tailored variability and chronotherapy-guided algorithm". by Kenig et al, 2021. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/344...

[MarinaT]

i have been on it for a few years now. I take it at 8 am and it generally kicks in 45 minutes later. I then spend the next 2 hours peeing for England! On the odd occasion it will not work - I don't know why. I was also told to take an extra pill in the afternoon during the summer as my legs were really swollen. Unfortunately, the afternoon pill never seems to work.