Rather than come off my 2.5mg bisoprolol as requested by my cardiologist, I went down to 1.25mg for just over a month and now I've been off the drug for 13 days. I was lucky that I didn't notice too many side effects while taking the 2.5mg dose, but I did improve a little in dropping down to 1.25mg. When I stopped all was fine..... but about a week after stopping I have an elevation of BP from roughly 117/78 to 127/88 and a heart beat at rest from 66 to about 78 plus heart thumping away and sleep becoming difficult. (This has been going on for around six days.)
Now for the question..... does this sound like withdrawal symptoms which will pass?? Alternatively do I need to go back to my cardiologist expecting to go back onto a low dose of bisoprolol or to another drug? (maybe candesartan).
I had been taking the 2.5mg does for about 10 months.
Any help much appreciated
Written by
Paul101
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I reduced mine from 2.5 to 1.25 same as you then to zero got the same symptoms as you so i went back to 1.25 and have levelled back out again i have found its a hard drug to escape from and have great sympathy for those on a higher dose good luck but you may find you will have to take the lower dose just to regulate your BP.
I am not a doctor obviously but I have to say, if my BP was the same as yours my doc would be DELIGHTED. I now take half a 2.5 tab of Bisoprolol every other day, and the exhaustion and other side effects are very few now.
Hi Prada i wanted to come off myself as my BP was dropping to low but after coming across a good GP reduced the Bisoprolol to a level that agreed with me and kept my BP and heart rate steady.
When i first came out after AVR i was prescribed 1.5mg but after a bout of AF it was raised to 2.5mg but was just a matter of time before everything settled down.
Like others, similar to you,I am 10 months post stent and was on 5mg and then 2.5mg and then after a wr hour BP mo itor my BP at light was going really low so suggested I stopped it, BP bounced around for a while maybe 2 weeks but then settled as did my HR, so monitor it, my cardiologist said he would only be concerned if it went to and stayed above 130/90 so yourssound as though they are ot too bad. mo itor it and see what it's like in another week as already advised, I was asked for 1 week to mo itor myBP 4 times a day if possible, morning, lunch late afternoon and before bed, record it all and tell your GP/cardiologist,dont forget also you are anxious about the change and with the virus in the news all the time, we are all notched up a couple of levels, keep safe and monitor
ut yes I all think we ounce around a it after taking meds for a while after we stop.
Thanks (and to expostie and prada47) - that two week figure is helpful.... I think if things start to settle down in the next week I will become a bisoprolol free zone. Otherwise, maybe back to a small dose....maybe. I am taking two measurements of BP a day and keeping the readings so I will be able to show my cardiologist what has been going on. You have helped me - much appreciated.
We are all different when it comes to our Meds the Name on the Packets may all be the same Bisoprolol, Valsartan. Candesartan etc but the effects are so very different. 10mg Bisoprolol only reduced my Pulse I didn't have any other side effects,
Now on 7.5 mg I never give Side Effects a thought I pop the 7.5 Bisoprolol, every morning along with my Statin, Entresto Aspirin, Omeprazole, Eplerenone in fact I look upon them as part of my breakfast routine . Only some days, today being one I just look at the tablets and think they won't fix me, just maintain me. Oh well down the hatch ( with my morning Coffee ) At least I am here Today to Take Them.
TBH 2.5mg is a low dose, and 1.25mg is an ultra low dose. I have been on Bisoprolol since 2012, rising from 5mg to 7.5mg (among 7 other drugs designed to limit and maintain my BP and HR) as I suffer from AFib (although not currently, having 'enjoyed' my third cardioversion in December). My last CV followed a 350km charity bike ride from Nairobi across The Great Rift Valley to the Maasai Mara in November. I was in AF throughout the trip and my HR was between 90 and 120 throughout. My resting HR is now back to 53 following the cardioversion. I'm male, 58 years old, nowhere near fit, although I did a bit of training before the ride, and am trying to maintain myself a bit since. My BP can go off the scale crazy at 160/110 or be perfectly normal at 120/80. These figures can appear over the 15 minutes that I bracket some readings.
Paul, what you might take on board is that your symptoms might be nothing to do with your heart condition, but be related to health anxiety. This is not a glib put down, as my daughter suffers from this and it is very real. She is a medical science graduate working for PHE and she knows that she has the condition, but it is very difficult for her to control. Just a thought for you to take on board. Hope it helps...
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