I experienced severe insomnia on amlodipine, and my doctor took me off it. (Trying something else with a shorter half life.)
But now I am wondering whether the insomnia might have subsided. It is so hard to find any detailed information on side effects.
Did anyone have insomnia on amlodipine that resolved?
Hello and welcome to the forum!
Side ehgfrctd are discussed in the PIL (Patient Information Leaflet) and the NHS website. Be wary of Dr Google as you will probably find everything from "virgin birth" to acne as a side effect. I was on Amlodopine for a period and never saw anything about insomnia. The main side effect of Amlodopine and other CCIs (Calcium Channel Inhibitors) is oedema and I suffered bay with this. However, another CCI, Diltazem, did not cause the problem.
Let us know what your GP says.
My doctor agreed last week that the insomnia was almost certainly from the amlodipine and put me on a different calcium channel blocker.
He explained that amlodipine has a very long half life and is basically active in the body for 24 hours. Great to keep your blood pressure stable from dose to dose, but not so good if it’s keeping you awake.
I had one more sleepless night after discontinuing but am sleeping normally again now. New medication has much shorter half life and is either out of my system by bedtime or not causing insomnia for me. Unfortunately it is causing morning aches and stiffness plus slight headaches instead, but it’s bearable.
I felt great on amlodipine apart from my body losing the ability to sleep. Oh well.
I wish pharmaceutical companies were required to do studies on side effects after medications are released so we could know which side effects are lijely to resolve and which are not. Would save a lot of time!
I sleep ok on amlodipine, but get very light headed some days. Blood pressure gets low. Have spoken to G.P but he said stick with it as benefits outway side effects
Sorry to hear about the lightheadedness. I was a bit worried my BP might go too low but so far it is down a few points as hoped for. Am watching it carefully!
Like Michael says, oedema is the main side effect of Amlodipine. The medication also affected my mind and I couldn't think straight... not good as I was self-employed. My GP decided to change the type of medication and put me on Losartan and I have been on that without any issues for over a decade.
I had a little ankle swelling, but the insomnia was drastic. I slept less and less each night over a week until the last two nights I did not sleep at all. Did not even crack a yawn! Felt like my body no longer knew what sleep was.
Probably best that we stopped it rather than waiting to see what happened.
I’m glad Losartan is working for you. I hope I’ll find something suitable soon. Currently trying diltiazem, having a few side effects, but nothing too bothersome yet. Still have to increase dose under doc’s orders dependjng on what my BP and HR do.
Hi Kushami36, I have had the same issues on amlodipine, which I just started 10 days ago. How does the diltiazem suit you? I have had a diuretic added too as my morning BP was still high on Ramipril and Amlodipine. That’s been too much so they’re taking me off the Amlodipine just now and seeing if the Ramipril and diuretic works. It’s such a minefield!
Oh gosh, I have been through a few combinations since posting this. We finally settled on smaller dose of amlodipine plus small dose of candesartan, which is going okay.
Although I have been having trouble with reflux that may be a side effect from the amlodipine, so I might need to change things again.
I hope your new combination works out.
Hi. Sorry to hear that you have been suffering from insomnia with Amlodipine. I have been prescribed this and it made me feel incredibly unwell, but was able to sleep quite well. Tried Ramipril, similar issues. Now on Valsartan and although I do feel dizzy sometimes I feel so much better in myself than when I was taking Amlodipine.
Glad to hear you found something that works better. It can be quite a process, can’t, and meanwhile months are ticking by. I’m trying not to get frustrated and to accept that I will have to find something that is “good enough”.
Hi. I know how you feel. If I had just continued to go to my GP they would have just kept trying different meds until they found one that potentially suited me better.
I paid privately to see a cardiologist and it was him that changed the medication, I do think if I hadn’t done that I would still feel as awful as I did after my visit to A&E and various visits to the GP and having a month of work because I felt so ill.
Like another member had stated, some of my symptoms were of increased anxiety, particularly at night on Amlodipine and I couldn’t sleep properly. I used to wake up and be in a state of panic for no reason then couldn’t get back to sleep which made me feel even worse!!
I hope that you can find something to suit you soon.
I had to come off Amlodipine due to increased nervousness and panic attacks. There is a belief that people suffering Arrhythmias can have poor sleep quality. Not sure if this is relevant?
Ugh, I’ve had that from other medications. Horrible. I don’t have arrythmia. Bit of a long story as to what I do have, but it doesn’t affect my sleep that much. I usually sleep okay apart from something specific keeping me awake, such as a stomach ache or headache.
I hope you found another option that helped.
Thanks .I am now on Losartan, which seems to suit me. Hope you manage to get some decent sleep.
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