Just started taking amlodipine

[Deary63]

Hi,

Ive been having bouts of high bloody pressure , especially when I go to bed, what with suffering with ectopic beats since I was 30 also, last week I felt awful bad headache, then my face was on fire especially my cheeks, although I didn’t have a temperature....I was sick and my blood pressure went up to 182/110 ...I was awake all night with racing heart...phoned doctor next morning, he put on on Amlodipine, I’ve been reading post of people that are on them...but today my heart having been doing cartwheels , missing , racing 80-90 odd BPM blood pressure is going up and down too..had no sleep again last night ...I feel so uptight and worried . I shall ring doctor tomorrow , hopefully he will talk to me!,

Has anyone on hear had these feeling on the medication ?

Iam so tired , I need a good night sleep 😴 but when I start to relax heart jumps and makes me jump too ....

Oh I’ve really had enough 😩

Sue

[Thecyclist]

Hi Sue, I know the feeling only too well, sounds to me like a bit of anxiety rather than the meds. Which may also be driving the BP higher, I suffer the same and have had high BP and ectopics/PVC's. You may not even realise you have it (anxiety), I didn't! I thought it was stress or just "me" turns out it's anxiety, and it manifests in many ways. I ended up in A&E with a hypertensive crisis, BP through the roof and even though I did have underlying high BP my anxiety made it 10 times worse. Might be worth asking about a beta blocker, they will stop the racing heart and lower BP, although I still get ectopics but they can stop those as well.

Also Amlodipine takes time to work, and is usually well tolerated, side effects are swollen ankles and lower legs. Ectopics and higher BPM not usually a side effect. It took a good couple of weeks for it to work for me personally, but we are all different, I would give it a few days though.

BP management via meds is a trial and error exercise as much as anything as we are all different so ask the GP and if you don't get on with a particular one, try others, there are many types of medication now.

Also try some calming techniques, do you have the Calm app? It is excellent. Worth every penny.

[Deary63 in reply to Thecyclist]

Oh it so good to hear from you , Iam sitting here now again can’t sleep, what’s not helping either I’ve had pain in my right shoulder blade for weeks, really getting me down to sleeping , been talking to a physio about it over the phone to no avail ...now my minds working overtime , thinking Iam having heart attack being a woman , I read they back ache when having HA...I wish I could just get some sleep 😩

Funny you should mention Calm app my daughter got it for my little granddaughter to help her sleep...I will look at now !! She has told me to use it too...

Thank you so much for answering me...it’s good to hear Iam not alone ...

Sue.

[Eirealan in reply to Deary63]

Hello Sue. Everything thecyclist said is spot on. Anxiety took my BP through the stratosphere. Never knew I had anxiety. Also heart rate was 100 resting. Just getting up out of bed raised it to 120 or so. Was in hospital for three days due to hypertensive emergency. Was put on anti anxiety med, busiprone, and that made a world of difference for me. Also on amlodipine and Losartan. Sleep was terrible the first few weeks but I believe that was due the stress of it all. Talk with your doctor about anxiety. You may have it and not realize it - like thecyclist and I. Calm is a great app and YouTube has many videos on breathing exercises and meditation.

You can do it Sue. You’ll be just fine.

[Deary63 in reply to Eirealan]

Thank you so much for your message Eirealan , it really makes me feel better reading that Iam not the only one 😌I got the calm app up and running last night and dropped off to sleep thank god, got about 4/5 hrs sleep, felt so much better today for having some sleep..I do believe that what with my missed beats and no sleep it doesn’t help my BP...

I will take on board what you have said ...

Thank you again.

Take care

Sue.

[Deary63 in reply to Thecyclist]

Hi downloaded Calm app..it’s was great, wish I’d tried ages ago 🙄So listen the thunder and rain ...went off to sleep for nearly 5 hours, never been known ...my daughter told me to use the medication also very good.

Hopefully this will help my anxiety . Going to put it on again now!

Good nite and thanks for the advise again

All the best

Sue.

[Thecyclist in reply to Deary63]

No problem Sue, glad it is helping, yes meditation and the stories are also great, invest in a decent set of noise cancelling ear phones and you can really "disappear" from the world for a time, it's deeply relaxing and will only do you good. All the best.

[springcross]

Hi Deary. Just a couple of lines to say, as an Amlodipine taker, I agree with both the posts on here but also to say that the side effects of swollen ankles (my heels, feet and toes were also affected) it can depend on the brand of tablet that you take so if you do get the swelling, ask your GP if you can change brands. All the best. xx

[peter999999999 in reply to springcross]

the best thing i found is to buy a resperate machine, they bring your breathing down to 5 breaths aprox per min,i use mine 4 times a day 15mins each time,cost a bit but cures stress.anxiety and brings bp down,

[springcross in reply to peter999999999]

I've had an equivalent for several years but didn't find it much good to be honest. Thanks anyway for the suggestion. x

[peter999999999 in reply to springcross]

did not know there was a equivalent to a resperate, i find them brilliant

[springcross in reply to peter999999999]

I can't remember who the manufacturer was although I still have it here somewhere but it may well have been Lloyds Chemist equivalent, although I know that Lloyds now make the Resperate.

[seasider18 in reply to springcross]

I doubt if your GP cam specify a brand nowadays. I very seldom get the same make of the the two meds I take as pharmacies all buy the one that is the cheapest this week. I've often had two different makes of Losartan in the same prescription.

[Deary63 in reply to seasider18]

Hi yes I agree , each month when I get my prescription for cholesterol, they are made by different company ...I guess they buy from who give the better deal on the day..Sue

[seasider18 in reply to Deary63]

My GP used to prescribe Securon the slow release version of Verapamil. There was only one pharmacy who stocked it but eventually they also switched to a generic version that I felt was not so effective. I contacted the MHRA who asked for samples. They said that all contained the correct quantity of the drug but that the fillings/compositions of them could vary.

[Happyrosie in reply to seasider18]

You can ask the GP to specify the make. He or she may not agree nor may the pharmacist but its well worth a try. I have pain medication patches and one make brings the skin underneath the patch in blisters, so I told GP,. He specifies a different manufacturer to the pharmacy and that's what I get.

[seasider18 in reply to Happyrosie]

Do you use one of the big pharmacies or a small independent one.

[Happyrosie in reply to seasider18]

Mines a small independent high street pharmacy.

[seasider18 in reply to Happyrosie]

Not many of them left now. Even Boots have been closing smaller branches. I don't understand why people use them as ours has a long wait to hand in the prescription. They then go and check that they have the items and say they have to be checked and tell you to come back in half an hour and of course join the queue again. There used to be a small independent with evidently only one foreign staff that was never busy. She would come through from the back look at the prescription go get the items and that was it.

[Deary63 in reply to springcross]

Thank you for your message springcross...yes I’ve read that it’s known to give you swollen legs and ankles, Iam going to ring my doctor again next week as he wants me to have blood test tomorrow, so I will see how Iam doing withAmlodipine.Take care

Sue

[springcross in reply to Deary63]

You can but try Sue and if at first you don't succeed! If you can prove to him/her that your legs and ankles are a result of the brand, he may gladly change it to something different. The brand I use is Sandoz.

[philaustin]

Hi there. I've been taking amlodipine for 12 years and had no side effects (as far as I know) yet.

[Deary63 in reply to philaustin]

Well that’s good to know also thank you philaustinTake care

Sue

[lettingoffsteam]

Hi Sue, I've experienced what you are going through re. high BP and arrhythmia. I also had a hypertensive emergency in 2019 and stayed in for five days .I'm on amlodipine, ramipril and propranolol .I started out on the first two at higher doses and had terrible problems with sleep, anxiety, palpitations and swollen ankles so bad I got cellulitis in one leg.

I was given propranolol to take when needed but when I finally got to see a cardiologist he suggested a low regular dose was the way to go. I've found it a real help. Amlodipine takes time to work and it takes time for your body to adapt to lowered bp .I'm now on half my original doses of amlodipine and ramipril due to weight loss and lifestyle changes.

I recently recommended a book on women's heart health which explains a lot of our symptoms. Check my earlier posts for details of that .As to relaxation, I attend a meditation class online but there are quite a few things on YouTube. I tried a Resperate machine but it made me more anxious!You will get through this I promise.

[Sadie97 in reply to lettingoffsteam]

What is ur dose of adlodipine? Dr just started me on 2.5 and doing nothing for my BP but have only taken it 3 days.

[lettingoffsteam in reply to Sadie97]

Well my bp was frightful at 244/133 so I started out on 10mg amlodipine and 5mg ramipril.I'm now on half that plus 20mg propranolol but my bp is now pretty low at around 100/65 which it has never been before.I would like to reduce to 2.5mg amlodipine but my GP says that's not a clinically effective dose.I need to stay on ramipril as I have a slightly thickened heart due to the high bp and propranolol is for the palpitations so it's a low bp for me!

[Sadie97 in reply to lettingoffsteam]

Wow that was really high BP!! I’m happy you have it in control now. Actually, it looks kinda low low. I’m sure my dosage will be raised 😔

[Deary63]

Ah thank you for your reassurance and your suggestion lettingofsteam, I took thecyclist suggestion download Calm app last night and I actually had 4/5 hrs sleep listening to it , wish I’d listen to my daughter she suggested it also ages ago 🙄.

I also have lost some weight which I think does help all things going on with us ...I just hate taking tablets ...but thank you take care

Sue.

[lettingoffsteam in reply to Deary63]

That's good news, hope you have a good night tonight too.😀👍

[valspia]

Hello Deary! I feel like you just wrote my story! I have found that listening to calming tapes of a person talking you through it does help. I know the agony of laying awake all night. I hope this is improving for you.

[Hidden]

I took amlodipine too for a few months and it gave me a constant headache. I spoke to the GP and he took me off it and put me on other meds which allowed the headache to go away. If it doesn’t suit you either, ask your GP for it to be changed