Meds making husband miserable

[Clare184]

Hi - sorry for such a long post! my other half has been on blood pressure medication for about a year now he is taking ramipril, bisoprolol and indepamide takes all 3 combined to keep BP in check. He is only just turned 40 and we've not yet had a reason why it's so high.Anyway all these pills and I think especially the bisoprolol are turning him into a different person he doesn't seem to enjoy anything anymore, everything annoys him (especially me) and to be honest he's becoming really unpleasant to live with. It doesn't seem likely he'll be able to stop taking the pills any time soon but I really don't want to live like this and I don't like him taking so many things so young.

Has anyone had any similar experiences or any advice how we might improve things? He couldn't tolerate amlodipene

[figster]

hi Clare,

Unfortunately, this forum seems to be much less active than other ones I’m part of. Just to give you a bit of reassurance, there MIGHT be other options to consider.

I have personally managed to control my high BP with olive leaf extract and taurine. Others on this forum have used other natural products like Hawthorn extract. I must stress that I am not a doctor or a herbalist. I did loads of research and monitored my BP closely with my GP who is supportive of my approach with the proviso that if it stops working I will consider other treatment options.

If your husband wants to continue with mainstream treatment then there are lots of options to try. For example, drugs like Losartan can be easier for some people and have less side effects. Worth chatting to GP or going private if you can afford it.

Your husband should never stop his medication without expert support. My BP was high normal so I had a bit of room to experiment. Not everyone in here has that luxury.

Has he had his aldosterone levels checked and kidney function? He’s young so I would not leave any stone unturned getting to the bottom of it.

Good luck and remember he doesn’t have to be unwell with medication. There are lots of options available. My experience is that GPs are just not very good at managing BP. I saw a cardiologist who said the same thing. He recommends Candesartan and Losartan.

[Clare184 in reply to figster]

Thank you, he has kidney issues and has a follow up about that soon and has been referred to cardiologist but not seen one yet so hoping that might give some answers. Everything just takes so long! I'll have a look into more natural options, sounds interesting, we know losing some weight is one of the best options but not as easy as it should be with busy lives.

[cazlooks]

there are many ways to decrease blood pressure through exercise and diet, unfortunately, you say you don't know what is causing dh's so I suspect you've checked his diet and exercise and found it OK. It's not a good idea to remove any meds without medical consent. So, in the first instance I would discuss this with the GP, you can discuss your dh in context of him depressing you and the GP should take it on board that the meds have changed his personality. Also, so you can be proactive, google the meds he's on and see if you can find any that cause depression. TBH I wouldn't take it all personally, he's probably feeling very vulnerable right now and taking it out on everyone, which is a nuisance, but if you can, hang on in there - if you can get this sorted out he'll probably revert to his normal self. xxx

[Clare184 in reply to cazlooks]

Thanks - diet and exercise aren't great and we are trying to make changes there hut weight is always easier to gain than it is to lose. He is being more active but all the meds are making him very tired all the time so it's taking a lot of determination to get him out walking, swimming etc after long work days

Really helpful just to have some reassurances

[Happyrosie]

just to confirm what other posters have said. As a woman I expect you are, to an extent, controlling your family’s diet so you can (either subtly or otherwise) ensure his diet is as good as you can get it. Lots of info in Blood Pressure UK.

Would your husband object if you showed him these posts, which demonstrates how worried you are about him?

If your husband’s diet is good, and his lifestyle otherwise acceptable - exercise and so on - there’s no knowing why his BP is high. It just is, and it’s best dealt with now rather than him having a stroke or heart attack in a few years time

[Clare184 in reply to Happyrosie]

Honestly at the moment I don't know how he'd react he either gets upset and closes off or gets really angry over the tiniest thing so I think I'll probably keep them to myself for now at least and just use these replies to help remind me that things will get better and to stick with what I'm doing.

I've being trying to subtly change diet but honestly I could probably do more so need to try harder there

[figster]

I agree with the other posters. Where I differ is that I think there is more likely to be an underlying cause of the hypertension for a young person. Don’t be fobbed off with the ‘essential hypertension’ label UNTIL you have explored all the other possible causes.

Also, he doesn’t have to live with negative side effects from medication. There are plenty of other options available. You just need to explore them and get empowered!

[katieoxo60]

Hi Clare184, I appreciate what is happening with your self and husband. I have had high BP from a young age and tried everything going but no reason found for the raised BP. I have recently gone onto Losartin due to it being quite high but it has not made much difference to the figures. My freind cut out all high fat food but then she became too thin. My son has high cholestral but his BP is fine, the best I can suggest is look at foods that raise blood pressure and avoid. Tablets can be changed one of my blood pressure tablets in the past caused raised uric acid after long term use resulting in gout. I hope this gives you both hope for the future there are no hard and fast rules on this but even small wieght loss can help as can changes in tablets & diets plus lifestyle. Avoid Stress at all times it makes things worse. Every Best wish both .

[Maximonkey]

Hi Clare, I am so sorry your husband has such high blood pressure at such an early age, however, he does not have to stick with these tablets if they are not suiting him. He needs to ask his GP for help. They will understand and hopefully come up with a strategy that works for him. He sounds depressed and this would account for his temper and not wanting to do anything. Good luck, Maximonkey