Beta Blockers

[hollie]

I'm just gettting started on a beta blocker. I've taken it for about a month and not seeing a huge improvement. I'm actually noticing my heart rate not racing (which it IS supposed to help with), but I'm also noticing that it's sometimes slower than it should be . I'll take my pulse and it seems like it takes forever between beats. Sometimes it's to the point of slight chest pain. Has anyone else experienced this? I'm not sure it's the right drug for me, but I want to know how others feel when on it.

Thanks for the help!!

[dino551]

Hi Hollie-

I get some strange sensations like that. My hr will go into the mid 40's at times and I think that is kind of scary. What kind of beta blocker do you take and how much? I take lopressor, I didn't really notice things getting somewhat better until 2 or 21/2 months into it. I still have wierd sensations, but I've just been putting up with it. All I know is I don't want to feel like I did prior to Feb. 08. I was diagnosed it that month as well.

Chris

[Troy]

I guess everyones different but for me Beta Blockers are absoloute magic, I could not imagine having a life without them. I have POTS and soon as I step down off the bed in the monings my heart flips out until I take a BetaBlocker im back to normal again, I can go outside and do activities that I normally would not be able to without medication.

But you have to realise also there are different types of Beta Blockers that act differently and last for differnt lengths of time, Ive tried severeal but just like you mentioned some of them made me feel worse, im extremely sensitive to medications but I found this one Beta Blocker that dosent cause me any side effcts and its very mild but does the job perfectly, its called Betaloc, it dosent last as long as some of the others but its so gentle without side effects im quite happy to take it twice a day instead of ones as you would with other Beta Blockers. Ive been using it twice a day everyday for the past 8 years without noticing any long term side effects. It last about 5 hours before you need to take another. I highly Recomend you speak to your Dr about that particular one.

[jump]

Hi Hollie,

I take toprol xl (25 mg - a low dose) and it does help me. I had a low hr (45ish) for years not related to the beta blocker, and although I didn't like it (I felt sleepy and cold all the time) my cardiologist has insisted that there is nothing wrong with having a hr that low, provided it isn't caused by a sinister disease. Still, you should check with your own doc.

I like the bb I'm on because while I still get tachycardic symptoms they are not as extreme. So far I haven't had any neg. side effects, but I also still have a lot of "weird" heart sensations. The bb's definitely aren't a cure-all for me, but they do help.

Keep track of what you're noticing on your new med so you can talk about it with your doc. It might be a question of taking a different kind of beta blocker or taking a different dose.

good luck,

jump

[bbdeezy]

I just seen a Dr in Michigan at DownRiver Cardiology who is not a specialist on POTS but is interested in it. He gave me Midodrine after trying a few others when first diagnosed that didnt work....well...I also have RLS and Fibro and man did the midodrine make my legs cramp worse.When I called him on this he stated that it shouldnt have effected the legs but since the med actually was to help the blood from pooling in the lower extremities it made sense to me that this could happen...well I havent went back on it due to fear of the cramps starting again. They are bad enough already that I use a durogesic pain patch to take the edge off the pain. I am just learning that nothing is helping me with my POTS but to suck it up,deal with it on a day to day basis.....and pray for a miracle

[calypso]

My heart rate dropped into the 30s once while I was asleep and wearing a holter monitor (the 24-hour kind that your doctor orders). You could ask for this test to make sure it's not getting too low, because it will be the lowest when you are sleeping. My doc said it was fine for a healthy heart to have a rate this low while sleeping.

Amy