Opinions Needed About Going Off Metoprolol For 3 Days...

[derekliz]

I have an appointment to see a physician in Auburn Alabama December 20th. They are going to repeat my TTT, EKG and ECHO that was done in Birmingham on 9/13/11. At that time I have been on Metoprolol for almost 2 weeks. I am currently on 25mg metoprolol before bed and 12.5mg metoprolol in the morning. 25 mg zoloft in the am and .5mg Klonopin at bedtime.

My question.....The nurse in Auburn wants me to be of the metoprolol for 3 days prior to testing and said that I can stop cold turkey and no need to wean off since it is a lower does....I am concerned and was wondering what you guys think?

I have an appt, with an EP in Atlanta tomorrow and will ask him as well. I was under the impression that you should not just stop taking a beta blocker.

Thanks!

Liz

[corina]

as it's a low dose it should be safe to just stop. if you don't feel comfortable with that i'd suggest to split the morning dose in half for about 5 days and then just leave it out. the evening dose is low enough to just leave it out. of course your hr will most likely get up again on standing but as it's for testing you'll have good reasons to sit it out. i've been on metoprolol for over 10 years and up to 300mg 24/7, this last year i came off of it which took about 4 to 5 months (because of the high dose AND because of taking it for such a long time).

hope this helps! good luck on your testing,

corina

[Katybug]

I had to go off of metoprolol for my second TTT and some other autonomic tests (I was off for 9 days to make sure it wasn't in my system and I I was fine. My heart rate slowly increased over the course of several days but only back to where I was without the drug. (I didn't have a sudden crash or anything.) It did take me about 2 1/2 weeks for the metoprolol to build up enough again once I started back on it to feel the benefit. This was not surprising for me as it took a little over 3 weeks to feel the benefits when I first started the drug. (I also had to stop my Florinef.)

I was willing to take the chance of quitting the meds for a few days to get accurate tests and it worked out for the best.

Good luck!

Katie

[derekliz]

Thanks Katie & Corina for the information. I feel much better now about going off the meds.....I was worried that I was going to crash really bad!!

Liz

[Angelika_23]

I am on metoprolol, an even smaller dose than you, and when I come off of it "cold turkey" I crash hard. I would advise you to titer it down, not to simply stop taking it. For "normal people" that is a small dose. If you are like me and are sensitive to medications, your small dose functions like a regular adult dose would.

I get terrible rebound effects the first day off metoprolol. Stay laying down, and don't try to go shopping or anything. (I learned that the hard way...)

Good luck,

Angelika

[britishangel6]

My doc and I recently discussed beta-blockers. Mine was originally prescribed as needed but he told me to take routinely to avoid symptoms caused by just stopping a beta blocker. However, if your dose is small chances are you should be ok stopping cold turkey. This is done routinely with various types of medications that usually wouldn't be stopped suddenly but if you think about it, eventually you have to go from a low dose to nothing. I think talking with your doctors is good and I agree with Corina, if you're not sure taper prior but always speak with your doc first. Good Luck