Q: I am a healthy 50-year old man taking carvedilol for high blood pressure. I know that my HBP is due to the stress I’ve been dealing with at work following various structural changes recently put into effect. Prior to the changes, I did not have HBP. Since I started the medication, I’ve struggled with focusing, I find it difficult to exercise, I suffer from swelling in my feet and tingly hands. Clearly, the side effects are adding to my stress at work. If I walk, run, bike, or do any other exercise or activity, my fingertips turn red, my hands develop white splotches, and I feel mentally confused and weak. I’m not sure what to do, especially since my blood pressure has gone down?
A: You are experiencing some well-known side effects of the drug carvedilol, it is a type of drug known as a beta-blocker. There are other types of medications available to treat high blood pressure that you can sample until you find the one that does not cause you such side effects while reducing your high blood pressure. You should talk to your doctor about switching to a different type of drug. There usually is a more effective and comfortable way to reduce high blood pressure than bearing the harsh side effects of medications.
You might also want to mention to your doctor trying Resperate – the only FDA cleared medical device that naturally lowers high blood pressure, and there are no side effects. The device generally takes between 3 – 6 weeks to start demonstrating positive results and you can use Resperate while taking your medication. It is also important that you eat healthy and avoid foods that will further aggravate your high blood pressure. I suggest looking at DASH Eating Plan – designed to lower high blood pressure – for guidance to healthy eating. Another suggestion is to also seek advice from a therapist on how to best manage your stress at work. Possibly, stress management is all you need to get your HBP under control. In the mean time, here is a great article from the American Heart Foundation about stress and hypertension that includes tips on managing stress.
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I, too, had a terrible time with side effects from BP meds. They tried Lisinopril, Losartan and Metroprolol on me, along with 10 mg of Amlodipine.
I have COPD and all these meds, except the Amlodipine, further complicated the breathing problems I already had. I was desperate to find some alternative and in doing research online I found the RESPeRATE. I finally took the plunge and bought a refurbished unit.
I have been using the unit about 4-1/2 months. Right now I am taking only 10 mg of Amlodipine a day, and I hope to get off that in the future. My BP numbers have been ranging in the low 120’s for systolic and average 68-72 for diastolic — and this is much lower than what the combination BP meds were accomplishing.
Try RESTeRATE, but be sure and give it time. I used it twice a day every day for nearly 8 weeks before I finally got a breakthrough.
I also suffered many side effects from taking Carvedilol including insomia,depression. When I complained to my doctor about the side effects he prescribed more drugs. A drug to help me sleep and a drug for depression. With the help of a phychiatrist I was able to get off these drugs including Carvedilo. Most doctors start a patient out on 12.5 Mg Carvedilol twice a day. I have since done a lot of research and discovered a patient should only be given 3 MG twice a day and see how he reacts to the drug. If the drug is increased slowly as the body gets used to it most of the side effects will disappear or not be as severe. I have had great success in lowering my blood pressure by eating more potasium rich foods and drinks such as beet juice,V8 low sodium juice,walnuts,celery,dark chocolate, more fish and salmon and less beef,more vegestables and fruis. I also lost 20 pounds and walk 45 minutes every day . My blood pressure is now 130/76 with a heart rate of 65 and excelent colestorol. not bad for a 71 year old man. If you have any questions or concerns you can contact me at [email protected] with Jerry Cooke in the subject line.