Amlodipine

[Missesd22]

I'm 39 and been told I have high blood pressure not high enough for hospital treatment
Currently on a diet and it's working as cholesterol levels have came down but docs have just put me on 5mg Amlodipine
Took my first last night and due my next shortly
I'm not sure if the symptoms I have are normal or if to stop taking them after 1 dose and speak to docs on Monday morning

This morning I woke up with a sore head then had a upset stomach ie loose stools (so wasn't sure if it was something I ate previously or if it's the Amlodipine) took pain killers for sore head and been ok till 6ish had dinner and had issues with stomach again as above my legs feel heavy slightly feel slightly warm in face vison feels funny

Are these normal and will it settle if I take next dose or will that make things worse?
Or do I miss this dose and see how stomach is in morning and take again tomorrow night and if stomach same as today on Monday then I know for sure it's tabs

What other tabs are better for high blood pressure?
Plus we are due to fly out in 9 days so not wanting heavy legs etc

I'm new to all this

It says speak to GP if you get stomach issues.

https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/amlodipine/side-effects-of-amlodipine/

I couldn't tolerate that one at all. The GP has now switched me to lercanidipine which is also a CCB but a newer drug with fewer side effects.

Amlodipine made my legs swell horribly so they changed me to Ramipril which is working just fine.

So far no more issues with stomach yet will see how I go tomorrow as for legs no sign of swelling just feel heavy at times
New to all this after finally accepting that I need medication to lower bp so still slightly worried and anxious

Hoping stomach was just a result in something dodgy I ate rather than the meds

Out of curiosity does it lower your heart rate?
I have a smart watch and it's in the resting range which is good

I’m on lisinopril and Bisoprolol and no side effects apart from feeling cold sometimes (which is helpful with menopause!)

I hated Amlodipine. My cat was on it as well, and she didn't seem too happy!

Am now successfully getting my blood pressure down by:
Drinking weaker coffee
Losing a bit of weight
Taking a low-dose aspirin most days

The aspirin's no longer recommended medically, but I take a pain killer fairly regularly so figured this wouldn't do any harm. The thing that made the most difference was the coffee. I'm an addict - I switched from killer strength to supermarket number four.

Anything similar you can do?

I've been on a diet anyway and have lost weight and since my last blood test 3 months ago my cholesterol level has dropped so I'm in the right track
I've reduced my caffeine intake (not a big coffee drinker more tea) so maybe 1 cup a day I have a active job housekeeper and I try and go for walks in the evening or days off
They thought it might be high due to anxiety as I hate the bp monitor lol but they don't want to keep taking the risk of not trying me on medication just in case as high BP does run in the family

Was thinking of taking suppliments to help with heart and cholesterol

Just hoping if these are normal effects or me just being overwhelmed by it all that by the time the end of next week comes I won't feel as bad and can enjoy 10 days of sun and relaxation

All BP meds (and I've tried a few) gave me weak legs and weird fuzzy feelings in eyes , mainly in an evening. Luckily my BP went back to normal after a few months on Beta blockers and I've now weaned off them and BP still ok - I hated the whole bunch of them , side effects were not nice- but everyone's different in this.

Hey
Just wanting a little advise or even tips would be great from anyone in the medical field.

I currently work in a GP surgery however my GPs can't look at me due to confidentiality etc.

Since January I have been quite bad sciatica which travelled down my leg however the past month or so in appear to be more my legs now both sides however more so the left leg. The pain is under my bum cheeks where my thigh would be and just under my knee at the back where ur calf is.

I've been to my own GP they said I've chronic sciatica however if it is sciatica I need different medications as taking naproxen and amtripitline is not working. Some times if I'm stand any more than 20 to 30 mins the pains in my legs are so sore I have to sit down and raise my legs up.

I cant keep going on like this and feel there cud be something more than sciatica Coa surely you don't have it continuously.

Thanks ❤️

Try changing the time you take it, I take mine after dinner in the eveing.

I'm on that too along with Losartan,two really low doses of each seems to work better for me than one higher dose. I don't seem to get any side effects with Lercanidpine.

OP speak to the GP about it, it did take a long time for side effects to settle down, about 6 weeks but now I have the dose right it's fine.

I couldn't tolerate Amlodipine at all, I swelled up and my face was hot but freezing hands,really awful .

@MrsPelligrinoPetrichor

Yes I have far fewer with the newer drug. I had a few dizzy spells to start with and some fatigue. Both seem to disappear after a week or two.

Amlodipine was awful. My legs were heavy and aching and my feet and ankles swelled every day. Not to mention the awful dreams (yes that is actually a recognised side effect!)

The dreams were EXHAUSTING!

Did you have a 24 hour BP monitor to use at home? That is a better indication of BP issues than a one off check at the docs. White Coat syndrome and all that!

I have to monitor mine at home,it's always sky high at the hospital or surgery. I only have to see the monitor and start hyperventilating 🙄🤣

Same here. I bought a BP monitor in Boots and honestly cannot believe how within normal range my BP is, when like you, it was always sky high in medical settings!

And they don't even mention it as a possibility in the PIL. You have to know about it to find out about it.

I never used to remember my dreams but having 3 or 4 every night bordering on nightmares was horrible. It took me a while to make a connection as I'd been on the drug for a couple of months before they started.

I run the hypertension clinic in my GP surgery. I only prescribe amlodipine to over 55’s or if they cannot tolerate ACE or ARB or if their BP isn’t managed on one medication.

Did you do weeks worth of BP readings to begin with? All my patients do this unless their bp is very high and/or they have symptoms. There can be a huge difference in clinic bp’s and the average home reading.

Did they run through all the lifestyle changes etc? You are young and although runs in your family, jumping to meds straight away is harsh unless very high.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/dash-diet/art-20048456

Mine was super high and I still had to do 4 days of home readings,it came down slightly but not enough. Biggest help has been weight loss,I'm on a quarter of what I was on originally.

Is that because lots of people can't tolerate it?

These are some good sites with plenty of info on them. Make sure you’ve not drunk any caffeine within 15 mins of taking your bp and you’ve been sat down at rest for 5-10 mins too.

https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/heart-matters-magazine/research/blood-pressure/blood-pressure-tips

https://www.bloodpressureuk.org/your-blood-pressure/how-to-lower-your-blood-pressure/healthy-living/

@MrsPelligrinoPetrichor no more just guidelines although will be started younger if certain ethnicity.
ACE and ARB’s also offer some renal protection especially to diabetics.

Lercanidipine is same type of drug as amlodipine but has much less side effects, is tolerated better but it’s not first line treatment as it’s more expensive 🙄

@MrsPelligrinoPetrichor well done on your weight loss.

Losing weight and getting out for a brisk walk for 20-30 mins every day will bring a drop in your blood pressure and in some cases mean you don’t need to start meds just yet.