Side effects of Atenolol

[Jon_D]

I had high BP around 160/90 but a pulse of 60;I'm 70 and have been very fit. However the doc put me on Atenolol 20mgs and within a week I started to have severe leg pains; these were to such an extent that I was unable to walk 100 yards without stopping. After seeing the Doc, he took me off the drug after 4 weeks and the pains eased. However that was 12 months ago and my legs have never recovered fully. Still painful, but not to the same extent as before.

[Gail]

Wow, I thought I was the only one having these problems with atenolol. Im 26 years old and have been out of work for a couple of months now, due to some heart problems. The doctor put me on Atenolol 25 mg and then increased it to 50 mg. My heart rate would be at 130bpm while I was sitting and it stays this way all day. While it seems to be helping with the heart rate the side affects are not. I stay so dizzy and tired somedays I dont even get up out of bed. And not to mention If I try to go outside the heat kills me.I have also started to feel sick to my stomach. It seems as If my mind is not always clear. The only time I feel ok Is when I first wake up in the morning and at night when I go to bed. Two hours in to taking it I get this dizzy feeling almost as if I might faint. My problem is I was feeling this way before due to issues with my heart(the dizziness,lightheaded,tired), but really I want to get back to my normal activites and Im unable to do so. I want to be able to get back out and enjoy life again. I want to know how long these side effects are going to last because I cant handle them much longer. Am I going to have to feel this way forever?

[Gail]

Gerry wrote:

. I notice also that I am afraid of being on my own, which never used to bother me before. I also dread going to bed.
That's all for now. Thanks for the great support.

Ok Im adding to what I had on here before because i just read what he wrote. I too have experinced not wanting to be on my own ... I will have days where I am terrified to be alone, I go as far as not wanting to drive my car as well. ANd Do not want to go to sleep some nights. This is so strange..Ok really Does anyone else experience this if so please let me know...

[Jon_D]

My wife (age 70) has also been on Atenolol for about 5 years now following a heart attack. Gail, the side effects gradually wore off. In addition to the drowsiness etc., she vomited several times a day. This lasted for about 4 weeks but slowly went away. At the moment she is still on the same medication but the only side effect now is the drowsiness.

[Barb]

Went to the doctor and had him take me off this awful medication. For the past 2 weeks I have been weaning off and tomorrow i begin a water pill instead. The days I am off atenolol I feel great. Yesterday was an atenolol day and my LAST day taking this med. I felt LOUSY all freaking day yesterday. A friend was coming to visit and i had to take a rain check because I was too darn SLEEPY! Walked to the store and all i could do when i got back was lie down and sleep. Felt like a zombie. Today no atenolol and i feel awake and rested. Starting tomorrow NO MORE ATENOLOL! And good riddance!

I would suggest anyone taking this crap to see your doctor. Find out if there is something else you can take instead if the side effects of atenolol are intolerable. I told the doc, "I can't work taking this med. Take me off of it PLEASE! Now, two weeks of weaning later I feel MUCH better. It is unbelievable the difference i feel. All that time of suffering a whole year and I didn't know why. I am walking more, losing weight, and feel more vitality. Not fatiqued and lethargic. Even that old stranger, happiness, is coming back so, good bye depression, crying, constipation, and nightmares. PFFFFFT! The regular me is coming back to life.

To the makers of atenolol, that sure is a crappy medicine you've got there. HORRIBLE!

[diana]

i just got on atenolol for rapid heartrate of 160 im on 50 mg. at nights i feel my heart heavy and i find myself waking up gasping for air has this happend to anyone?

[Gail]

diana wrote:

i just got on atenolol for rapid heartrate of 160 im on 50 mg. at nights i feel my heart heavy and i find myself waking up gasping for air has this happend to anyone?

Yes!!! This happenes to me everynight almost. Its very scary. Im going to ask my doctor about it when i go back to see him in another week. But if it does not get any better before then im going to call him because I cant stand these side effects anymore.

[Barb]

I have been totally off atenolol for a week now and feel fantastic. the doctor put me on 25 mg of hydrochlorothiazide (water pill)and I take 5 mg of amlodipine at night. I feel like myself again. not tired and fatiqued anymore. I walk more too. I talked to a nurse at my old doctor's office, and she too was on atenolol at one time. She said she didn't like it so her doc put her on a pill that is a combo of water pill and something else. She said it has worked out great. Glad to be off atenolol. that's some wicked stuff. had i not found this info while doing research for the medical articles i write, i would still be depressed and miserable not knowing why. doc eanted to put me on anti depressants and i said no! not about to fill my life up taking a bunch of pills.

[Marilyn]

Have been on Atenolol for several years. Have fainted 3 times in 3 years with minor injuries. Hospital stays showed nothing until 2 weeks ago when I was admitted for fainting again. FINALLY, the monitor showed a 4 second delay in the heart beat. COMPLETE heart block. Three (3) cardiologists said NO MORE ATENOLOL. Please get off this RX. I am facing the possibility of a pacemaker because of this drug.

[Connie]

I had high blood pressure and anxiety. Dr. put me on 25mg atenolol. I was very tired and felt like I was melting for about 2 weeks. I got better and it helped so much with the anxiety. I just got put on new BP meds. I miss my atenolol!

[Connie]

I had this experience on Prozac. I didn't want to go to bed because I stayed awake all night. I thought about going to the ER every night. I lost 20 lbs within 2 weeks. Could it be another med that you are taking?

Gail wrote:

<quoted text>
Ok Im adding to what I had on here before because i just read what he wrote. I too have experinced not wanting to be on my own ... I will have days where I am terrified to be alone, I go as far as not wanting to drive my car as well. ANd Do not want to go to sleep some nights. This is so strange..Ok really Does anyone else experience this if so please let me know...

[Gail]

No, Im not taking any medication other than the atenolol. But it has seemed to get a little better. My body must be ajusting to the medication. But im still going to ask my Dr. about it when I go see him on monday.

Has anyone experienced headaches with the medication????

[Barb]

yes, i was getting headaches too, but not anymore since being off atenolol. i really feel great now.

Marilyn: sorry about the complete heart block. if you think atenolol caused it, my next trip would be to an attorney to sue the makers. what gets me is these docs are too ready to dole out the pills instead of trying to fix what is causing the high blood pressure in the first place. fainting like that had to be pretty scary.

[Jon_D]

Barb wrote:

what gets me is these docs are too ready to dole out the pills instead of trying to fix what is causing the high blood pressure in the first place.

I agree wholeheartedly! When my wife had an angiogram last year she was found to have a blocked artery and a leaky valve. The consultant told her that it was not serious enough (YET) to operate and told her to take 100 mgrams Atenolol daily. She refused, saying that was excessive. The consultant then got angry, asking why and when she told him about the side eddects I had experienced, he refused to believe her! Anyway she only takes 50mgams as we have been told that taking more has no more effect.

[Barb]

I had the same problem when asking the doctor AND the pharmacist about the constipation and nightmares. The doc said "oh no that wouldn't cause that, you might have something else going on." The pharmacist looked in his little book and said "no, those side effects are not listed." Well, guess what, those side effects ARE listed right here on the internet and i had to find it out for myself! What intriqued me is the fact that doctors in the UK were taking their patients OFF atenolol, and suggested to anyone reading that they see their doctors ASAP and get taken off that med. And that is exactly what i did. Atenolol slows the heart rate, with your wife's blockage i doubt that atenolol is the right choice. The way they have her now, she has a blockage, a slow pump, and a leak as well. she probably feels like a bus hit her right about now. What do they want to do wait until she has a heart attack before doing anything? I would consult another physician. And good for you standing up to that doc. if it's one thing i have learned is to not go for everything they say and research all drugs they prescribe. just knowing the side effects makes you scared to even take any of their meds.

[donna caldwell]

i took atenolol 25mg for about a month, told my dr. i was getting headaches. she told me to stop taking it and put me on gabapentin 300mg.

now i'm in a much worse state than before. are we guinea pigs? do they have a clue as to what is a real help? clueless!

[emy]

i am 43yrs old,and start taking atenolol 25mg.for 4yrs. my doctor increased my dosage to 50mg for two years and i feel okay,my bloodpressure is 140/95,but when i do biking my blood pressure drops to 130/80,last month he increased my dosage to 100mg and i start to feel chest pain,joint pains and rashes,when i run out medicines i half the tablet for 2 days and i feel good,yesterday i went back to him to tell him what a relief for me when i half the dose. He prescribed me back 50mg plus additional medicine hydrochlorothiazide 25mg and now i have palpitation. Last year he also prescribed me this medicine but after one week of taking this medicine i dont feel good so he takes it out and now he puts me back. Im a filipina working in a small island of Saipan there are only few clinics and one hospital.

[Gail]

When I went back to the docter, he told me my heart rate had dropped to 33 bpm and i was told to decrease my dosage back to 25 mg it helps but i am still having problems with palpitations. He is trying to slowly get me off the medication. It has not done me any good. I constanly feel dizzy and drowsy. I will be glad when i can be myself again.

[Barb]

Gail wrote:

When I went back to the docter, he told me my heart rate had dropped to 33 bpm and i was told to decrease my dosage back to 25 mg it helps but i am still having problems with palpitations. He is trying to slowly get me off the medication. It has not done me any good. I constanly feel dizzy and drowsy. I will be glad when i can be myself again.

Hi Gail,
Thats why you feel drowsy and dizzy because your heart rate is so slow. atenolol lowers the heart rate. I have been off of it for a couple months now, walk daily, and have lost weight. I feel great except for the stress of this economy. The palpitations might possibly be due to something you are eating. I say this because i wanted to make a pot of greenbeans and potatoes, using smoked neckbones for flavor. but when i read all of the CHEMICALS used in it; sodium phosphate, sodium nitrite, and some other sodium chemical, i said to myself, if i eat this my heart will be bouncing off the walls. so chose fresh meat instead. i refuse to put that crap in my body ever again. processed meats hold chemicals and far too much salt and MSG that should be illegal to put in our food. canned soups also have way too much sodium. i had to cut a lot of stuff out because of the salt/sodium in them.

[Jon_D]

Another possible source of palpitations though is that the heart is trying to beat faster in order to push the blood around, This is like a car engine revving but the car is not going anywhere. My wife had these and felt faint and was unable even to walk a few yards without feeling exhausted. The Dr. prescribed Digoxin and this slowed the heart down so that it was able to do it job.