I've been really badly congested and bought some OTC pseudo ephedrine capsules from the pharmacy but having taken a few I noted that it says not to take if you have high BP. I'm on Amlopidine 10mg daily but BP now down to about 140/80, am I OK to continue taking the pseudo ephedrine or should I stop it? anyone know anything about this combination?
Thanks
Lizzie
Advise: stop it, you are endangering yourself witgh the kind of compounds[ physician writing]
Thank you, I went into then local pharmacy this morning and they advised the same thing, I continue to take the amlopidine as that is under the supervision of my gp but have thrown away all the npseudo ephedrine. I am seeing gp a week on Friday about my BP and will ask for her advice about the congestion.
Lizzie
stay of all cow milk products [and as you may know of course: sugar,white bread etc] and if you can find black cumin oil in capsules then take 2x per day one [are often very helpful in congestion] and don't forget your vitamin D and K2 and Magnesium [not familiar with this? ask your doctor,hope he deals with this]
Latin name of black cumin : nigella
Thanks for all your kind advice, we have a Holland and Barrett in the town, maybe they will sell these products.
Lizzie
hi lizzie i have the same problem .i"ve got a stinking cold with blocked up sinuses and all the meds i have looked at say to seek advice if you have high blood pressure so i am just taking paracetamol
Nigella seeds are also available in indian stores often called kalonji (or similar spelling), sometimes theyre also referred to as black onion seeds although they arent actually related to the onion family, they just smell slightly of onion - they are not cumin seeds either, so should not be confused with cumin (also called jeera) - there is a variety of black cumin seeds (kala jeera) but these are not related to nigella.
Nigella: Blood pressure 4 studies
The reduction in blood pressure is only seen in hypertensives and very mild (1-3mmHg), likely not practically relevant at all.
Helps very well against allergies and a bit against nasal congestion.
Totally safe
Lizzie,
Full disclosure, I have super duper high bp right now, just so you know -- 210/94. However, this is recent and probably caused by my hyperthyroidism.
Having said that, I have taken my BP a lot over the past 17 years, and I have found that Sudafed -- the real pseudoephedrine, not the fake, PE kind, DOES NOT raise my bp any more than a point or two, on days that it does, that is. Most of the time, it does not at all. Caffeine DOES NOT raise it at all. It does my my pulse go faster for about a half hour to an hour, though.
Cold cuts, bacon, hot dogs, and Chinese food DOES raise it, a lot, and sometimes for days. So avoid nitrates, nitrites, and MSG!
My doctors all say, yeah, avoid Sudafed if you can, but we know that you have to breathe. It seems like they don't care so much about it as they used to. I suggest you take your own readings before, and an hour and two after you take the pills and see how your own body reacts.
Lizzie,
Also, just so you know, I took Amlodipine, and had terrible side effects, some of which were, a cough which would not go away, and TERRIBLE chest pains. Both of these went away after I stopped taking it. I also developed asthma, which didn't go away, and resists medication.
Hi there, thanks for your messages.
I knoiw lots of people have problems with amlopidene but I've been lucky with it, no side effects at all. It was lisinopril that really damaged me, I came out in a terrible rash and continually felt dizzy and faint, almost as if I was about to die - I came off it pretty quick.
I have an Omron M3 meter and am going to start a series of readings for 5 days this Saturday before seeing my gp a week tomorrow, I wondreded too abopu the real pseudo fed but I have real troubl;e getting any remedies at all from our local pharmacy as I'm on so many different meds that everything they stock thay say reacts with soemthing I'm on. I can't lie to them and pretend I'm on nothing as its only a small town and they all know me, and anyway, I do tend to trust their judgement. I'm hoping my gp will be able to suggest sopemthing next week and I'm also looking into homeopathic medecines, though I've always been rather sceptical I'm beginning to wonder of they might be worth a try.
The thing I give biggest thanks for is that my bipolar is totally controlled and my anxiety pretty much completely at bay, I can cope with my physical ailments and conditions far better than things in my head!
All the best
Lizzie
p.s. I'm 58, way overweight at BMI = 40 !!! been bipolar since 1984 but happily retired now and living in a village in the English countryside, nearby town being quite compact and with soem nice shops. Female of course and divorced way back in 1991, financially secure at the moment, but as they say, there but for the grace of God ....
Lizzie
Thanks loxie, useful info which I'll look into
Best wishes
Lizzie
Hi nellybear
Sorry to hear you are suffering too, paracetamol does nothing for me and like you say, all the meds for congestion say avoid if have high BP. I think my sinus problems are alllegry related as they tend to start each year with the hayfever season for which I take fexofenadine and ey drops, I also have an avymys nasal spray but rarely use it as I find it quite unpleasant.
All the best
Lizzie
Very interesting you mention the types of food that raise your readings. My partner has high BP, has just had his meds dose increase as his BP has gone up even further. He's vegetarian but he does eat chinese veggie food, I'll tell him no more takeaways! I cook chinese, thai, indian etc at home and dont use all the additives, so he'll have to stick to home cooked food from now on.
I've told him to stop taking anything for congestion - unfortunately some types of BP meds actually cause the problem, catch 22 situation. He does get some relief from Olbas oil - either drops on a tissue or even on the pillow so that you inhale it overnight - it helps.
My partner Tim has that cough and was told by an aquaintance also on Amlodipine that it was the meds that were causing it. Doctor refused to accept it was causing the problem or to change meds. Tim has terrible blocked nose and throat overnight and snores badly - we're very sure it's the meds that are causing it. I'm trying to find info on how to reduce his meds but maintain a healthy BP.
Hi Loxie
I didn't know some BP meds could make congestion worse, but it is definitely the case that this psing my congestion has been worse and I first went on amlopidene in the back end of last year.
Last time I did a week of home readings my BP always went up through the day, I take the amlopidene at night as per instructions so thought it would be most effective earlier in the day, gradually wearing off over 24 hours, but then its duting the day that I eat my three meals and if I have anything with processed meats and additives its at lunch and tea (we have our main meal in the middle of the day which is better for my reflux), breakfast is small and simple.
I'm walking a lot and getting plenty of fresh air although I've noticed that today, as its been raining and cooler, my breathing has been better. I also have asthma for which I have a brown and a blue inhaler. Hayfever plagues me all spring summer and autumn, basically I'm allergic to lots of things. I once had an allergy test but went into anphalctic shoc k and they never tried to do it again, scary.
At a bit of a loss basically, my gp is trying her hardest and I've been in touch today with an old friend who is a homeopathic expert, but I want to run her ideas past my doctor before trying them as I'm on just so many meds.
I'm not downhearted though, mentally I'm better than ever despite having suffered from bipolar and anxiety, soemtimes I think there is a link between my physical and menatl health but can't see it at the moment as my mental health is tip top but physical health quite flakey.
Sorryn to ramble on, just getting of my chest, if you'll excuse the pun!!!!!
Lizzie
Hi Guys,
I am just going to give you all my thoughts, and let you know what I do.
I have been having health problems for quite a few years now -- I plug one hole, and a get another leak. I think they all go back to (undiagnosed, but it really has to be) B12 deficiency. I take B12, because it is safe, but deficiency is hard to diagnose, and you don't know you are deficient until you start sliding down hill. This is especially true for vegetarians.
1) Do as I say, not as I do, and excercise. Really push it and get that heart rate up.
2) Not only did I have all the classic signs of B12 deficiency, but I had a lot of more subtle ones too, including a headache over my eye that was like a knife twisting non-stop from March until December. Sudafed helped a bit, but only a bit. When Zyrtec came out, I started taking that, and within two weeks, found the headaches managable, and after a few years, though I still had headaches every day, they were nothing like before. My BP was excellent all this time.
3) I was pregnant, and at the doctor's office, they kept writing off my 130/90 BP as "White Coat Syndrome" (watch out! They all want to do that.) I went into labor, and my BP shot up suddenly to 240/170. No meds were given afterward. With my second, I was given BP meds before, durin, and after. Ever since then, I have had high blood pressure 140/ 93 which would go up to 203/125 (rarely) whether I was on meds or not. Now, with my hyper active thyroid, I am on low meds, many don't work, all of which I have had some problems with,
Sorry, I had technical difficulties:
So anyway, my BP is not typical.
4) I developed ASTHMA while on Amlodipine. Watch out for Hydrchlorothiazide too. Inhalers don't help too much. Last week, I started taking Turmeric to help alleviate inflamation. While I was having an asthma attack -- short breaths, cough, tight chest -- it was time to take my Turmeric. I was not taking it because of the attack, it was just time to take it. Within 5 minutes, my attack stopped, and I can breathe deeper and deeper each day. The one I am taking is Curcuma Longe 1200mg, Cucuminoids, 100mg.
5) To get off of my BP meds, I halved my dose every day for two weeks, then took the half dose every other day for two weeks, then every third day for two weeks, then, nothing. You can do it more gradually, but I would not recommend any faster. Whenever I take long term meds, I always step down my dose in order to go off of them.
6) I personally feel better when I drink milk or eat dairy, so go by yourself for dairy or no.
7) I have come to really believe in vitamins:
B12 10,000 mcg a day
Magnesium I take two caplets a day
D3 NOT D2 1,000 to 4,000 units a day
B2 -- great for headaches -- 500 mg a day
Iron -- if you are a man, or menopausal, 1-2 a week Feosol Bifera 28 mg, premenopausal, 4-7 a week. Bifera has Heme type of iron, so don't take if you are vegan
Zinc -- 30 mg a day
A good B Complex
Cod Liver Oil -- I am not currently taking it, but I think it is a good idea
A good Multi Vitamin
A banana a day
Apple Cider Vinegar tablets 1 tablet twice a day
I don't know the atomic permutations like some people, but these make me feel a whole lot better, have really helped/cured some problems, and, I am very comfortable with the doses.
The cough is NOW on the list of side effects, at first, it wasn't. Print it out from the internet and show your partners doctor. If I refuse to take something, the doctor eventually gives in and prescribes something else.