I've been depressed for 2 weeks, what should I do?

Treatment and medication
1

Hi all.

I'm new to this so please be patient with me. Suffered AFib last April 2017 out of the blue and was put on Bisoporlol 1.25mg since. Suffered the usual Cold and tired but the last few weeks have been a nightmare. I'm gone so downhill and my mood has really suffered along with no sleep and feel like sometimes caught for breath. Feel light head and all doughy. Been around all the Docs in my clinic and I reckon at this stage they think I'm going nuts so much so they want me to start on anti depressants as he feels I'm mildly depressed. Any help or suggestions would be great at this point.

2

Hi

It seems that majority of people don't have any problems with Beta blockers, so docs are confused when some of us have huge problems.

I personally had exactly the same problems which you listed above (and I had none of them before drugs).

The worst for me was problems with breathing.

When I told that to my doc, they made lots of tests on my lungs, and lungs were fine.

They wanted to do more tests, but I gave up since I knew that a problem is not with my lungs but with Beta blockers, but they didn't believe me, since other people didn't report any problems with BBs to my doc.

I have later quit BBs and all problems have disappeared.

But you can't do that in your case.

Anyway, maybe you could try to ask for Nebivolol (a newer BB, it causes less problems with breathing, at least in my case, but it caused a lot of dizziness on the other hand. But dizziness was better than not being able to breathe for me.)

You are not crazy.

And don't take those Anti depressants.

Your depression and bad mood is caused:

1. by Bisoprolol/Beta Blockers, they affect brain and mood

2. by your problems with Bisoprolol, and then you feel even worse

That is all connected and a vicious circle.

3

I agree with Bob. He talks more sense than some of my previous docs. Bisoprolol caused me so many side effects, depression being one of them,but not the problem with breathing! 

 You’re on a relatively low dose,but the effects can be just as bad. I eventually I persuaded a gp in the practice to change my Meds to atenolol. I was on bisoprolol for 6 years,then the atenolol for at least 1/2 years. Same problem, similar side effects. I read up on the a fib and beta blockers and some info said that if a patient was intolerant/ side effects,then they’re likely to be intolerant to others! So....I decided maybe with hindsight to stupidly wean myself off the B.B. when I was down to half my dose I visited my go. She was ok with my decision. Since then I’ve weaned myself off them completely. Withdrawal was a nightmare and the effects lasted for months. However, after 12 months of b/b free I’m free of the brain fog, depression, falling asleep during the day, I can stand without feeling wobbly, no dizziness etc!

  So to answer your question! I’m no doctor,but I’d put money on it that’s it’s the b/b. What do you do next? Difficult decision. Read up article dr John m about a fib. It’s not easy to live with but it’s not life threatening...hope you take an anti coagulant ie aspirin or other! Go back to your go, print off the dr John stuff ,show it to the doc, insist that you know that you’re not suffering depression and ask to be either prescribed another b/b or off it ! 

   I’m with you all the way. It was an absolute nightmare to get a doctor to listen to me...for years even the cardiologist wouldn’t listen to my concerns,very dismissive. It’s a case of one size fits all! 

  Cheer up ...you’re not going nuts...I felt just the same as you. Lots of support on here. .let us know how you get on. 

4

Not a doctor, my experience with 'drugs', first for thyroid...heart palpitations, shortness of breathe, etc. etc., after enduring for about a year took myself off...3 years ago...thyroid now fine....then was put on eye drops for glaucoma which gave me a mini-stroke...clearly marked on label this could happen....doctor didn't this, nor did pharmacist...then sent for a heart stress test - not the exercise one but injected with crap, told not to have caffeine night before and day of, didn't first half of test perfect, told i could go to lunch and have caffeine, did; came back injected with more crap and heart went out of control, put into emergency, held over night, couldn't get heartbeat down, shocked 3x....put on blood thinner, cholesterol and something else....after side affects which included depression, palpitations, swelling of tongue, internal bleeding plus more....was taking 2 blood thinners a day = 5mg, cut in half for about a month - felt somewhat better, no internal bleeding; then decided i'd had enough - 2 weeks now and went off everything....feeling clearer minded, afew palpitations but can go out for hours shovelling snow, etc. without any breathing problems or heart problems.........told my doctor who looked alarmed and said to take aspirin..which has its own side effects so every 2nd day or so will take an aspirin but will never go on this junk again....the side effects for me were worse than anything...and every 'drug' i've been given lead to severe consequences....only my story, not a medical profession....check side effects on the prescription or on the web site.....

5

I was on Bisoprolol 1.25 last January February and March, thought as soon as I started taking them I cut my tablets in half as they made me feel drunk and as if my lungs no longer work. Nearly a year later and I have finally got the NHS to stop fobbing me off with "its anxiety" that's just a co-incidence thyat it manifested itself the very day I took beta blockers, so next Tuesday I get to see a Neurologist.

I had lung function tests that show my lungs to be healthy mechanically, I suspect the beta blockers disrupted my Autonomic Nervous System that makes my brain forget to tell me to breathe when I am asleep, so I wake up having nightmares that I am suffocating. The hospitals own oximeter showed my blood oxygen going down to 87% when still awake, so I bought my own to see what happens when asleep, it sometimes shows my oxygen spending half the night at 85%, maybe this is why my cognitive impairment is getting steadily worst. The sleep apnea clinic however puts my low readings down to maybe I had a "sweaty finger", so I am not expecting a lot of help from the NHS

You can see from the attached blood oxygen (in green) graph how whilst I am asleep, my finger gets sweaty then miraculously dries inside a rubber finger sleeve then gets sweaty again then dries etc. I think the main priority with the NHS these days is to save money.