AboutCharles Cusumano, FMP, PA-C Expertise I will answer questions about the different causes of Hypertension; the complications; the treatments and the drugs used.Hypertension is a silent, potentially deadly disease that`s completely treatable. Knowledge is power.
Experience Nationally Certified Physician Assistant/Family Medicine Practitioner.
I've been in practice since 1975.
Organizations I am currently serving as an expert in the Family, General and Internal Medicine site right here at AllExperts.com. You can visit my profile there. I was also honored as a Distinguished Fellow in the AAPA.
I appreciate your concern and prompt response. I trully and holdheartedly agree with you in a face to face consultation with a pysician. Something that I have done till I settled here. When my first panic attack happend, I have never even heard of this condition, it occurred while driving my RV in a crowded city and was summoned to the nearest hospital in an ambulance. I thought I had a heart attack. I didnt. They took X rays, electro, echo, and treadmill. I had no enzymes suggesting a possible infarctation. In other words a perfectly healthy body which I was abusing with mental stress 17 Hrs. a day, lots of caffeine and no excercise. (They made me clean up my diet, they gave me Lopressor 25 Mg twice daily, Ativan in case I felt another onset approaching and Ambien to relax at night). Armed with all this medicine, since I still had to finish and deliver the programming job I continued working frantically. The next panic attack happened while walking in a crowded fruit market. Next I it seemed I became allergic to highway ramps, bridges, overpasses and construction zones with orange cones. My heart would go into tachicardia when approaching these road hazards. Four emergency room visits later I gave up programming sold the RV, bought 6 used washing machines and dryers and am setting up a laundry to support mysel. Have checked into a hotel by the sea for the next three months. My balcony is literally 20 feet from the tide line, I go barefoot everywhere, Im on my swimming trunks all day, local ladies cook home food and bring it to me daily (only the best fresh seafood and vegetables). No salt, no caffeine, no alcohol, no red meat, no tobacco. A total decompression stop and detox attempt to regaing fitness and health. I am fortunate enough to be able to do drastic life style changes to accommodate to whatever course of treatment seems best to tackle my problem. I read YOGA and meditation helps... I used to do that in my younger years and Im talking myself into getting started again. My plan is to slowly increase physical work without pushing myself and slowly taper off Lopresor in order not to risk a heart event. I began mild jogging for 15 minutes every day which I will increase provided I dont feel any adverse side effects or withdrawal symptoms. But Im finding out Lopressor does not allow me to do even the mildest excercise, (75 Mg twice daily my current dose), no matter how little excercise I do It grabs a hold of my heart and doesn not let it pump the required blood flow for a mild increase in physical activity and its like Im fighting againts this medicine. Reducing the dosage however little is prooving to be incredibly hard.. as If I was addicted to it. I have tried other BP medicines which were not as harsh as Lopresor (Preterax, Norvasc, etc), all of which I was able to kick whenever I felt better, but Lopresor is giving me a hard time. I though of introducing another medicine to keep my BP in check while tapering off Lopresor and Cozaar seemed to have the least side effects so that was the purpose of my initial question to you. Can Cozaar be taken concomitantly with Lopresor.. You mentioned that they are two different drugs but do they antagonize or are they compatable.. Remember.. I dont have heart problems.. I used to have anxiety attacks till I quitted programming and now my problems seems to be that Im addicted to Lopresor even If the main source of Anxiety (programming and driving) are gone. All doctors agree that rest, good diet and excercise is the best course of action. I cannot excercise while on Lopresor and cant seen to get rid of it. I need an expert to coach me while I detox. The small village where I settled down does not have qualified doctors. A team of "Doctors without Borders" come here every 6 months from the States but they are not scheduled to be here any time soon. I dont want to take much of your time but could you give me some insight as to what are the best steps a physically healthy male, 52 years of age, single, can take to safely get off Lopresor. There must surelly be another medicine that can control the onset of panic attacks without preventing me from exersicing. I trully appreciate your effort, concern, good will and advice, Thanx beforehand. Best Wishes... Sebastian
Answer Hi Sebastian,
I envy you the ability to be able to change professions. Clearly this seems to have helped you. Lopressor doesn't PREVENT panic attacks, just the symptoms associated with them.
You CAN exercise on Lopressor.It just won't allow your heart rate to rise in proportion to the level of exercise. If you were on the Lopressor simply to keep symptoms under control, then you can taper it slowly without any ill effects.
You should start by halving the dose for a week and then halving the dose again for a week and then stopping it altogether. If you were on the medicine for high blood pressure or to control an irregular heart rate, then again, I wouldn't stop it until I could talk with a physician. Cozaar CAN be taken with Lopressor but you have to watch that your blood pressure doesn't go too low while on them both.
