# Does blood pressure medication always suck? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 5, 2024, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471 "2024-03-05T04:08:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/21 "2024-03-05T12:02:28Z")
Another uneventful Amlodipine user here. ---
**Author:** ![Lsura](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/22 "2024-03-05T12:14:25Z")
Hydrochlorothiazide/lisinopril combo here. HCTZ is a diuretic, so I pee more. And I also have to make sure I hydrate effectively, but as long as I do that, it’s not so bad. And it’s not like I’m running to the bathroom every 5 minutes, though when I first started it, it felt that way. No side effects from the lisinopril that I’ve noticed. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/23 "2024-03-05T12:49:28Z")
> [@FinsToTheLeft](#): > > amlodipine Been on amlodipine and atenolol for many years. No side effects I know of. Because the atenolol blocks some of the “fight or flight” effects that happen in certain situations, I do find that I don’t back down when angry. For example I saw a guy, much bigger than I am, walk away from his grocery cart in a parking lot. I hollered, “hey asshole, put the cart where it belongs”. I had no increased heart rate which would be expected and feedback into my behavior and cause more fear. Luckily the guy just put the cart back. ---
**Author:** ![velomont](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8491ac/32.png) [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/24 "2024-03-05T12:54:51Z")
I’ve been on BP medication for almost 30 years and, notwithstanding the list of _possible_ side effects, I’ve experienced none of them. On a related note, I was prescribed a statin a couple of years ago and I was very concerned about that because my wife was on them for a couple of months and they gave her debilitating joint pain and she had to stop using them. And like the BP meds I’ve experienced no side effects. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/25 "2024-03-05T13:03:44Z")
I was on a statin for 365 days. Although all my labs were excellent, my cardiologist told me I had a statistically better outcome being on a statin for one year post-stenting. I had horrible leg muscle cramps most nights, which ended abruptly when I stopped the statin after one year. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/26 "2024-03-05T13:44:25Z")
I’m on a combo of metroprolol succinate and losartan potassium. As long as I take one in the morning and the other in the evening, I have no issues\*. When I took both in the morning, I experienced occasional light-headedness. Before the losartan, my doctor prescribed lisinopril. After a month, I developed a very annoying and very persistent cough. After he switched me to losartan, the cough disappeared after a month. \*I meant that I have no issues related to these medications. I do, in fact, have plenty of issues… ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/27 "2024-03-05T13:48:33Z")
I’m on the diuretic that makes me pee, but it’s really only one extra “go” in the morning. The other one has a side effect only if I take it at night. I did it once, and it kept me up the whole night, not that I feel jumpy or anything when I take it in the morning, I just couldn’t sleep when I took it at night. ---
**Author:** ![BrickBat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@BrickBat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickBat)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/28 "2024-03-05T16:52:51Z")
I’ve been on metroprolol tartrate for nearly 2 years and I’ve found my fingers get numb more readily than they used to. If I’m idle and the temperature is below room temperature, they turn white-ish and become very numb until I run them under hot water and knead the blood back into them. Very much like Raynaud’s Syndrome I understand. ---
**Author:** ![KCB615](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ea666f/32.png) [@KCB615](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KCB615)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/29 "2024-03-05T16:53:53Z")
Losartan the last couple of years. Most of the time, zero side effects and I don’t hear my pulse slamming away inside my head anymore. I have found I get some horrendous cramps/lactic acid buildup in my legs when I hike in the mountains. Moderately to very steep trails in the 2000-4000-foot vertical range. Burn like walk 50 feet, stop, repeat. Level ground I can go all day. My doctor says it isn’t on the side effects list, but the timing was too coincidental with when I started (and it didn’t happen on a day I skipped my morning pill, but my ears were pounding all day…). ---
**Author:** ![BertNobbins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3e96dc/32.png) [@BertNobbins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BertNobbins)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/30 "2024-03-05T18:26:03Z")
Another Amlodopine user data point, 10mg daily, 5 years or so, no side effects at all. Seems like good stuff! Can’t eat grapefruit though; that’s real. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/31 "2024-03-05T18:34:44Z")
Nonw with lisinopril here, either. A doctor changed it just for the hell of it, and I had a swelling problem. Back on lisinopril, still without side effects. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/32 "2024-03-05T20:43:23Z")
I’m on two BP pills (3 medicines). Been on them for years and no side effects. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2024, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/33 "2024-03-05T23:34:58Z")
I’m in lisinopril; the only side effect for me is really cool dreams. ---
**Author:** ![Mrs\_Ducky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrs_ducky/32/6227_2.png) [@Mrs\_Ducky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mrs_Ducky)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2024, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/34 "2024-03-06T20:04:08Z")
Amlodopine is evil. My ankles swelled, my heart raced and I broke out in a rash that started in my armpits. (There is nothing like itchy armpits.) The rash took three weeks to go away. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2024, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/35 "2024-03-06T20:17:21Z")
I’ve never had issues with my old standby (bisoprolol, which is a beta blocker). When I was first put on it, 25ish years back, it was a combo pill that included a diuretic, so I had to be careful WHEN I took it (I once took it at the beginning of a movie…). If I miss a dose, my heartbeat tends to race for a day until I get back on it - this is extremely rare, of course. I recently had my dose cut in half (from 5 to 2.5 mg) due to weight loss. One day, I took the full amount by mistake - forgot to break the pill in half when I loaded my pill case. I was so lightheaded when we went to the mall that I had to stop and sit down at least 3 times. I took my BP when I got home and it was something like 85/65, which is a very strange figure. Doc added an ACE inhibitor a few years later, as my blood sugar was creeping up and she said it would help protect the kidneys. She warned me about the possible coughing side effect. When I developed it - almost immediately - she thought the symptoms were more indicative of worsening GERD, and I wasted 3-4 months going down that rabbit hole. Long story short, I finally refused to take it, the symptoms stopped, and I was put on a related class of meds, ARBs (angiotensin receptor blockers) - Benical (olmesartan). ACE inhibitors are insanely affordable (a 3 month supply was something like 2 dollars). They’re effective. And some people tolerate them quite well. They CAN cause significant side effects; one friend was hospitalized with angioedema after having been on lisinopril for several years - it just happened out of the blue. A colleague was ill off and on for several months, including at least one hospital visit; nobody figured it out until a nurse said “Are you on anything that ends in -pril?”. So, obviously, I’m not a huge fan. The ARB hasn’t caused any issues at all. It smells bad (sickly sweet), but that’s only an issue during the pill-reloading step each week, and for a few seconds when I take my daily dose. The closest thing I’ve had to a negative side effect of the bisoprolol is that because my BP is better controlled, I sometimes have more trouble with postural hypotension - as in, sometimes if I stand up too quickly, I briefly get lightheaded. That’s something I had a lot as a kid and young adult, that resolved as I got older and fatter. It’s never been anything more than a nuisance, and is far preferable to uncontrolled BP causing me to stroke out. Something not specifically for the BP: My feet and ankles have always tended to swell when travelling long distances. Annoying and uncomfortable, but managed by remembering to wear compression socks on travel days. About 2 years back, they swelled up badly for no good reason - I had not travelled, and tend to have my feet up when I work. So I did an overdue visit and workup with a cardiologist, who found no real issues (I’d been worried, as swollen legs can be a sign of heart issues). She gave me a scrip for Lasix (a diuretic). That worked quite well (hint: do not take it a half hour before getting in the car for a 12 hour drive!), and my BP also lowered a fair bit, to the point where we considered lowering one of the BP meds. Ultimately I decided to drop the Lasix, as the swelling had resolved, and some labs showed some wonky readings for kidney function. May or may not have been related, but who knows. ---
**Author:** ![Jebbilene](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jebbilene/32/3414_2.png) [@Jebbilene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jebbilene)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2024, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/36 "2024-03-06T20:23:21Z")
Did you find a different medication that worked better for you, or did they all have side effects? ---
**Author:** ![Lancia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lancia/32/17174_2.png) [@Lancia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lancia)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2024, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/37 "2024-03-06T20:27:13Z")
I’m on metoprolol, lisinopril, and hydrochlorothiazide and have never experienced any negative side effects. I’ve been on all 3 for over 15 years. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2024, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/38 "2024-03-06T20:51:31Z")
I took lisinopril for years, and the only side effect that I got was that cough people sometimes get. Since then, it’s been losartan/hydrochlorothiazide ever since, with no side effects. The only annoying _effect_ of the drug (it’s intentional) is that HCTZ is a diuretic, so I have to pee more than I’d prefer. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2024, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/39 "2024-03-06T21:06:19Z")
The spironolactone I currently take for blood pressure does have a potential side effect that it is sometimes prescribed for - [it can stimulate hair growth in people with thinning hair / hair loss](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10010138/#:~:text=Androgenetic%20alopecia%20(AGA)%20has%20negative,by%20dermatologists%20to%20treat%20AGA.). That’s a side effect a lot of people might appreciate. > Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) has negative impacts on both men and women in terms of appearance and mental stress. Spironolactone is a synthetic aldosterone receptor antagonist known to stimulate hair growth and has been widely used by dermatologists to treat AGA. ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2024, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471/40 "2024-03-06T21:19:01Z")
When I first went on BP meds, I’d experience fatigue and dizziness. After a couple of different meds, I now have been on a couple for some 8 years now with NO side effects. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-blood-pressure-medication-always-suck/998471.md?page=3)