I took lisinopril for a couple of years, until I was able to lower my blood pressure through exercise and diet.
The side effects listed are dizziness, lightheadedness, headaches, or a dry cough. I did not experience any of these.
Interesting… the docs tried me on that a few years ago, and while it certainly lowered the blood pressure, it really wiped me out… could hardly get out of bed. While the current stuff doesn’t seem to have any significant side effects.
I guess everyone has different reactions to various medications. We need to work proactively with our doctors to find the best solution. Don’t just assume “Doctor knows best”… good ones will listen to their patients and adjust as appropriate.
Wow. I was like @engineer_comp_geek. I took lisinopril for about a decade. Not for high blood pressure as such, but for another reason. Had to adjust the dose downwards because it made my already-normal blood pressure too low at the typical starting dose. On a mini dose there were no such issues.
But other than that, it’s got fewer perceptible side effects than Tic Tacs.
Overall your larger point is exactly right. There are a huge vairey of BP drugs and there’s a good bet there’s one that will work for most anyone. But it is a diligent process of trial and error to find that one at the correct dose. Which requires diligence on the part of the patient, the doc, and the doc’s practice. The latter mostly because you/they won’t get this right if you can’t get in to see them but once every 6 months scheduled 9 months in advance.
I somehow left “tiredness” off of the list of side effects. Oops. But yes, that’s a possible side effect.
I personally never experienced it.
As the saying goes, Your Mileage May Vary. I can only report the effect it had on me. Wiped me out.
Sure reduced my blood pressure. But other medications seem to be doing a gentler job for me with few side effects. But of course I am not a medical professional…
I think there is a consensus of expert opinion that home blood pressure readings can reveal unexpected changes in blood pressure that may require consultation with a doctor. How much more can you ask of them? Blood pressure readings are a simplistic diagnostic technique that reveals possibilities of problems that have to be examined more closely through other processes.
Yeah, I should have ended that bit with “… for me.” Sorry to sound absolutist.
My whole point was that, exactly as you say, YMMV for any and everyone with this stuff.
I just checked our machines here.
The first one I used was made by Reli-On (cheapie Walmart brand). It worked reasonably well for me, but was unreliable for Mrs. Geek. Relevant to the discussion for this thread, I am “slightly larger” than Mrs. Geek.
The one that she ended up using is made by iHealth. It worked much better for Mrs. Geek.
I use an AND monitor. It has the cuff for around the upper arm. It’ll save readings for 4 people and takes 4 AA batteries. I’m happy with it. I had tried a wrist cuff monitor and it was wildly inaccurate.
Earlier this week I had a BP of 100/63 according to the little wrist device they used in the doctor’s office.
Nope, no way.
I wonder if their digital thermometers give readouts in the low 90s.
I have a really old Omron brand with a large upper arm cuff. It plugs into the wall, so no batteries. I took it in to my docs office a while back and checked it against theirs and it was pretty close, so I trust it, mostly.
(I probably should do that again soon.)
I also take Losartan (twice a day) without much trouble. I do have a dry cough, but it could be from any number of things and seems to be more recent than when I started the Losartan.
A couple of years ago my doc tried me on Spironolactone and, in about a month, I developed very sensitive nipples and my breasts grew. I’m a man, so this was not advantageous for me. (Sensitive in that my shirt rubbing against them actually hurt.) When I told him, he said that was a known side effect and put me back on Losartan.
I’ve noticed some ads recently for ‘smart’ watches that claim to be able to read your blood pressure. When I checked in to them a couple of years ago they were not terribly accurate, and many were outright scams.
They may have gotten better at it, as usually happens, but if you’re tempted that direction, I would suggest you research them thoroughly. At the very least, look them up on Amazon and read the reviews, especially the bad reviews.
Good luck.