Bystolic HELP!!

[Liongirl29]

I need some serious help here as I am having significant problems and the doctors don't seem to know what is wrong with me.  I started taking Bystolic 5mg in early September of this year due to palpitations and an abnormally high resting heart rate.  They can't find any cause with testing.

Bystolic works great for controlling my heart issues---HOWEVER, since about a week or so after starting this med, I started having early morning awakening, and have developed dark circles under my eyes that won't go away even with sleep (was prescribed Seroquel to help with the insomnia).  I look like a walking cadaver.  I am either too hot or too cold, my joints and muscles ache, I'm nauseous, and exhausted.  The exhaustion is not a drowsiness exhaustion, it is more of a sleep deprived exhaustion.  I am losing my memory and the ability to remember how to perform really simple tasks.  I can barely take care of my three year old now and it's like walking in a dream.  I had to drop out of school.

Has anyone else experienced anything like this on Bystolic?  I am at the end of my rope here.  I have taken Atenolol before and don't remember anything like this, other than some weight gain.  Metoprolol was terribly exhausting, but an exhaustion that I am familiar with.  This feels like a chronic illness of some kind!!

Please help, anyone!


Thanks in advance!

[Liongirl29]

Hi there!  Sorry it took so long to get back to you.  I had a little trouble remembering the name of the forum where I posted my original comment and I have a bad habit of never cleaning out my email inbox so there were a ton of emails to go through to find it.

Anyway, I wanted to tell you THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!  I took your advice and stopped the Bystolic.  I now have my life back!  Although I feel like the past fall and winter are mainly a blur (as the Bystolic made me so forgetful) I am now getting restorative sleep again, my brain is functioning, I have energy----the list goes on and on.  You truly saved my life.  I was literally at the end of my rope until you intervened!  You have no idea how grateful I am that you took the time to respond.


I hope that you are doing well also!  Feel free to message back if you like.  :)


--Liongirl29

[Moxul]

I have the same problem , can you please tell me what you are using now .Thanks

[blessed46]

Hi Liongirl29:

Have not heard back from you since my two responses to you two days ago.  Am wondering if you did not receive them.  My computer skills are very limited (email and google searches, primarily), so I've had some trouble getting through to you -- made two or three attempts before someone interceded on my behalf.

Hope you get this and you are doing well.

blessed46

[debbier]

Bumping up for Blessed46

[itdood]

Hi Folks, there are indications when seroquel is prescribed as a sleep aid.   The dosage is adjusted accordingly.  At lower dosages it has a calming - sedative effect.

[LindaTX]

Hi, just wanted to add that my 80 yr old mother-in-law was prescribed seroquel as a sleep aid and although it seemed to sedate her, it made her go out of her mind.  She would not acknowledge anyone around her but she would call out names of people who had passed away, mainly close family members, and she would talk to them and she was just not herself while under the influence of this drug.  So I would be very careful using it for this purpose.

[gb36]

Seoquel for sleep aid?  that is pretty strong stuff and using it for sleep is way off label.  It is a drug for bipolar disorder and now also used for major depressive disorder.  i would switch to ambien or a drug made for sleep.

[aquamarine_moon]

Be careful with the Seroquel as well.  It is a psych med with some pretty serious side effects.  Docs prescribe it for sleeplessness sometimes, but it was created as an anti-psychotic (too sedating for use with that usually).  And, it can trigger some weird stuff.  Memory loss, extreme malaise and "fogginess" can be caused by Seroquel too.

Don't stop either med without talking to your doc, but if I were you, I would switch off the Seroquel to something lighter.

[CFS1]

You should definitely tell your doctor you are having some really bad side effects tfrom the bystolic and ask him to switch your medication.  There are plenty of other meds and if you did fine on the atenolol I would ask about going back to that.

[itdood]

Sounds like you've got the entire list of this drug's listed side effects, except for the dark circles under your eyes.  I'm not sure I've ever heard of that side effect for a BB.

Anytime you have bothersome side effects you should discuss it with your doctor.  As NJ_Jerry mentions, there are plenty of other med choices you could try.

remember, never abruptly cease a med.  The rebound could be harmful.  talk to your doc.

[Jerry_NJ]

If I understand your post the Bystolic can be directly associated with your malaise - if that is true I would ask (tell) your doctor you need to stop taking that medication... and find out what else can be done.

It sounds like you had less problems with Metoprolol, maybe you should go back to it.  My experience with Metoprolol is that I have adjusted to it over a period of months.  I think it still causes some fatigue or more correctly makes it harder for me to engage in heavy physical work/exercise.