How did you wean off Metoprolol?

@joma7862 You asked how my tapering off 12.5 mg of Toprol XL was going, so here's the scoop. In my prior message I mentioned I was trying two different things: 1. coming off the Toprol and 2. switching from Cozaar to another ARB. Just as I was ready to stop the Toprol altogether, my doctor switched me to Edarbi (ARB) and asked me to stop the Cozaar. She then said "go back on the 12.5 mg of Toprol" while you are getting use to the Edarbi. So, I am into Day 3 of weaning off the Toprol and I am having terrible insomnia, anxiety and panic attacks. No doubt, some of this is attributed to starting a new drug (albeit in the same class as Cozaar) alongside tapering the the Toprol. Nevertheless, I am miserable.

Hi all,

I recently had my first a-fib scare, was alone traveling for work, and i woke up feeling like I was running a marathon, visited my PCP and he did and EKG and confirmed AFIB. Said I should go to ER as precaution, by the time I drove myself there..I had converted back to NSR, and they monitored me for an hour and sent me home with a bottle of metaprolol 25mg x2 a day.

I’ve been taking it now for about a week and a half or so solid. Now that I’m back at work, I’m finding that it’s causing me to remain fatigued and tired all the time, and I work on call 24/7. I’ve been hitting the gym at the hotel every day now and I feel fantastic while working out. Yet as soon as I sit down, the overwhelming fatigue sets in. I also feel it’s giving me a bout of insomnia as well.

I have to cut my dosing in half, and wean a few days...then half it again..

What are your recommendations? I have consulted PCP and he didn’t object.

When I first started taking betablockers for a non-sustained ventricular tachycardia, the medication would make me extremely sleepy and sometimes brought my pulse down below 50 and lowered my blood pressure too much. It is 2 and 1/2 years later and the metoprolol no longer has that effect. It took about four months for the side effects to go away.

That’s good to know. I started on a Beta Blocker for Supra Ventricular Tachycardia & stopped after about a week because of fatigue. The SVT only happened when I went for run, so my solution was to stop running (I do a lot of walking now). That was 2 years ago. Recently decided to go for ablation so I can run again. Just had Echogram (sp) & 14 day Halter and next is consultant to see if I am a candidate for ablation.

I was determined to stay on the beta blockers. In addition to the scary ventricular tachycardia, I also have atrial tachycardia and supraventricular. Since being on the meds, all my followup holter monitors have been normal and I'm still on a low dose. I've read that sometimes with ablation you get rid of one type of arrythmia and develop another. Ablation scares me.
So unless my condition changed and/or the benefits outweighed the risks, I couldnt do it.

I have been on metoprolol tartrate for quite a few years. I have what they call "burning mouth syndrome" for at least 6 years and have read that metoprolol is one of the blood pressure medications that can cause this. I can' t convince my cardiologist, but want to taper off for a few weeks to see if this is the culprit. I have a-fib and on Eliquis for this. The metoprolol is to keep my heart rate at an acceptable rate. I would like to hear from anyone who has had this burning mouth side efftect and if the metoprolol was the cause. Thanks for any help.

The one side effect that does not seem to go away is hair loss! I shed like a golden retriever. Not all beta-blockers do this. I am reluctant after 2 1/2 years to switch. I tried others and I got intolerable g.i. side effects. On a low dose of 12.5mg twice a day and it controls my arrythmia. Metoprolol has also made my IBS-C worse. It doesnt just slow my heart rate....it slows my motility to a grinding halt. The fatigue and sleepiness disappeared in the early months of taking it as well as the low bp and heart rate. I do feel lucky that I have not yet had to increase the dosage and that my heart is behaving well so far.

Good news, discovered a coffee 99.9% caffeine free, called Mommee Coffee. Sells online for pregnant Moms. Surely is nice to have a little coffee again that doesn't seem to bother my afib. Yeah!!

Bisoprolol was the first medication the cardiologist prescribed for the non-sustained ventricular tachycardia. It worked extremely well. However, it caused intolerable g.i. symptoms. ( and when it comes to my lemon of a digestive tract, I can put up with a lot). I must have tried 5 different medications , e.g atenolol( & a calcium channel blocker which made me worse). Finally I picked the betablocker that I felt I could live with and that was metoprolol. After about 10 difficult months, my body seemed to accept the metoprolol (at least to an acceptable level) and my follow-up holter monitor results have all been good.

@sue225 I have been on 12.5 mg of Toprol for over 13 years. I have lost so much hair. My doctor says she doesn't believe such a low dosage is the culprit. I don't know. In any event, I am coming off of it. I have reduced to 6.25 mg for 12 days now. My anxiety is out the roof. My dermatologist, on the other hand, says my hair loss could be the Toprol. I'm afraid at this point, after so many years, I won't have any new growth. I'll just be happy if the shedding stops.