Blood Pressure Meds (ARBS). Has anyone had a POSITIVE experience?

@unmanageable Continue working with your doctor. Do you see a cardiologist? There are reasons BP can be hard to control. Also some people, like me, have to take several different classes of medication and split between am and pm dosing. I and being evaluated for some rather rare conditions like a neuroendocrine tumor and FMD. Those can be treated with minor surgeries. It would be great not to require so much medication but I do tolerate propanol, olmesarten and hydralazine well.

@con123
Thank;you for advise but i don't see a cardiologist as yet,got to wait until doctors transfer me .For now i see normal GP.I will try the hydrazaline 25mg that the doctor added to my 2 meds,but how does hydrazaline make you feel

@lilac2025 I can tell you a little of my journey. At 50, with a stressful joband limited time for exercise, my BP was moderately high and my family histories (both sides) of cardiovascular disease was awful, so I began taking a low dose of losinopril. It was okay except for a nagging cough, which I attributed to, my asthma and allergies. Then I learned it was a common side effects of the medication.

At 57, I had an unfortunate medical situation that caused a very rapid heartbeat, so this was switched to metoprolol. Around that time, my asthma became more difficult to control. Seven years later, in consultation with a clinical pharmacist, my primary did a med review to figure out why I was having so much trouble. It turned out the metoprolol was fighting my asthma meds and I was switched to Losartan.

Losartan hasn't caused any issues, and last year I was diagnosed with coronary artery disease (thank you genetics!) The cardiologist was happy with the BP control the low dose of the drug provided, and didn't change it.

I consider it a success story. I continue to try to maintain a healthy diet and weight, and get good exercise and sleep.

@unmanageable I have no side effects from hydralazine and I take 50mg twice a day. If I get a spike in the afternoon, I can take an additional 50mg. It is a pretty high dose but I tolerate it just fine. Good luck - mention cardiology to your GP. Mine sent me to endocrinology for a workup due to so many spikes (one sending me to ER). Now if I have one, it is seldom and not terribly high. They added a very small dose of an alpha blocker as well. I hate all these meds but as long as I don't have side effects, I'll do what I need to.

@sueinmn I'm the complete opposite. I'm on Metoporol 25mg and Elquius 5mg morning and night. I too am asthmatic. They were worried it would aggravate my asthma but I also have AF and it was controlling my heartbeat really well and didn't affect my asthma. Yay. I have been on BP meds from the age of 29 I've just reached the age of 73. Caduet 10mg BP 10mg cholesterol. Recently my BP had been hard to control and my kidney levels were dropping so I'm seeing a kidney specialist. He's put me on APO - Irbesartan 150mg morning and night to get it down but hasn't worked so I have another tablet Moxonidine 30mg once per day. It concerns me being on so many BP meds so I'm seeing my GP next Tuesday to get this BP sorted. I also have Atrial Fibrilation diagnosed this time 2024 so I have had a pacemaker installed. We have a history of heart in our family dads side. I really do not like this getting older. Lol

@ann3838 I got my best advice on BP meds from a Clinical Phramacist who reviewed all of my meds, then communicated with my cardiologist to get it all sorted out.
If you are on Medicare and more than 5 prescriptions, you can request a medication review once a year. Try to get it from someone connected to your doctors, not an insurance company.

@sueinmn
Thanks Sue I'll talk to the GP next Tuesday about getting BP meds reviewed.

@ann3838 The pharmacist, or a specially trained RN, will review ALL of the meds (Rx and over-the-counter) and supplements you take. They will look for possible interactions, over/under medication and MAY be aware of newer drugs they can bring to your doc's attention.

This has been helpful for both me and my husband as we get older. With their suggestions and my doctors' consent, I have weaned off three meds and have stopped 2 supplements that were interfering with my medications.

@lilac2025 I can tell you a little of my journey. At 50, with a stressful joband limited time for exercise, my BP was moderately high and my family histories (both sides) of cardiovascular disease was awful, so I began taking a low dose of losinopril. It was okay except for a nagging cough, which I attributed to, my asthma and allergies. Then I learned it was a common side effects of the medication.

At 57, I had an unfortunate medical situation that caused a very rapid heartbeat, so this was switched to metoprolol. Around that time, my asthma became more difficult to control. Seven years later, in consultation with a clinical pharmacist, my primary did a med review to figure out why I was having so much trouble. It turned out the metoprolol was fighting my asthma meds and I was switched to Losartan.

Losartan hasn't caused any issues, and last year I was diagnosed with coronary artery disease (thank you genetics!) The cardiologist was happy with the BP control the low dose of the drug provided, and didn't change it.

I consider it a success story. I continue to try to maintain a healthy diet and weight, and get good exercise and sleep.

I've taken Losartan ( 100mg/day, then cut back to 50mg when other medications were added) for high blood pressure for many years and have never had any side effects I can identify from this medication. Losartan is one of a number of medications I take for high blood pressure and other cardiac issues, and the losartan seems to get along very well with those other meds.