Lisinopril and stroke

I am on the lisinopril and hydrochlorothiazide combined pill. I take two a day, which is 40 mg of lisinopril and 50 mg of hydrochlorothiazide. I have been on the medication for about a year, but about a month ago I started experiencing horrible nausea and a bad taste in my mouth. I also had very bad dizzy spells, to the point I nearly fell down several times. I went to my medical practitioner, who is an FNMP, and she said I had ear wax and that was what was causing the problems. Cleaned out my ears, pronounced me well and sent me home. I don't think she really listened to me, because I work in the medical field and never in my life had I heard of ear wax causing vertigo, dizziness, and profound nausea. Maybe an ear disorder. At any rate, I stopped the medicine and all the symptoms disappeared within a few days. I went to see my neurologist yesterday and my BP was 162./102. I told him about the problem with my BP medication and he told me to go home and immediately take the medication and call the doctor Monday to get the medicine changed. So I went home, took only one pill, and the symptoms immediately returned. I will just have to die of a stroke between now and Monday because I am never taking this medication again. Why don't medical practitioners listen?

went to doctor for headache, he put me on bp meds (Lisinopril/Hydrochlorothiazide- 20 / 12.5) & happy pill (Paxil - 20mg) , a headache pill i only took a few times , cuz headache was going away, i thought due to lower bp ,within 1 weeks time , the next wk-end , i passed out while talking , (no warning)everybody said resembled stroke, went back to doctor , he suggested i have test done , i refused till it happens again, he put me on chol meds.(simvastatin 40mg) due to hereditary factor , went 3 more weeks , passed out at work (fainted), had numbness in both lower arms & both lower legs , took me to hospital, did cat scan, said shows sign of stroke ????? , went back to doctor, he doesn't want me to do anything until i see a neuro & do a MRI. I have an appt next mon , ** I was tired b4 i ever went to doctor, & did seem to get better, but now extremely tired after episode, I Do have heart palps, sweat perfusly, had a couple of stabbing pains, have dry coughed a couple times, but pretty sure have had at times b4? ,ok, all i know is, b4 i went to doctor , i was fine except for a headache !!!??? now hit the dirt 2 times with in a month , woke up this morning w/ a thought - i don't care what the doctor says , i'm getting off these meds & go back to over the counter plain ole asprin !I (especially after reading this ( a BIG Thank You to my neice for website) I will go to neuro dr on mon, for MRI, which all these appts are costly ! thanks yall !

Get off this nasty drug. It has the most horrible side effects.Is there a lawsuit against this drug. If so I need to follow-up.I had,:
THROAT SWELLING AND LIPS SWELLING
EXTREMELY DRY ITCHY THROAT.
DRY HACKING HEAVY COUGHING CONSTANTLY(could not get sleep)
ENDED IN ACUTE TONSILLITIS WITH FEVER
after getting of the drug I had no more problems with coughing or respiratory infections.these side effects are common with this drug. Yet the docs are pushing it. What are the pharma companies giving thes doctors??I no longer trust doctors.

If you are taking this medicine, STOP! I took this medicine for about three months. I started to feel like I had a congestion. I cough lightly at first then into a hard cough which progressed into a hacking. My wife thought I was critically ill. I was spitting up clear congestion at work into my garbage can. This stuff is bad, I found this site and stopped taking the medicine. It took 3 week for the cough to subside. It’s been about 4 months, and I would say I am only about 98 percent back to where I started . About every 3 weeks I out of the blue start to slightly hack. I know one thing this is not a good medicine. When I started my BP was 138/109. My doctor told me to try this. Because of this medicine I could not do my job and my doctor never told me it was the medicine. When I told him he told me he didn’t think it was the medicine and prescribe some cold medicine

I don't seem to have any choice other than continue taking Lisinopril, its the only blood pressure med I can afford, but taking it and coughing until my ribs ache is getting old. Sore ribs, hacking cough, blurred vision and nightmares...hmnn...or a stroke. There's got to be another option. Garlic?

I am 37. My BP was around 160/95. My Dr put me on Lisinopril 10mg daily. My BP became normal almost immediately. I have been on it for over a year now and here is what I have noticed. I am CONSTANTLY tired and dizzy. Any thought of walking anywhere of any distance is horrifying because of the fear of collapse. I sleep over 10 hrs a night only to wake up exhausted. I am so sick of being tired. I just want to sleep my life away. This is no way to live. I am depressed all of the time. I can't even shop anywhere because of the anxiety which comes with it. i.e. numbness in arms, rapid pulse, faintness, hyper ventalation and just pure panic for no reason whatsoever. I can't control it. When I sleep, my fingers and hands fall completely asleep. They are dead. It wakes me up numerous times every night. I can't get good rest. I stopped taking Lisinopril a week ago. My BP is below normal now. My pulse is around 55 at all times. I have never had joint pain, just extreme fatigue. God willing, I won't have to take this med again, or any med. I forgot how I used to feel. I wasn't always like this.

I have a boyfriend who was diagnosed with high blood pressure yesterday March 25th. Prior to this about 3 years ago had a stroke, and a second small one. The doctor prescribed Lisinopril, after the first dose taken, he seems totally different. Seems to have a lack of attention on anything, a non caring attitude, very tired and starting to get the cough that is described in these side effects. I'm concerned about him. I'm worried about his high blood pressure that could result in another possible stroke but now I'm concerned he seems totally out of it while on this drug. Are there any other blood pressure meds that seem to get less side effects. The drug may resolve one thing but may cause many other things to go wrong. I don't know which is better for him. Taking this particular drug because it is cheaper to prevent the problem of high blood pressure, and possibly have something else go wrong with all the side effects. Or, stop the drug and find another with less side effects. What is the best solution. All drugs have side effects. When one thing is trying to be cured, the side effects could cause something else to go wrong. How does anyone know what is right.

Dosage: 10 mg/day-swelling of affected foot and ankle, heart arrhythmia, skin rash, sensation of skin burning, exhaustion, falling asleep in the middle of a task at noon. Originally prescribed by a general practioner after a hemorrhagic stroke in order to lower BP. A neurologist recommended doubling the dosage. I discontinued lisinopril (also had to discontinue toprol prior to being put on lisinopril because of extremely low pulse rate - under 40 bpm). I use no drugs and am using low sodium, high fiber diet to lose weight and control BP.

Help!! I need some advice. I'm 47 and have been diagnosed with HBP. I'm 6'2", 250 lbs. My Dr. has prescribed Lisinopril, which I'm suppose to pick up today. I've never been on any prescription medicine before. Don't have any known allergies. My BP averages 138/90 in the am and 170/117 in the evening. My fear is once I start taking this medication, am I on it forever? The side-effect described on this board are frightening. Any advice??

I have been on Lisinopril for about 6 months now. Was taken off of Labetalol after having side effect of persistent congestion. So now on Lisinopril I'm experiencing shortness of breath, wheezing, hands fall asleep and go numb to the point where I can't even feel my fingers, and starting two weeks ago I had vesicles on my feet that I treated with Elidel and they responded, then I got extremely itchy skin on my ankle and lower legs which is not going away with lotions (I have always had dry skin, but never itchy like this). Is this due to poor circulation due to too low of BP? What's the deal? Has anyone had these symptoms? Is there another drug that has no side effects? Does reducing the dosage of Lisinopril help eliminate side effects? Is it possible that Singular, Rhinocort or Elestat (all for allergies) can cause any of these symptoms? I'm tired of my body negatively reacting to drugs that I "need", especially the BP drugs. A heart attack or stroke is certainly worse, but these "side effects" are ridiculous! Help! Any ideas? I'll check back in to read your responses. Thanks.

You don't know how good some of your posts make me feel. I was placed on Lisinopril after having a stent put in. I am 45 year old male who smoked a lot before and cholesterol at 280. I was about 35 pounds overweight not that bad except for the other 2 factors. My heart races now without any reason, dry cough at times, and chess pain also with no reason. Guess what sports fans??? I have never had high blood pressure. Why are these MD's prescribing this poison??! They will swear up and down, "by taking this med it will reduce your chances of having a heart attack or stroke." This a bunch a hogwash. It is causing problems!

My physcian just prescribed this medication to me today and after reading all of the comments, I am afraid of taking. I initially started out on Atenolol which was prescribed in an Emergency Room following a panic attack. On most all occassions, my b/p was slightly high following an episode with anxiety. I truly don't think I should have been placed on a b/p med in the first place. However, I was then swithced to Tenoretic and that medication gave me constant palpitations. I contacted my physician and he just today prescribed the Lisinopril. I have been doing just fine with the Atenolol but my physician states that just atenolol alone will not prevent potentail heart attack, stroke. My question is that since all the comments listed on this sight refers to serious side effects, has any one been placed on a b/p med that had less severe and significat effects. Please advise before I take this drug.

Thanks!

Here it is almost 1 in the morning and my fiance and I are worried sick thinking that my soon to be mother in law was either having a stroke or heart attack...this site may very well be a life saver!!for us all. After going to varoius websites trying to narrow down my mohter in laws symptoms and her refusal to go to the ER .....we went to the medicine cabinet and began to look up side effects of her prescriptions...and wouln't you know it there is the bottle of Lisinopril....I am scheduled to go the Dr. with my mother in law tomorrow and I will be sure to take all this information and the bottle with me. Although, we are not 100% relieved I have some piece of mind knowing that she may not be suffering a stroke or heart attack!!!. The past three days she has been suffering from the chills. night sweats, numbness/pins nad needles in her arms, sever headache and nausea.....and she has been sleeping more than I have ever seen her sleep in my life!! and not to mention the coughing!!!After reading all the side effects that everyone else has posted the pieces of the puzzle are starting to fit! Thank you so much to everyone for sharing your information it has been most helpful and somewhat comforting....it just goes to show that as always prescriptions are a money making racket and drs will prescribe anything to anyone to make a buck!!!!
I am so happy to have found this site and all your postings!!!

I was on Lisinopril for 4 months. I had some coughing, the gag reflex, and a general feeling of malaise. My depression was bad at times and I imagined myself committing suicide more than once. I also began to grind my teeth at night. I have been off of the poison for 8 days and all side effects have subsided except for the teeth grinding. My teeth and jaws ache all the time. I had never experienced that problem before. I too went to the ER in the middle of the night about 2 months ago because I was sure I was having a heart attack or stroke. I finally made an appointment with a therapist 3 weeks ago to deal with the depression. She told me about Lisinopril side effects and I quit taking it. I owe her my life. I feel re-born. I am so happy to be alive!!!!
sara

This is an update. I have stopped Lisinopril 4 days ago. By the way I forgot to mention that I did experience hair loss after being on 20 mg since February, Hairloss started end of May, which of course made me anxious to the point I did not want to take a shower anymore or wash my hair!! So this is when I started on Zoloft, which I have taken for the past five years, but only 25 mg every other day. This was keeping my worrying in check and was all I needed. But since February after starting Lisinopril my friend mentioned that I seemed to start worrying about every little thing and she does not even recognize my usual upbeat self. So then when the hair loss started I thought it was all in my head and went to the counselor and upped my Zoloft to 100 mg a day. Then in June my doctor said 10 mg of Lisinopril would be enough and sure enough, my hair loss stopped after about two weeks. I thought it was due to the Zoloft, that I just did not count my hair anymore, but now reading all the side effects I realize that I was not crazy at all! What a relief! So since Monday no more Lisinopril and Zoloft down to 25 mg for the past week. Last night was the first night I only woke up once really short, noticed a rapid heart beat, but only in my heart area, not all over my body, and went back to sleep. I also experienced on Lisinopril those vivid dreams which I woke up from and felt emotianally drained. I do take a Multivitamin, garlic pills and twice a day a table spoon of apple cider vinegar. So far my blood pressure is about 125 over 80 and instead of waking up with a pulse of 95, it went down this morning to about 84. I feel more energetic and in general way more upbeat. I hope I will keep feeling better and I am glad I did research on all those medications. It made me want to come off all meds and try natural approach, diet and more exercise.
I will keep you updated.

I have been taking Lisiniopril for several years now for moderately high blood pressure. (10mg) I have the mild dry throat and cough but was willing to put up with it as opposed to having a stroke. What I did not count on was the fatigue, muscle and joint aches that I have developed along with feeling like I was in fog many days. Aches and discomfort in the middle of the night enough to wake me up and sometimes lasting all day (although it would subside somewhat during the day). In addition I have been having discomfort in my kidneys. I thought I was developing arthritis but was tested by my primary doctor for the gene and did not have it. Why did he not discuss the effects of this drug he had prescribed? Now that I know of other peoples experiences I am stopping this drug and will try harder to control my bp with execise and diet. My research has told me that simple diuretics will control the bp if necessary. These ACE inhibitors are nasty things...stay away!

I started taking Lisinopril for my bp about 2 1/2 months ago and even though it did lower my bp, I started having strange side-effects. It started out with drowsiness throughout the day, no matter how much sleep I got. And, waking up feeling drowsy even after 8-10 hours of sleep. Then, I started getting strange aches and pains throughout my body, like I was getting over a stomach flu. My asthma also flared up and I started having to use my inhaler for the first time in almost 15 years (usually I just need it after exercise.) The side-effects continued to get worse over the next months with increased fatigue, drowsiness, coughing, anxiety, muscle aches, poor concentration, feeling like my nerves were "shot," headache, weakness, tightness in my lungs, numbness in my hands and feet, and just plain feeling bad.
I made an appointment to see my doctor because I thought there was something seriously wrong with me. It crossed my mind that I might be feeling this way because of the Lisinopril. I stumbled across this website and after reading everyone's testimonials, I decided to stop the Lisinopril. I haven't taken it in 3 1/2 days, and I am already feeling much better. I would rather try a more holistic approach to lowering my bp then taking Lisinopril.
I hope this helps someone else out there who might be going through the same thing.

I have just called my dr. for an appt. I was not researching Lisinopril I was looking for info to email someone - happened to spot the first post...I nearly fell over! I now know I am not losing my mind, because that's how I've been feeling - the cough, the weary feeling, palps, my anxiety increase, etc. etc. Low readings that I'm wondering if I'm still alive, and this head detached from my body,, feeling, sort of walking like a well in control drunk, if that makes sense to anyone, a feeling like "iI'm gonna have a stroke" feeling in my head...it feels "tights". I started this med. last year, and feel this has been a gradual on-coming train! I have anxiety, and try to keep it under control myself, since I took prosac for about a week, talk about looney - look up another charming side affect - akethesia - nasty. For one poster who said we're all overweight nuts, I am 103lbs, I do a mile every evening, and eat very healthy, thank you.

I took Lisinopril 10 mg for about 10 days. My doc had told me that 5% of those tested developed an itchy cough, and to stop if this happened to me. I stopped as soon as the cough developed. That was more than a week ago. I haven't been able to get a night's sleep since then. The cough is dry and hacking and continuous. Coughing can also come at any time during the day. Sometimes a coughing attack hits when I already have a cough drop in my mouth.

I feel just the same as I've felt when experiencing a sinus infection, with nighttime drainage and sinus headache.
When I called the doctor's office, I was advised to take an over-the-counter cough med. It hasn't helped. I am exhausted.

This seems to be a case of the "cure" being worse than the initial problem.

I have been off this poison for exactly a month now.....and my symptoms seem to be getting worse.....i ended up in the ER last weekend thinking i was having a stroke or heart attack but they couldnt find any....i have a rash on my legs and back the dr says is hives....my leg cramps never go away and still have stomach cramps and grumbling....dr says its stomach hives.....never heard of that....metallic taste in mouth sometimes and spells of feeling really ill....arms go numb etc....joints ache.....pains in hands and feet.....on the dash diet and taking supplements.....i pray i get better....

I have been taking Lisinopril for about the last maybe 8 to 10 years. It started with 20 miligrams and has now gone to 40 miligrams. Recently my pharmacy change the manufacturer of their Linsinopril. My face is extremely dry, as well as my hair has dried out so bad, that I am beginning to loose my hair. I honestly just received revelation of this on last night, as I could not figure out why I would stay so dry. I try to drink lots of water, but it seems that I am literally drying out. And to be honest my hair has had so many issues since being on this high dose of Lisinopril. Has anyone experienced dry skin or hair, resuluting in hair loss or extremely dry skin?

My husband has been taking lisinopril 2.5 mg since 4-5-06, he has experienced various side effects to which his doctor simply sends him to a neurologist and then after the visist with the neurologist he is told its normal. He has experienced a sudden feeling of his blood pulse in his left side of his neck, he also has a feeling of not getting enough oxygen or a breathless feeling and was in the emergency room where they took the arterial blood count and ekg and various blood tests where they all came out normal. I just want him off this drug, the side effects are more dangerous than the risk of a heart attack or stroke. My husband's health has been deteriotating since he started taking meds for high blood pressure and cholesterol. I am tired of hearing our doctor tell him it's nothing. Is anyone else experiencing the same reaction from there GP's?

I started taking lisinopril @5mg and felt no side effects but the dosage was not high enough to lower my blood pressure, so my doctor increased it to 20mg. I have the cough everyone describes, but the pain in my shoulder joints, my neck, my skull, and my head have made me think I was having a stroke.I recently saw a neurologist who assured me that was not the case. THE PAIN IS CONSTANT AND SEVERE. Has anyone else experienced these kind of symptoms? I need to know if I should stop this medicine immediately. Also, my doctor has uped the dosage to 40mg per day. Is there something to take that doesn't cause drowsiness or fatigue. I did not experience these effects wirh the lisinopril.

I am a relatively healthy 32 year old woman. I was put on Lisinpril approximately 3 weeks ago I experienced stomach pains, diarreah and coughing. The diarreah and stomach pains went away in about two weeks. I thought the cough would also go away with time. It did not it got worse I have never experienced such a horrible cough in my life. I could not even sleep thought the night. I was coughing with so much force that I started to experience stress incontinence. I also sounded like I had been smoking for 40 years and have never smoked a cigarette. I would cough so bad at night I would finally start to gag which would make me vomit. I finally decided I would rather die from a stroke than live a life in constent pain and embarressment. I called my doctor and left a message with a nurse only saying that I have developed a horrible cough. I received a call back saying STOP TAKING LISINOPRIL. My only regret is not calling my doctor sooner. I have been off Lisinopril 3 days and my coughing has decreased some but it has not gone away. How long will it take to feel better?

Whil eit is true that lisinopril causes a cough and other side effects...it is really too bad that only the ppl with negative side effects are writing their comments.
What ppl don't realize is that taking this med , for example if you're a diabetic, protects the kidneys. It can also reduce the risk of a heart attack and stroke. Since preventing a stroke doesn't make you feel different, no one ever says "hey today, I didin't have a stroke...I should write that in the website."
If I didn't know better and I read these comments...I'd be scared to death to try the medication not realizing what benefits it offers.

I am speaking on the behalf of my Dad since he cannot communicate. My Dad has 3 strokes in the past and a heart attack a month ago. His doctor put him on Lisinopril. Since he cannot communicate, I can't get any info. from him as far as the side effects. I am glad to find this website because it helps me to learn more about this drug. I am 28 years old and have a history family of high BP, cholesterol, heart attack, stroke, you name it, we have it :(
I have been trying to exercise and watch out for my diet and there is not much I can do with "history family".