Stopping Toprol XL

[OrlandoTommy]

Hi Everyone...

Ever since i started my asprin months ago i havent had another episode of double vision. Now im not sure if the asprin helped that or what but now im scarred to get off the asprin 81mg daily..

Anyways, my question is about getting off of Toprol XL. Here is what the doc told me a week ago. I was taking 100MG per day since my surgery..

Start taking 50MG per day for the first week

Take 50MG every other day the following week

Take 25MG every other day the following week after that.

Im still in week 2 taking the 50MG every other day, but one thing i noticed is that my heart beat is faster, around 85-90BPM and when i was on the Toprol XL it was 55-60 (which the doc thought was way to low).

Is it normal to experience a elevated heartrate when getting off betablockers?

Thanks,
Tommy

 

[ruth]

Hey Tommy -

We had a thread on this recently....

I tried (and failed) to get off my BB (Atenol). My heart rate was the reason, it was sitting around a hundred resting and higher with even the slightest activity. This made me feel crummy/exhausted much of the time. I'm now back on a very low 25mg and it's great. I've climbed down off my "no drugs for me" soapbox and am willing to admit that I really do feel much better taking the BB than not.

So, yes, in my case my resting HR was 20 beats higher w/out a BB than with one.

Wish you all the best, Ruth

 

[Karlynn]

Tommy, I've been on Toprol ever since my VR because of my heart rate. It just is a little too fast off it. I tried the XL but we found I needed the twice a day dose. However, there are days that I forget to take it and I don't notice a difference, and then days when I do. Go figure?

The faster heart rate may just be for a short time as your heart adjusts. This is why the doc is having you gradually wean off it. If you continue to have the HR issue, it may mean you need to take something, but possibly not the full 100.

 

[Bina]

Hi tommy,
It sounds like you may need to stay on the 50 mg daily for a month or so and then re-evaluate your heart/BP rate.
I've stayed on that dose and enjoy the stable heart rate

 

[ALCapshaw2]

One cardiologist told me that 100 mg of Toprol XL was the Minimum Theraputic Dose.

When I complained to my current cardiologist that I felt 'sluggish' and tired, he suggested cutting back to 50 mg for 2 weeks. I felt MUCH BETTER and had NO arrhythmias.

He then suggested cutting back to 25 mg for 2 weeks.
NO DIFFERENCE, i.e. I felt GOOD and NO arrhythmias.

He then suggested discontinuing it completely. Less than 2 weeks later, I had an 'irregular heart beat event' so went back to 25 mg of Toprol XL.

This worked well for 2 years when I became more sensitive to 'triggers' such as exercise and / or CAFFEINE (in Chocolate!). I'm now on a Low Dose of SOTALOL (generic for Betapace) and doing fine.

'AL Capshaw'

 

[Marguerite53]

Hi! Glad you are tapering off very gradually. My use of beta bockers were for PVC's (benign irregular heartbeats) only. I take another med for BP (diovan) control. My BP has never been over 140/80 but everyone seems to think we should keep it in the 120's/70's and lower, so I just do what I'm told.

I stopped the Toporl XL a month ago..tapering off as you are. At first my heart rate did go up. After a few weeks I've noticed that if I really stayed away from the triggers Al mentioned, it stayed fairly calm at 70 to 80. I think that's still abit high, but then how would I know....I've never had a perfect aortic valve until now!!

Now, past a month without the beta blocker, I seem to be able to have a light dose of caffeine (say those bottled Starbucks mocha drinks) and not have any adverse affect. My heart rate does not fluctuate or jump around like it was when I was first coming off the betablocker.

I was tempted to call my cardio and ask her where she wanted my heartrate to be. But then I figured I'd wait a few months and see what my new heart wanted to do. I honestly think it is settling down on its own.

But I'm a stubborn 53 year old woman. YOU need to call your cardio's office and ask them where THEY want your heartrate to be. This is nothing to fool around with. The electrical impulses that govern your heart beat should be getting the complete attention of your cardio....especially since you are still so fresh from surgery.

Give them a call and let us know what they say.

Marguerite

 

[OldManEmu]

Toprol XL

Toprol XL

I was on almost the same dose as you 95mg daily, which is the dosage size in Australia, strange it is not 100mg.
I found that I could halve the dosage every 3 weeks first to 47.5, then quarter tables. The doctor told me I could cut the dose in half each fortnight however I found my heart was still running fast at this point.
It took about 3 weeks for my heart rate to normalise.
This was the frequency that my beta blocker dosage was increased when I started them.
The manufactures pre-packaged titration packs come with fortnightly dosage doubling, this is also the recommended titration rate when decreasing dosage.
My resting heart rate is now 58-65 without beta blockers.

 

[lynn]

Tommy, I wonder if you should still be on everyday! I've tapered down to 12.5 of XL and seem to be doing ok in the 80's. I found if I go to 25mg my bp goes too low and I get dizzy, I've tried going off altogether and my hr went over 100 and I felt like crap!

For now I'll stay on my little 12.5 daily

 

[OrlandoTommy]

Another thing i wanted to mention was when i was on 100MG of Toprol XL i had really bad mental confusion and weight retension. I wasnt so worried about the weight part but the confusion was definitely there and it was freaky, almost as soon as i cut back on Toprol XL the confusion is gone and my thinking is completely back to normal. I saw other posts about the drug causing confusion as well and i agree 100%.