Insomnia and Metoprolol?

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mecretired

mecretired

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Joined
Apr 28, 2010
Messages
312
Location
Southeast Missouri, USA
Have any of you experienced insomnia while taking Metoprolol? Background--I have taken Verapamil (calcium channel blocker) for years due to a rapid pulse. Post surgery (1yr ago) Metoprolol was added to my medications--25mg 2xday. Metoprolol was added to bring my pulse down more as the Verapamil didn't lower it enough. Due to some artery problems, my cardio wants my pulse to be fairly low--not above 70's and BP to be not above 120's. So on my last visit he doubled my Metoprolol to 50mg 2xday. At 50mg a day I notice some problems sleeping--not sure it was the Metroprolol--so I started taking Ambien 5mg 2-3x week. Since my cardio has doubled the Metroprolol to 100mg a day last Thurs, I have been awake almost all night 2 nights and most of a 3rd night--slept well one night as I was exhausted. I know insomnia is one of the possible side effects. I hate to go off Metoprolol as it seems to work well and I am coping with the other side effects pretty well. Suggestions? Alternatives to Metoprolol? I know 5mg of Ambien is not much, but I don't want to be come dependent on it. I haven't talked with my cardio yet as I wanted to make sure the insomnia was due to the Metoprolol and possibly have some other suggestions. Thanks.
 
I have some relatively short experience with metoprolol - I am 16 weeks post-op, and the metoprolol was added to my meds after surgery. I am taking the time-release metoprolol, 100 mg daily in the am. For the first month or two after beginning the metoprolol I had nasty insomnia. I would fall asleep but awaken an hour or tow later and remain awake for hours before I could get back to sleep. I too requested a prescription for Ambien. (I never used it, but that's another story.) It seemed that after a point in time, I became used to the metoprolol and the insomnia decreased, then pretty much disappeared. Now at 16 weeks, my sleep is fairly normal. I would say that it has been so since about 10 or 12 weeks, but your mileage may vary.

What I did find that helped me to sleep was ordinary over-the-counter Benadryl. My daughter works in the medical field (NOT a doctor or nurse), and their offices often use Benadryl when a patient needs just a little bit of help to sleep. It worked for me, without the side effects sometimes attributed to Ambien.

I'm hoping that over time I will be able to reduce my dosage or even eliminate the metoprolol. I don't like what the beta blocker does to me in terms of limiting my maximum heart rate, but I realize that I may need to keep it or a similar med to maintain proper rhythm.
 
Diagnosed with severe AS on Oct 14 2010, at 55. Saw surgeon on Dec 9 2010. He placed me on my first heart med being Metoprolol. 25 mg twice daily. Experienced poor sleep quality for over two weeks. Then I Adjusted and slept better. Your on a whopper of a dose at 100 twice daily. Give yourself two weeks and you should adjust.

After surgery I was discharged on a dose of 100 mg twice daily. Noproblemo as the codeine put me to sleep. I'm now on 25 mg twice daily with no codeine. I wake to urinate frequently, don't know if it's the warfarin, Enalipril or Metoporol causing this.
 
Started taking Meto post op over 5 years ago.
Initially had horrible side effects, nightmares, wiped out all day long, etc.
Took about a year to reduce the dose a bit then slept better, function better, and HR is decent but still varies alot
during the time the med wears off.
Your body may need more time to get used to the med. Good Luck.
 
I've been on it at a dose of between 100mg down now to 50mg BID. I sleep like a log. I don't even hear my husband's alarm go off at 4am.
 
Thanks for all your replies. I was ready to call my cardio and tell him I just couldn't handle the increased dose. But have decided that I should give it at least a couple of weeks. I did sleep fairly well the last couple of nights, but tonight doesn't look like it will be a good night. Hopefully, my body will adjust. Thanks again.
 
I have been on Metoprolol since my surgery on March 7th. I haven't slept a good, full night since. I don't know if it is the metoprolol or not, although that is the only constant medication I have had in that time. Most nights I take ambien to fall asleep and stay asleep. I don't want to take meds to sleep, but it is better for me than not sleeping or sleeping so lightly with such terrible dreams that I can't function at work the next day.
 
i couldn't sleep well when I was taking metoprolol either. That's one of the reasons I switched back to tenormin/bystolic.

fwiw, it's been my experience that lipophilic drugs seem to effect the brain easier than non-lipophilic
 
Jason, How much Metoprolol do you take?(I take 50mg 2xday) How strong is your Ambien? My Ambien is 5mg and I try not to take more than 2 or 3 a week. Since it's a controlled substance everyone seems to make a big deal about Ambien. But everyone also says that you MUST have sleep. So what are your choices? sleep/ambien I have had 3 fairly good nights sleep in a row this week--so maybe I'm adjusting to the increased doseage of Metoprolol. Meanwhile, Duffman, I intend to check out Tenormin. Thanks again, for your replies.
 
I was on 75mg of metoprolol daily until February when it was increased to 150mg. Since then I have had trouble falling asleep and waking more frequently at night. I thought it was due to fears after my scare, but that has since passed and I still have some trouble when I had none previously. I didn't even know it was a side effect because I have had no issues at the lower dose for 5 years. I have had some success with the normal sleep issues ideas - early night, exercise, eating right etc. but it is an issue that has arisen from the drug.
 
Mecretired
I feel like a wimp...I have been ONLY taking 12.5mg of Metoprolol since 4/20/11 ( Never had this med before ) and I go for days without sleep or maybe will get an hour. Then, after a week of this, I usually, sleep for 12 hrs...........and start the cycle again. I think, maybe, when I see my new Cardiologist....I will ask him, if I can just discontinue, actually... wean off it, as I know , we are not supposed to just suddenly stop this medication.....
Renee

Go Class of 2011 !!

bdryer
ps....my guess,.... is it because your bladder is full ??? winks...
 
mecretired said:
Jason, How much Metoprolol do you take?(I take 50mg 2xday) How strong is your Ambien? My Ambien is 5mg and I try not to take more than 2 or 3 a week. Since it's a controlled substance everyone seems to make a big deal about Ambien. But everyone also says that you MUST have sleep. So what are your choices? sleep/ambien I have had 3 fairly good nights sleep in a row this week--so maybe I'm adjusting to the increased doseage of Metoprolol. Meanwhile, Duffman, I intend to check out Tenormin. Thanks again, for your replies.
Click to expand...

I am on the same dose as you now, at 50 mg 2X daily. I was at 75 mg 2X daily, but when my heart rate started dipping into the lower 40's they bumped me up. I am currently taking 12.5mg of Ambien CR, or controlled release. I may be able to drop back to a lower dose of non-CR soon, but for quite a while after surgery I would wake up in the middle of the night and not be able to fall back to sleep. With the CR I can get 6-8 hours of continuous sleep, so that works for me!
 
I think I am starting to adapt a little to the larger dose of Metoprolol---I think the "tired", "draggy" feeling is overcoming the "insomnia" a little. I'm not used to feeling so tired by early evening. I'm also having more trouble making it thru my workouts at the "Y". But I am VERY glad to be sleeping even a little bit better. I've always had a very rapid pulse and since my surgery, my cardiologist is concerned about keeping it down. Thanks for the update, Jason.
 
Jason - Just an FYI -- I had the one of the same sleep issues you are having, that of being able to fall asleep at night but then waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to get back to sleep for hours. There's hope - in my case this issue disappeared somewhere around 2.5 or 3 months post-op. Since we're all different, maybe it is just taking a bit longer for you to get used to the metoprolol. In case I didn't mention it, I'm taking the metoprolol extended release version, 100 mg once/day. I guess they won't worry about my dosage unless I complain, as no matter how much I take, my resting heart rate will remain around 60 due to my pacemaker.
 
Hi, all. It's 8 weeks today on the other side of the mountain for me. I'm back here on the board searching for some information on insomnia, and here we all are! If I were really clever, I'd check the times of these posts to see how many are up late!

I have always had a weird body clock - a night owl since childhood with a night owl mom and an up-with-the-chickens dad. About 20 years ago I was diagnosed with sleep apnea, and I have slept better with the CPAP machine. Unfortunately, that machine does not come around and seek me out when it's bedtime. If it did, it would certainly creep me out sufficiently to go to bed due to pure FEAR! But seriously, the insomnia seemed to increase as my valve got worse, so that in the 7 days preceding surgery, I probably had less than 20 hours of sleep, and no sleep at all the night before. Might have been a few catnaps in there, and many zombie-like moments, but effectively nowhere near enough sleep.

After surgery, I did not seem to have that trouble. By the time I was home, I would go to bed at a "normal" time (sometime before midnight) and would wake up rested 7 to 9 hours later.

I thought I'd gotten even a bigger bang for my buck. Replace the aortic valve, cure the insomnia. Not.

About the time I finished up with the Norco at about 4 weeks post-op, my weird sleeping patterns started surfacing again and I'm fearful that I'm going to be a raving insomniac once again.

I tried Melatonin in the past. It made me comfortably drowsy sfter about 20 minutes and I'd sleep well with no druggy hangover in the morning. And after a few days on it, my circadian rhythm seemed to get back in synch. But because of my hesitation to take even more pills, I tend to avoid it. I have been on 50mg of Metroprolol per day ever since surgery, and it never occurred to me that it might be a contributor to the insomnia.

Norco does not seem to be the right option for me. But I am a little concerned as to whether the Melatonin would be safe... All I've read thus far seems to indicate it is safe, but that's not from heart patients or heart doctors! Or maybe I should suffer another week and ask the cardiologist when I see her on the 11th.

My internist would not let me return to work this coming Monday because my BP is still too high and I've reported a great deal of trouble with concentration... My job is very technical, and the team has been struggling without me, so when I do go back I'll have to hit the deck running. I am just not mentally ready yet, though. I also don't know why the BP is still up there... Other than that, I'm feeling pretty good. And speaking of concentration, I FORGOT to ask HER about the Melatonin! Duh! Anyway, she put me down for return to work September 6th, Tue after Labor Day, but if the BP and mental clarity improves she may let me go back sooner.

I know I'd feel MUCH better if I could get a decent night's sleep at least half the time; my brain would be clearer and maybe my BP would improve.

Please understand I'm still eternally grateful that this valve was replaced in the nick of time. (Whoever Nick is, I'll have to be sure and thank him too!) I am veryveryvery happy to be here. I just want to do whatever I can to make things as good as they can be...

Thanks. And peaceful nights to all...

Ooh, one more thing... If you ARE up in the wee hours this coming week, take a walk outside and watch the skies... This is the time of the annual Perseid Meteor Showers. The peak is generally Aug 12 or 13, but this year with the full moon on the 14th, most of the smaller meteors will be washed out. (This is my celestial birthday present because my birthday is the 13th.) So step out and wish on a "shooting star" with me sometime this week! I'll be wishing healthy hearts to all this year! :cool:

Mamalu
Class of 2011
 
Mamalu - One other "sleeping potion" I forgot to mention is benadryl. This is an antihistimine that is sometimes used to calm rowdy children who have ADHD. It is also used in hospital psych wards to settle down patients who are not impaired seriously enough to warrant strong prescription meds. Benadryl is available as a generic at Walgreen's, etc., and is inexpensive to try. I did use it off and on while I was having trouble sleeping. It helped me to get to sleep at night yet did not leave me with any foggy feelings in the morning. I know it is yet another pill, but it seems quite benign when used only when required.

Just an idea. . .
 
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