Diuretics and Back Pain

bethsheba

None at all. Just the hct. Except for prednisone that I took years ago when I had mono, I've never been on medication--have been in excellent health until I started taking bp meds.

Don't do over the counters...no aspirin, no naproxin, whatever. Used to get nasty colds but long ago realized otc's did nothing to treat my symptoms. So I don't take cold medications. Only thing in my med chest is hand soap, shampoo, cream rinse, bandaids, and some perfumes (which I don't use).
Do take a daily vitamin. And am now eating well balanced meals again which I used to do PRIOR to hct and the other 4 bp meds.

Bethsheba

Machaon

Thanks for the reply, Beth.

The reason I asked was that I used to get very bad back pains and bad constipation from my medication. When I separated the taking of Coumadin from my other meds, the problems went away. One of my other meds was Lasix, a diuretic. So, after reading your note, I wonder if the bad reactions could have been the combination of Coumadin and Lasix? I guess I'll never know, cause I sure ain't going to test it.

Regards, have a nice night.

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bethsheba

Beerzoids,

The very bad back pains could have been a result of the coumadin, the lasix, or a combo of the two--both have back pain listed as side effects!! Oh, and fyi, if you didn't already know it, coumadin interacts with many herbals so one has to be careful there.

I'm glad you were astute enough to "separate" your meds. Too many docs don't id the side effects and add more meds, which just causes more problems and costs more money.

Have you had any experience with norvasc? It's my 5th med (and given the side effects I've experienced I'm so very lucky I only had to take one med at a time) and I'm beginning to have problems.

Bethsheba

Machaon

The only two "supplements" that I take are Vitamin C - 500 mg, and Vitamin B-Complex 50. But..... thanks for the heads-up!

I wasn't really too astute. 20+ years ago, I got heart failure. I felt really lousy. Then they piled on the medications. I didn't know to separate the meds. It took a long time, and much misery before I figured out which meds to separate, when it was best to take the meds, which meds worked and which meds didn't, and what foods and drinks to avoid. My experiences surviving heart disease made me very, VERY disappointed with our medical industry.

I've been on CCBs for about 20 years. I really don't have much experience with Norvasc. But, with Verapamil, I can't consume too much calcium, during the day, or consume calcium within 2.5 hours of taking Verapamil, or I will get breathing problems and increased heart arrhythmias, like a hard pounding heart.

__________________
⇒ Age 77, Heart Failure, Chronically High Blood Pressure, AFib Diabetes2 diagnosed in 1987, now very healthy!
⇒ I use $6 fluticasone nasal spray as my asthma inhaler! BID! Saves me $$$
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

⇒ Do it yourself SLIT greatly improved my asthma and MCS
⇒ I make my own dentures with moldable plastic pellets. Saves me $$$
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

⇒ 900 weight lifts, 750 weighted knee bends, bike daily
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bethsheba

Thanks for getting back with me...I think you are astute. Yes, it may have taken a long time, unfortunately, but you have acquired a lot of knowledge and experience and probably don't take anything for granted. Not everyone learns from their experiences and you have. And we are fortunate to learn from you. I am so very glad you survived heart disease and I wish you the best of health.

I, too, am very disappointed in our health care system. It fails us in many ways. I cringe every time I see an ad for a drug on tv---a friend tells me that there are 2 drug reps for every doctor and I don't know if she speaks for a local, regional, or national level but, in my way of thinking, that's too much drug influence/pressure on the doctors for any area.


Again, thank you for responding.
Take care.

Bethsheba

Lenin

Back Pain theory...

I have it on and off since a major injury in 1973 (broke off bony process and crushed disc doing a stiff-legged dead lift.) I find that too much water retention OR two little can cause the pain. My thought is that water can cause the offending disc/discs (mostly mangled to near-nothingness by now) to swell or retract. Both conditions tend to trigger pain, probably one through swollen disc pressure on nerve and the other through bone-process on nerve with too little disc separation. So my back is happiest when my diuretic dose is JUST RIGHT...like Mama Bear! The usually scenario is that high water retention causes me pain more readily.

So it dosn't surprise me when I hear about others having back pain with diuretics. They really do affect the inter-vertebral distance.

An interesting aside: Doan's Pills (OTC) for back pain... the ingredients are a mix of about 4 herbal diurtetics.

bethsheba

Lenin,

Thanks for the insights.

Machaon

My diseases won't let me take them for granted. If I wasn't so pro-active, I would be dead by now, or worse.

It hasn't been easy. At times, in the past, I thought that I finally had all of my nasty symptoms under control. My blood pressure would be GREAT. My heart would beat in a somewhat normal and healthy fashion. And then, out of nowhere, my blood pressure would soar, my heart would beat either too weakly, too slow, too fast, too strong, too erratic, I would get chest pains, I would sweat, get light headed, have difficulty breathing, etc., and I would be sitting there, just watching TV and wondering, what the hell is going on now!!! It is such a relief not having many of those episodes anymore, and when I do, I now understand what is going on and I know what to do.

Thanks for the kind and friendly words! I also wish you, and yours, the best of health.

Speaking about "learning from others", HealthBoards has been a great source of information, not necessarily in finding cures, but in associating symptoms. When you read, over and over again, about patients having the same symptoms, and at the same time, having the same lifestyle problems, it doesn't take rocket science to figure out that there is often a connection between an unhealthy lifestyle and health problems.

I am shocked by the lack of knowledge that most doctors seem to have about the drugs that they prescribe and the science behind the the drugs. Doctors also don't seem to have a clue about the side effects of drugs. If a patient complains because the patient has had a known side effect from a drug, the doctor will still, most always, tell the patient that it is the patient's anxiety or stress that is causing the problems.

Regards, and have a great day!

__________________
⇒ Age 77, Heart Failure, Chronically High Blood Pressure, AFib Diabetes2 diagnosed in 1987, now very healthy!
⇒ I use $6 fluticasone nasal spray as my asthma inhaler! BID! Saves me $$$
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

⇒ Do it yourself SLIT greatly improved my asthma and MCS
⇒ I make my own dentures with moldable plastic pellets. Saves me $$$
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

⇒ 900 weight lifts, 750 weighted knee bends, bike daily
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bethsheba

Beerzoids,

Yes, how true...The support of the boards has been multifold. Nothing can take the place of the knowledge, experience, and support of people who are experiencing the challenges of high blood pressure and the treatment. Unfortunately our culture's emphasis is on treatment, not on prevention and afterall--there much to be gained financially with an emphasis on treatment. I have read that 50 percent of a gp's business is treating high blood pressure.

Oh how very true. It is my understanding that doctors are familiar prescribing about 25 prescription drugs which makes me wonder how much they rely on the drug reps for info and how much they research other drugs out there. I am furious that
1. Doctors don't inform patients of the side effects they are
familiar with.
2. Doctors discount or deny patients reports of side effects.
3. Doctors don't research the side effects patients report.
4. Doctors don't report or pass on side effects to the
pharmaceutical companies that patients are experiencing.
5. Doctors treat side effects with more meds which in turn create
more side effects.

I am somewhat comforted in knowing that more people are becoming better informed and are not accepting the health care providers' word as gospel.

Good to hear from you, again, Beerzoids. And thanks for letting me spout

Bethsheba

famnd

Hi Beth,

I took Norvasc. It is supposed to be especially good for high systolic b/p.
I got severe heartburn that almost sent me to the ER. Of course I already had a heartburn problem to start with so that maybe the reason it got worse. Then I got severe pain in different parts of my head. Luckily it is one of those drugs which my pharmacist & the pkg insert says it can be stopped suddenly without withdrawal. Best to contact your Dr. if this happens & make sure you have a backup b/p med. I was taking two other b/p meds so I had to stop Norvasc when I couldn't get a hold of my Dr. on the weekend. Fam

bethsheba

Fmnd,

Thanks for the info it is VERY helpful...I will need to address this on the Norvasc thread...can you go there?

Bethsheba

Machaon

Most patients think that their doctor really, truly wants to cure them. On the contrary, like you said, many doctors' emphasis is on "treatment", making for a long and profitable relationship.

As an example: Blood Pressure medications like Beta Blockers, Ace Inhibitors, Calcium Channel Blockers, Angiotensin II Receptor Blockers all have something in common in their name. Their names indicate that they either inhibit or block hormones, and in doing so, these medications will reduce the severity of heart rhythm problems, or lower blood pressure. But, when was the last time you heard of a doctor discussing the relationship of hormones to high blood pressure or heart rhythm problems?

It's easier for doctors to blame the symptoms on the patient's anxiety, and some doctors are just plain incompetent. There are incompetent people in all trades, not just the medical industry.

I don't know why this very ignorant, and obnoxious, and unethical attitude is practiced by many doctors. The main thing that I can think of is that those doctors just aren't very good, so, once again, they blame the patient.

Golf courses and massage parlors don't have medical libraries.

Pharmaceutical companies don't want any negative news about their drugs. In fact, I believe that most side effects are well known, but covered up.

The sicker that a doctor can make the patient, the more visits, the more money, and the deeper the doctor sets the hook!

I agree, but, sadly, most patients, while better informed, sometimes NEVER gets answers to their health problems.

Your spouts are interesting, provocative and enjoyable to read. Keep up the good work!

By the way, in order to have a "QUOTE" come out correctly, start the quoted paragraph with [QU0TE] and end the quoted paragraph with [/QU0TE], or start with [QU0TE=BEERZOIDS] and end with [/QU0TE].

Regards, take care!

__________________
⇒ Age 77, Heart Failure, Chronically High Blood Pressure, AFib Diabetes2 diagnosed in 1987, now very healthy!
⇒ I use $6 fluticasone nasal spray as my asthma inhaler! BID! Saves me $$$
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

⇒ Do it yourself SLIT greatly improved my asthma and MCS
⇒ I make my own dentures with moldable plastic pellets. Saves me $$$
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

⇒ 900 weight lifts, 750 weighted knee bends, bike daily
To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

bethsheba

Beerzoids,

My apologies for responding belatedly to your post..you've made some excellent points and I hope the readers take note. Too many of us accept what we hear as "the word" without questioning, researching, and reevaluating.

I'm off the topic of diuretics and back pain so I'll sign off, but again, thanks for your post, beerzoids.

Bethsheba