Dizzy on Norvasc

[Deanne]

I've been on Norvasc for a long time at both 5 and 10 mg/day. I went back up to 10 mg/day in early January and for the last week or so, I've been dizzy during the night and when I first get up in the morning. It seems like Norvasc is the likely culprit since it's the only thing that's changed. Last night, I noticed the dizziness start about 45 minutes after I took the pill. I'm going to experiment tonight and take it earlier in the evening, before I take anything else, to see if I get dizzy again 45 minutes later. If it made you dizzy, was it a permanent thing, or did it go away? I'm hoping once I get used to the higher dose again, the dizziness will go away.

[jbeany]

I wouldn't take this as something that will absolutely apply to you as well - but I got worse, not better.  I had a crummy doc who didn't care about my side effects, so I ended up too dizzy to risk driving or getting in the shower most days.  I had to get new meds and a new doc to fix it! 

Seriously, if your experiment tonight leads you to believe that's the issue, find something else - it's not like this is the only possible med out there.

[Deanne]

Thanks! I'll call my neph if I get dizzy after taking it tonight. I need to call her anyway because I haven't heard from the transplant center yet. My neph has always been very responsive to issues with side effects. It's just a hassle switching meds, so I was hoping this was a temporary thing, like coughing was after I starting lisinopril. 

[reidt22]

Hey Deanne,

I have been taking Norvasc for about 14 months now.  I used to get the dizziness for about the first 6 - 8 months but it has since subsided.  I don't know if this information will be of any assistance to you but that is my experience with Norvasc.

For now,

Tim

[Deanne]

Thanks! I like that answer better. I'll still tell my neph about it, but I don't have a problem with waiting to see if it gets better. It's only a bother when I get up during the night and first thing in the morning.

[MooseMom]

I've been taking norvasc for 6 years and don't recall having any problems with it, at least nothing that I recognize, but then again I'm going mental with all of this renal stuff so maybe I'm thinking I'm posting this but really am not....

There are so many bp meds out there that if norvasc causes a problem, something else will be available.  It might be an idea to document your experimentation so that you have something concrete to tell your neph.  See if you can detect a pattern...it looks like you may already have done that.  When do you next see your neph?

[jbeany]

Deanne, I guess I should have looked more closely at the dates you posted - I agree with the idea of waiting it out for a bit to make sure - but I'm talking about a doc who ignored my issues for far months, when I was having a hard time coming up with the energy to think, let alone be proactive.  I figure if it hasn't gotten better in 6 weeks, it's not gonna.  And mine actually got worse as I went.

Sorry - you hit a hot button issue for me, and thinking about that doc makes me snarl every time!

[Deanne]

I've seen the posts about bad nephs. I'm incredibly grateful to feel like I'm getting good care from mine. My only bad neph experience was with the neph I had before this one. He's the one who put me on prednisone and then seemed to ignore my problems with side effects. I still remember calling his office first thing one morning and saying, "My latest side effect is that I'm going blind. What am I supposed to do?" I didn't get a call back until late afternoon and found out later that I was experiencing a life-threatening problem. My blood sugar level was over 1500.

[Deanne]

Interesting..... I took my norvasc around dinnertime last nighty and then had a normal evening. I didn't get dizzy until I got into bed and I'm still a bit dizzy now. Before, it always wore off before I left for work. I don't know what to think. Time to do some web searching, I guess. I'll call my Dr next week if it doesn't stop by then.

[rsudock]

I know this is an older post but Deanne it seems like when you lay down that is when you feel dizzy. That could correlate to blood pressure. Do you have a blood pressure cuff? See what it is when you lay down. You may need to just switch to a new med...

xo,
R

[Deanne]

It went away. I don't know if it was a coincidental inner-ear thing or if I adapted the different dose, but i'm not dizzy anymore.

Thanks for asking about it!