Stress Center Peer Support

Hi everyone. I just recently joined the program and today was the first time I checked out the stress center website. I've been reading a few of the previous discussions and have found them beneficial. Actually, it's made my current chest pains subside.
Any way, I have a question for you all. I've been taking the lowest dose of Xanex off and on for just over a year now. My previous doctor never taked to me about anxiety disorder. I just happened to learn about this from watching the infomercial a couple of months ago. The majority of my current anxiety is from work. I'm a perfetionist. I don't want to make myself or my boss look back in front of others. The company I work for is growing too fast for me to keep up. My department is in the middle of restructuring and I've been told I will soon become the manager. I've never been a manager before. I've always been an independant worker. Going from never being a manager to managing a dept of 3, causes great anxiety for me.
This past Monday I went to my new doctor and told about this program. She was extremely excited for me and wants me to keep her updated on my progress. I think she wants feedback so she can recommend this to other patients for help and quidance. Here's my question, before I diagnosed myself with this disorder, my previous doctor put me on a low dose of BP medicine. High BP and heart disease runs in my family. When I went in to my new doctor on Monday, I asked her if I'd be able to stop taking the BP medicine now that I know what's causing my high BP. She asked if I knew anything about beta blockers. I told her no. She gave me a prescription but told me not to fill it until I did some research on it. If I wanted to start the RX, let her know and she'd wean me off the BP med and start taking just the beta blockers.
Does anyone take beta blockers or BP medicine after completing this program? If I start a beta blocker, is it only a med to use to get me through the anxious time, like the Xanex is?
I'm new at all this and really appreciate any quidance anyone can give me.

Hey Ann, my name is Gary. I'm an RN x 13 years. I suffer from anxiety disorder myself, making great progress lately. Anyway, a Beta Blocker is a BP medicine. It works by blocking some of the electrical signal pathways of the heart. For people with anxiety, they actually help lower your heart rate. Depending on the dose, your heart rate will vary. By keeping your heart rate within it's normal limits, many people with anxiety benefit as they don't get the rapid heart rate associated with anxiety or panic attacks. In fact, because the heart doesn't race, you can stop a panic attack in it's tracks, as a rapid heart rate is usually one of the first symptoms of an anxiety attack. Propanolol and Metoprolol are the most commonly prescribed beta blockers for this. In high doses, people have much lower BP's and can get dizzy upon standing as you get a drop in BP, however in low doses, you usually just get the nice lowered heart rate. Even with excessive excercise, your heart rate won't go above a certain point. I've been taking them for years and they work great. If I can answer any more question, feel free to email me at GARY1RN@YAHOO.COM Check with your doctor before taking any medicine, I am merely sharing my knowledge of medicine with you and in no way shape or form prescribing this or recomending this for you. Sorry, I have to put that in there..Gary

One more thing....If you take a Beta Blocker for any extended period of time, be careful comming off. Some people experience a rebound tachycardia or rapid heart rare. Talk with your doctor before stopping any Beta Blocker.

Ann and Gary, we are not going to pull this thread but we are going to move it over to it's correct location: Medicine Discussions

Admin

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Ann, I take a low dosage of beta blockers, atenolol. I have taken them for over a year. I also have a low dose of Xanax if I need it. Fortunately, I don't. As Gary said, the beta blocker does regulate blood pressure. I don't have any problems with it and it definately keeps my heart from racing during anxious moments. There are different ones to choose from. Propanolol made me too sluggish. Good luck.

Hi there =) I am on beta blockers becasue I have SVT. My heart goes to 180 a minute and I am on Xanax too along with Paxil to help my anxiety. I wish you the best of luck!

Thank you everyone for replying to my question. I've been reading other discussions on beta blockers and I'm curious, what is MVP and SVT? I still haven't decided whether or not to fill my Topril XL prescription yet. I'm able to get by with my occasional Xanex right now.

MVP=Mitral Valve Prolapse, it's a rare condition of the heart where the Mitral valve doesn't close properly. It's a benign condition unless you develop Mitral Valve Regurgitation. This condition can be confirmed via Echocardiogram.

SVT=Sinus Ventricular Tachycardia. I forget the cutoff, but I think it's a sustained HR of >140 beats per min. It can mimic all the sensations of anxiety when present. Beta Blockers are great to treat the condition whether or not it's related to anxiety or not.

Thank you Gary. This makes me feel better. Have a joyful upcoming holiday season.