My Medications

Last Updated - 02/22/17

Changes as of 11/18


  • Off Ursodiol
  • Off Amlodipine
  • Metoprolol 200 mg daily
  • Switched from Losartan to Telmisartan as Telmisartan is more lipophyllic - more fat soluble and has a tendency to stay in my body longer than Losartan - does just fine with keeping my BP 110ish/60ish
  • Off Aspirin - started bleeding in my stomach
  • Coumadin - 5-7.5 mg daily
  • Simvastatin 5 mg because my LDL is low and HDL is ideal+


I am taking the following medications:

  • Ursodiol 300mg 2x for gallstones
  • Back on Amlodipine 5mg.  Raynauds has subsided since moving to Ft. Myers. 
  • Another Metoprolol update:  Back to 100 mg daily.  Lowering the dosage did bring on arrhythmias until I became a vegan and lost weight. 
  • Metoprolol update:  I have started cutting back on my Metoprolol every other day, shaving about 25 mg off each morning and evening dosage due to my hypotension and extremely low pulse that I have been encountering lately.  The reduction has brought my blood pressure back up to around 115/60 from 95/50 and I am not quite so fatigued.  Will continue to monitor this dosage adjustment over time. 
  • Metoprolol 100 mg twice daily, once in the morning and once in the evening - self adjusting on evening dose depending on how low my blood pressure is.  BP has dropped to 80/40 couple times and this concerns me.  Sometimes I will cut evening dose by 25mg to see if my pulse and BP rises any.
    • Side effects for me include:
      • Extreme fatigue
      • Lethargy
      • Dizziness
      • Lack of energy
  • Losartan 50 mg once daily in the morning - self adjusted to 100 mg daily (01/29/2014) - can't get BP down and don't have the insurance to go to the Cardiologist - will call him soon…. :( 03/15/2014 - still on 100mg Losartan.  UPDATE on Losartan:  With Vegan/Paleo diet I have shed another ten pounds and my blood pressure has stabilized enough for me to go back on 50 mg daily in the morning.  This is good as Losartan is my most expensive medication. :)
  • Aspirin, buffered 80 mg once daily in the morning
    • Side effects for me include:
      • Upper chest pain sometimes
  • Simvastatin 40 mg once daily in the evening
  • Coumadin 5mg once daily in  the evening, INR runs 2.4ish at 5mg daily
Thoughts on Medications:
  • The Metoprolol and Simvastatin help manage the descending aorta dissection.
  • Metoprolol keeps pulse rate around 45-55 bpm.
  • Coumadin supports keeping mechanical valve/ Dacron graft from having blood clots form. Lots of problems with keeping coumadin balanced.  INR swings from 6 to 2 to 6 in last couple weeks (September 2013).
  • Seems like my medications run out at different times each month.  I don't understand this because I take each every day as scheduled.  This phenomena creates difficulty because I have to find a way to go to the pharmacy, stand line and then get home.  This takes plenty of time.  One of the great mysteries of Marf life.
  • (10/18/2013) I know it is wrong but I am just not motivated sometimes to go get a refill on my meds.  It is almost like playing Russian roulette, but only because I am feeling such chronic fatigue. 

1 comment:

  1. Same issue with longevity of meds. I think there are "borrowers" in my house absconding with them. It takes a lot of time and energy keeping up with the scripts for sure.

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