Blood pressure medications can be lifesaving. But they can also make some people tired. Beta blockers are the blood pressure medications most closely linked to fatigue as a side effect.
How they can cause fatigue: Blood-pressure medications may slow down the pumping action of the heart as well as depress the entire central nervous system, or, in the case of diuretics, deplete electrolytes that the body needs.
If you've had hypertension for a while, you may have noticed that you sometimes feel tired after little or no exertion. When left untreated, high blood pressure can lead to some serious medical complications, including those that make you feel tired easily.
“It may take a month to six weeks to bring your blood pressure down by slowly raising your medication doses,” Durso notes.
High blood pressure causes tiredness as a result of elevated pressure on vital organs such as the brain, heart and kidneys. Often though, medication plays a larger role in contributing to fatigue than the actual condition does. Tiredness is often a common side effect of many medications used to lower blood pressure.
Excessive daytime sleepiness or tiredness is a symptom sometimes associated with high blood pressure, and it has been shown to be a potential warning sign for cardiac events. 2 High blood pressure may also be linked to tiredness in other ways, such as sleep disturbances.
For those who have hypertension, regular physical activity can bring blood pressure down to safer levels. Some examples of aerobic exercise that can help lower blood pressure include walking, jogging, cycling, swimming or dancing. Another possibility is high-intensity interval training.
Safe medications to use include methyldopa and potentially some diuretics and beta-blockers, including labetalol.
The bottom line. In general, you shouldn't stop taking blood pressure medications suddenly. If you do, they can cause potentially dangerous side effects that can lead to withdrawal symptoms.
In most cases, there's a reason for the fatigue. It might be allergic rhinitis, anemia, depression, fibromyalgia, chronic kidney disease, liver disease, lung disease (COPD), a bacterial or viral infection, or some other health condition.
Most of the time, blood pressure medicines do not cause side effects. Some people have mild side effects, including dizziness, headaches, swelling in the legs or feet, or stomach problems.
Bed rest can help control your blood pressure and may help keep your heart from beating too fast. If your heart rate slows down, less blood will be pumped into your arteries which helps keep your blood pressure stable. As long as your blood pressure remains mild, you can take care of it outside of the hospital.
Still, you can make lifestyle changes to bring your blood pressure down. Something as simple as keeping yourself hydrated by drinking six to eight glasses of water every day improves blood pressure. Water makes up 73% of the human heart,¹ so no other liquid is better at controlling blood pressure.
Anxiety doesn't cause long-term high blood pressure (hypertension). But episodes of anxiety can cause dramatic, temporary spikes in blood pressure.
High doses of vitamin D can cause hypercalcemia, which increases the risk of fatal heart problems with digoxin. Diltiazem (Cardizem, Tiazac, others). Avoid taking high doses of vitamin D with this blood pressure drug.
Foods high in potassium also can interfere with some medications for high blood pressure and heart failure. It certainly would take more than one banana to raise potassium levels to a dangerous level for the average person, Spees said.
Not everyone will experience side effects from their blood pressure medication. The most common side effects include tiredness, headache, dizziness, leg cramps, and upset stomach. Usually these side effects go away within the first few weeks of taking your medication.