Flecinide and toprol 25 xl er

after a surgery I had i had a couple bouts of afib so doctor put me on 100 mg of flec in the morning and evening for a few weeks and then cut it back to 50mg
I have been ok so far with that but feel tired i have not slept well and i am also constipated. Has anyone else on here had the same problems and what do you think of the plan
My confidence was so high because i hadn't had an episode for so long and now the confidence is down in the basement. Thanks for you replies and i hope everyone is good

Hi Steve... you won't be constipated if you push your daily intake of magnesium to the bowel tolerance level... and then adjust downward just slightly. The extra magnesium will help keep your heart rhythm stable and create a solid platform for potassium to work as well. So, be mindful of your daily intake of potassium-containing foods and if you aren't consuming over 4,000 mg daily, then you'll need to supplement that as well to help stabilize your heart.

It can be difficult to relax again after a flareup but since you did so well until now, no reason not to think this will all fade into the background again.

Best to you, Steve,
Jackie

Thanks Jackie i probably should push the mag up again i am taking 500mg a day not sure what potassium supplement to take and i will take the flec back down to 50mg that will also be good i think because that is my pip in pocket drug and i usually take 200 mg of it and 1 toprol tartrate and so far it has worked for me. thanks steve

Steve - for the potassium... there is the powder form which is very convenient and cost effective - order from iHerb...
Potassium Gluconate Powder by NOW (brand)... [www.iherb.com] It's a bargain. 1 tsp = 540 mg. Tastes slightly salty.

For portability, you can carry capsules of potassium gluconate, potassium citrate, potassium orotate and even a potassium amino acid chelate... but each is limited to 99 mg (by law). Easy to find at your local health food store. Check the label and avoid any that contain aspartate.

I always carry some with me... about 6 capsules... and use when I eat out to offset any added salt in the restaurant food.

Jackie

Important Correction

After posting the foregoing to Steve earlier this morning, I received a PM from Jake that indicates the NOW K gluconate powder is labeled... 1/2 tsp provides only 175 mg of potassium... so the full teaspoon of 350 mg is quite a bit lower than my original quote of 540 mg.

I have both an old bottle indicating the original dosing equivalency of 540 mg/teaspoon...and a new bottle, which is exactly what Jake quotes - a lower dosing equivalency. Something has changed... for some reason.

So - Steve and everyone else...please pay attention to the label for proper dosing. Thanks to Jake for the keen eye and the very important catch on this labeling change.

Counting out the 99 mg capsules is still reliable as far as we know.

Jackie



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/24/2016 04:17PM by Jackie.

After my ablation, the doctor had me take 100 mg flecinide (morning and evening) and 25 ml of metoprolol (derivative of toprol) for a month. During my one month doctor visit, I mentioned how tired I was and attributed to the metoprolol since I have taken it in the past. He stopped the flecinide and suggested I take the metoprolol in the evening. This procedure seems to help me.

Plus, I do take 600 mg of mag. I find if I take the pill form of mg (as oppose to the powder form), I have more trouble with my bowels. What is interesting, before the ablation procedure, I took 800 mg of the Doctor's Best brand in pill form with no problems, and now I can't even take 100 mg without bowel issues. I don't know if it is the combination of the powder form with the pill form that has caused the problem. I started to take the powder form in the morning and evening and the pill form at noon because I was running out of the powder form while on vacation. So, I am trying to stick to the powder form until I get back home to order more of it.

Marsh - What's the brand of the powder form of magnesium you are using and the description of the 'form' of the magnesium powder. Is it the amino acid chelate or something else? Just curious.

Jackie

The Doctor's Best magnesium (elemental) pill is magnesium glycinate/lysinate chelate (not buffered). The magnesium powder is also mag glycinate. It is the powder form, I believe, you take. You suggested this form in one of your posts that I read along with the neuromag you take. Being on vacation, I don't have the original container with me but have put the powder in a smaller, separate container to save on space in the suitcase. Right now, I can't remember the brand name and I can't find the post where it was mentioned.

I have no problem with bowel intolerance with the powder form. However, for some unknown reason, I am now having problems with the pill form.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/25/2016 01:29AM by Marsh.

Yes, Marsh - I do take the magnesium powder... but when I wrote, I was just curious as to the brand that that seemed to cause rapid bowel tolerance for you. Obviously, I misread that the powder was the culprit. So sorry for that. Not sure why the pills would cause


As we know, we all vary in stages of magnesium inside cells and how well we retain or rapidly deplete...so dosing becomes highly individualized.

Thanks for taking the time to respond.

Jackie

I take 75 mg Flec in the morning and 1/2 25 mg toprol XL at night. there is some interaction between the two with me. This is my reduced dose of Flec aft my afib ablation. The reason is some ectopics they could not kill that bother me a lot.
Flec helps to control them. I am a Flecanide "KING" I have had every bad effect from this drug you can get but sometimes there are no options.
Ive been so tired at work I have slept on the toilet. the effect of tiredness seems to lessen as time goes. The constipation can be solved as Jackie says with magnesium. I use powder Swanson Magnesium Glycinate. trust me at the right dose you will not be constipated. It did help my tiredness some when I reduced my toprol from 25 to 12.5 at night.
Flecainide is a common drug and increasingly popular. It is however a very potent and can be dangerous drug. I had other side effects far worse than these so (If the drug works for ya) try to conform to the effects and be happy thats all you are dealing with.

Taco thanks for replying helpful statement. I also have not been sleeping well with the increased dosage of flecinide like last night woke up around 3 went to bed at 11 and i had an anxious feeling and it seems to center below sternum. i called my ep back home i am in florida and she said after two weeks lower the dose of flec to 50mg twice a day. I believe i had the breakthrough because of foot surgery. I also am bored because not allowed to walk or anything because of the foot. So maybe the constipation sleeping will get batter do you take potassium i might have to get the powder form of mag i take 500mg of mg now. What are your thoughts on what i said. Thanks

I dont sleep well, Im not sure it is because of the Flec ?? I used to have a lot of uncomfortable sternum related "stuff" but again maybe GERD or GBladder or Anxiety not sure that is Flec. Id say you had a lot of anx with surgery etc. so the anx of it prob led to your episode.