Re: Another question for those of you with more experience!

[Guest guest]

Hi ita,

I take 500 mg of magnesium daily due to decrease which they believe is due to

my cardiac meds and lasix usuage. I am also low on potassium, remember the

two go hand in hand. If your magnesium is low, no matter how much potassium

they give you it won't bind until they bring up the magnesium. Now on the

matter of vtach, my arrythmia's act up badly when my magnesium and potassium

levels are off, each has an effect on the hearts normal rhythm, at least in

my case. My cardio said alot of the pvc's were due to my electrolyte

embalance of magnesium and potassium

Only your doctor would know in your case.

|\_._/|

| o o |

( T )

.^'-^-'^.

" Cat "

~^v~^v~^v~ and the beat goes on : )

Faith doesn't get you around trouble, it

gets you through it.

[Guest guest]

Hi ita,

Yes I was taking a potassium supplement due to hypokalemia ( low potassium)

but then the lasix at 120 mg a day started to not be enough to take care of

my edema so they added another diuretic called aldactone, after two weeks of

being on aldactone I was put in ICU due to potassium overload ( hyperkalemia

) as aldactone " holds " the potassium in your body...... now I am off the

potassium and so far diet and aldactone are keeping the levels up. I just

had a overdose of potassium due to aldactone, high potassium diet and also

potassium supplements..... it was just too much. Now my potassium and

magnesium are monitored every two to three weeks. If the levels drop I

adjust my diet accordingly, its a constant game of give and take to find and

maintain the balance. So either I'm hypokalemic or hyperkalemic depending on

the week LOL

Hope some of all this is helpful to you

|\_._/|

| o o |

( T )

.^'-^-'^.

" Cat "

~^v~^v~^v~ and the beat goes on : )

Faith doesn't get you around trouble, it

gets you through it.

[Guest guest]

I too had a problem keeping my magnesiaum level up. I take Mag Oxide every day and do not have any more problems with PVC's.

I also had problems with beta blockers...they made me wheeze! I am very sensitive to them and avoid them at all costs.

[Guest guest]

i see a heart failure specialist in university of penn hospital in

philadelphia and he tells me the coreg is a miracle drug for heart

failure patients....my e.f. went from 10 to 35 in a year.....and ive

gained weight over the winter....have to get working on that problem

soon...

bob in pa

At 03:08 PM 4/4/02 -0500, you wrote:

I too had

a problem keeping my magnesiaum level up. I take Mag Oxide every

day and do not have any more problems with PVC's.

I also had problems with beta blockers...they made me wheeze! I am

very sensitive to them and avoid them at all

costs.

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Please visit the Zapper homepage at

http://www.ZapLife.org

[Guest guest]

I'm appreciating the input re: the meds (particularly amiodarone and beta blockers) -- now, I have another question -- maybe goofy, but I'm gonna ask anyway ... any of you had a problem with magnesium deficiency? When I went in with my original v-tach and they cardioverted me, my magnesium level tested low, so in the ER, they gave me magnesium through IV. Upon leaving the hospital, my levels were supposedly normal. Was on Toprol when I left the hospital and did not immediately begin feeling badly, but after about a week or so started to get mega PVC's, short v-tach runs and a lot of arrhythmia stuff (along with the breathing problems etc.) *note* didn't have ANY of this stuff before the original v-tach... By yesterday, I was feeling really , really crummy and ready to try about anything, so on a whim, I took 500 mg. of magnesium -- strangely, within an hour, my arrythmia's had totally subsided (this was after 3 solid days of really awful ones) -- took 250mg today and feel the best I've felt in days (of course, I also just went off my Toprol, also.) The cardio seemed to feel pretty strongly at the original v-tach event that the low magnesium was caused by the v-tach, not the other way around, but has anyone ever encountered this before? I have an appt. tomorrow and will definitely bring it up, but was just curious if any of you had problems with low magnesium?

Thanks in advance -

ita

Re: Anyone had trouble tolerating beta-blockers?

Hello,I've had an awful time of tolerating beta blockers, was tried on ace inhibitors but same problems so finally they tried a beta blocker called Zebeta........ no problems at all taking it, hardly any side effects whatsoever, might be worth asking your doctor about......it was the last straw for me and it actually worked.Its not a very common beta blocker used but is one of many "rare" beta's that can be used in difficult to treat patients. |\_._/| | o o | ( T ).^'-^-'^. " Cat "~^v~^v~^v~ and the beat goes on : )Faith doesn't get you around trouble, it gets you through it.Please visit the Zapper homepage athttp://www.ZapLife.org

[Guest guest]

ita: I also take magnesium (500 MG daily) but it was recommended by my

cardiologist, not my EP doc.

[Guest guest]

My EP and cardio are the same person (though there are other cardiologists with various specialties in the practice that can be consulted when needed) -- I still intend to inquire about it, but think I will likely keep taking it -- especially if I'm actually feeling better on it -- are you aware of any potential harm in taking it as a supplement? Seems like it would just be an extra safeguard.

ita

Re: Another question for those of you with more experience!

ita: I also take magnesium (500 MG daily) but it was recommended by my cardiologist, not my EP doc.Please visit the Zapper homepage athttp://www.ZapLife.org

[Guest guest]

Interesting -- yes, I'm definitely going to talk with him about it. Do you have to also take a potassium supplement then? or is that managed through diet? I've also read about calcium being a factor in the balance and know that I pop TUMS w/ calcium like crazy. Supposedly if your calcium level is higher than normal it can increase the need for magnesium and potassium -- am I understanding this correctly?

Thanks for the info. about Zebeta also -- it sounds like it could be a potential option, since the breathing thing was such an issue for me. I'll be interested to see what he recommends tomorrow and glad when it all gets sorted out and life seems a bit more normal!

ita

Re: Another question for those of you with more experience!

Hi ita,I take 500 mg of magnesium daily due to decrease which they believe is due to my cardiac meds and lasix usuage. I am also low on potassium, remember the two go hand in hand. If your magnesium is low, no matter how much potassium they give you it won't bind until they bring up the magnesium. Now on the matter of vtach, my arrythmia's act up badly when my magnesium and potassium levels are off, each has an effect on the hearts normal rhythm, at least in my case. My cardio said alot of the pvc's were due to my electrolyte embalance of magnesium and potassiumOnly your doctor would know in your case. |\_._/| | o o | ( T ).^'-^-'^. " Cat "~^v~^v~^v~ and the beat goes on : )Faith doesn't get you around trouble, it gets you through it.Please visit the Zapper homepage athttp://www.ZapLife.org

[Guest guest]

Bob in PA: My cardio also loves coreg. My EF went from 20 to 47 but now is

back down to 26. Since I can't tolerate more coreg, he increased my

accupril. Good luck with the weight. Fortunately, I don't have that

problem, at least not yet.

[Guest guest]

Wow! Very helpful. Interestingly, this is the first full day I've had (knock on wood) of nice regular heartbeat without all the pvc's and other arrhythmia's. I've only been off the Toprol for about 8 hours, and I would think it is still working its way out of my system, but the magnesium sure does seem to be helping. I really appreciate all of the experience that you all have to share in this group! If I could feel this good every day, I'd be a happy woman!

ita

Re: Another question for those of you with more experience!

Hi ita, Yes I was taking a potassium supplement due to hypokalemia ( low potassium) but then the lasix at 120 mg a day started to not be enough to take care of my edema so they added another diuretic called aldactone, after two weeks of being on aldactone I was put in ICU due to potassium overload ( hyperkalemia ) as aldactone "holds" the potassium in your body...... now I am off the potassium and so far diet and aldactone are keeping the levels up. I just had a overdose of potassium due to aldactone, high potassium diet and also potassium supplements..... it was just too much. Now my potassium and magnesium are monitored every two to three weeks. If the levels drop I adjust my diet accordingly, its a constant game of give and take to find and maintain the balance. So either I'm hypokalemic or hyperkalemic depending on the week LOL Hope some of all this is helpful to you |\_._/| | o o | ( T ).^'-^-'^. " Cat "~^v~^v~^v~ and the beat goes on : )Faith doesn't get you around trouble, it gets you through it.Please visit the Zapper homepage athttp://www.ZapLife.org

[Guest guest]

yah, is in good shape - wouldn't guess the ef is that low ... My

Cardio swears by the Coreg as well. I went from 35 to 55ef in 18 mos - - I am

on the FULL dose of 25mg 2x per day.

~guin

KIGreen816@... wrote:

> Bob in PA: My cardio also loves coreg. My EF went from 20 to 47 but now is

> back down to 26. Since I can't tolerate more coreg, he increased my

> accupril. Good luck with the weight. Fortunately, I don't have that

> problem, at least not yet.

>

>

> Please visit the Zapper homepage at

> http://www.ZapLife.org

>

>