Heart Medications

Here is a list of medications that I was on to help ease the symptoms of restrictive cardiomyopathy:

Beta Blockers

This is one that many people will have heard of. They are used for all sorts of things including headaches and anxiety. They work by slowing down your heart rate which helps your heart to work more efficiently because it has more time in between each beat to be able to fill with blood. My resting heart rate was around 80bpm and it is now 56bpm.

I had headaches when I first started taking beta blockers but after a couple of months they went. I have massive issues with sleep, so I take mine early in the morning to make sure I can sleep at night. A positive side effect is that I'm way less anxious than I was, I have a very chilled out attitude towards things. This doesn't happen for everyone, some people can depressed taking beta blockers which is why they're not really supposed to be prescribed for anxiety. I am always tired but I don't know how much of that is my heart condition or medication but as you can imagine, when your heart rate is slower and your blood pressure is lower you can feel tired and dizzy. I also have very cold hands and feet but again I think that's due to my heart more than the beta blockers. I take 5mg a day.

It is best to avoid alcohol whilst taking this medication, alcohol is bad for your heart rhythm anyway but it slows down your heart rate which can be really dangerous whilst taking beta blockers.

Different types:

• Bisolprolol fumerate (The one I take, tends to be much smaller doses than the others as it's stronger)
• propranolol
• nebivolol
• metoprolol
• carvedilol 
• atenolol

Water tablet (diuretic)

When you have fluid retention they often give you a water tablet, it is good because it means that I don't have to restrict my fluid intake. You just drink normally but this tablet makes you flush it all out (without going into too much detail!) So it is inconvenient, I'm supposed to take a second one around lunch time but I wouldn't be able to leave my house so it's better to just be a bit more breathless. I take 40mg Furosomide.

This medicine isn't good news for your kidneys, so you have to get your kidney blood test done around 2 weeks after starting these or after changing a dose. It's also important that you drink the normal amount of fluid as you can become very dehydrated and it can damage your kidneys. As well as having your kidneys tested they test your potassium to make sure you have enough, you may need a potassium supplement. 

Anticoagulant (blood thinner)

Early this year I had a blood clot in my left atrium. Because my atrium is too big it means that blood pools in there rather than whooshing straight through, this causes the blood to stick together and form a clot. A clot is obviously dangerous because it can become loose and travel anywhere round your body and if it ends up in your brain you can have a stroke. People are often prescribed anticoagulants as a prevention, if you have an enlarged heart or atrial fibrillation to prevent a clot forming. I've had no side effects really from these, I get red dots on my arms and legs which are tiny bruising under the skin but they're not harmful. 

You cannot do contact sport or anything where you may bruise easily or cut yourself whilst taking this medication. So no ice skating, football, they say not to shave your legs but I personally have never cut myself shaving so I still do this you just have to be careful. You will also have to carry a card in your purse which says what you take so that paramedics know if you're ever in an accident.

Different types:

• Warfarin - is probably the most well known. Warfarin works by blocking one of your enzymes that uses Vitamin K (you need vitamin K to produce clotting factors in your blood). Whilst taking warfarin you have to have your bloods tested all the time to check your INR, this tests whether your blood is too thick or too thin. Because of the way it works you cannot eat foods which contain vitamin K as they will prevent it working.
• More modern ones - There are now 4 alternatives to Warfarin, most people still take warfarin as it's cheaper. There is Rivaroxaban (Xarelto), Dabigatran (Pradaxa), Apixaban (Eliquis), Edoxaban (Lixiana), the brackets are the brand names. I take Apixaban twice a day, this means that I don't have to have my blood tested at all and I don't have any foods that I have to avoid. Unfortunately there is no remedy for these new medicines so if you are in an accident they cannot give you vitamin K to reverse the affects of your blood thinner.

I no longer drink alcohol because it makes me feel unwell but you should avoid alcohol whilst taking this medication, it thins your blood even further so if you were to injure yourself whilst drinking the effects would be greater.

Spirolactone

Not everyone will take this medication so I'll only mention it briefly. This is actually another diuretic (it is a potassium sparing diuretic so it isn't as strong as furesomide) however, in a study they found that the participants that were taking this diuretic didn't develop any scarring of the heart. It might be that this is merely a coincidence but I was given this because hopefully it will prevent scarring as if it doesn't, there's no harm to me by taking it.

There are other medications you make take when you have heart failure or another heart condition, there's ACE inhibitors which is another common one but I don't take that. Let me know if you have any questions! Obviously always read the information that comes with your medicine and never stop taking it without talking to your doctor.