Has anyone used the Clonidine Transdermal Patch for high blood pressure? Directions say doesn't work for 2-3 days...do you take oral Clonidine for that 2-3 days? Did you have any problems or adverse side effects?_schumacker replied: "Clonidine TD will enter your skin at a slow rate. It may not have full effectiveness for the initial 2-3 days but it will likely have some lesser effectiveness. I would not take oral Clonidine in the mean time. It is a very potent bp medication and the oral version is relatively short acting. As a result you are likely to cause your blood pressure to yo-yo if you take oral Clonidine. A few days of suboptimally controlled blood pressure is not usually a horrible thing. Keep track of it. Call your doctor (or go to the ED) if the top number exceeds 205 and if the bottom number exceeds 105. or if you are feeling symptoms associated with high blood pressure. Good luck."

Clonidine patch for withdrawl symptoms? Ive been taking narcotic pain medicine for a long time now for back pain. Me and my dr wanna try a more effective approach. Taking me off the pain pills is gonna cause withdrawl symptoms so my dr prescribe clonidine. Has this ever been effective with the painful symptoms? And how will I feel while on it?

LiL Miz SuNsHiNe replied: "Thats weird, clonidine is for high blood pressure. Are your sure its not Klonapin? Your lucky I work with doctors, but Clonidine has been used for cancer patients with pain unresponsive to other narcotics. Its not a pain pill. Just realize that you have to check your blood pressure on a regular basis when starting this med. good luck and tell me how it goes!"
 

Will the side effects from Clonidine go away soon? I don't have many options for HBP meds because I have a number of other conditions. Only Ace Inhibitors and ARBs are OK; most of the other drugs are contraindicated. I just started using the Clonidine patch for High Blood Pressure. Even though I have heart disease and circulation problems (Raynaud's syndrome) - both are contraindindicated for my taking Clonidine - the doctor gave it to me anyhow. I am now having side effects. This includes the most bothersome ones such as jaw pain. This is most likely from Angina. I get this everyday about the same time, around 3 pm and it lasts for hours. Also, leg pain. I know it's from the circulation problem. It helped this at first, suddenly no cold feet at night. However, it's now worse. My right leg hurts and is cold and numb. It wasn't before. Constipation, this is listed as common, but will it end? and how soon? Drowsiness, I go to the library to use the computer and keep falling asleep there. It's starts about the same time the jaw pain does and lasts as long. I have to fight to stay awake even though I drink coffee. My legs feel heavy when I walk, and I stop sooner than usual for rest. I also get tired on exertion faster; just folding a blanket had me winded earlier today. I had what feels like an electrical shock in my chest last night. I only had one, but I haven't had this in a while. Should I keep taking this med? I don't get much out of it. I was happy that it was killing my appetite but that's starting to fade. It may be lowering my BP but I haven't checked yet. I've been using the patch about four days now.

J B replied: "You are at the time frame when most symptoms that might occur are at their worst. It takes about 2 weeks from starting a new medication before the symptoms go away. If they continue to get worse and worse instead of gradually better and better, you will need to talk with your doctor about whether the side effects of the medication are serious enough or troublesome enough to change the medication."

What is the best Quit Smoking Book? Has anyone tried the Tao of Quitting Smoking: A spiritual Approach? I am an M.D and there are situations in which I can't use the pharmacological approach to quitting. Some have had medication interactions while others simply did not want to add another prescription to their long list of medication. Then I have had patients that were eager to try the patch, Zyban, Clonidine, and or Chantix, but it would worked for about 6 months but when things went wrong in their life, they went back to smoking. Smoking cessation groups, and or psychotherapy can be problematic especially if their insurance won't cover the sessions. I heard recently about Joe Weaver's book the Tao of Quitting Smoking and how it is a spiritual approach to quitting. Has anyone read it. Now, of course I know there is no magic book that works for everyone. I have recommended Allen Carr's book, with not go within: Mind, Body, and Spirit. I have recommended Mr. Weaver's book and have had 1 success for 1.5 years. Looking for other books that you have read, which take a spiritual approach.

C B replied: "I am so happy to see an MD posting here. Have you looked into EFT at all? I'll give the website below. I have only just begun to teach it, but I've had 100% success so far with smokers. Over a larger population, I'm told the success rate is more like 75% but I've been elated to see how great it does work. You should check it out. I know a lot of people wrinkle their brow when it comes to the idea of energy work. But if you think about it more as a distractive measure, and then see that it really does give relief from the anxiety that is being medicated with the tobacco, it makes sense. Really though, my experience has been just to go with it and not to analyze the 'why' so much, as long as it is working. Compliance with a technique like this might be a problem, but if the smoker is really committed, it should be not too hard to overcome. Like I said, the smokers I have seen with my own eyes that have tried it have all been successful on their first attempt quitting this way, and with only limited physical withdrawal. BTW, the manual is free along with a lot of case studies you can find on the site."