Propranolol and Alcohol?

[Tucker]

Hi,

Have just been put on Half Inderal LA(Propranolol) 80mg, been taking them for past 3 day's and do feel a bit calmer.

Tomorrow i'm going to a football game and plan to have a good few drinks will this do me harm??

I'm thinking of missing my dose tomorrow incase of an interaction.

On your med. page about propranolol it say's "Do not drink alcohol, the interaction of propranolol and alcohol is dangerous"?, but in the leaflet with the tablets it say's "If you frequently drink alot of alcohol this may reduce the effect of your medicine."( which sounds as if you are ok to drink with this medicine). And totally nothing about avoiding alcohol at all.

I wasn't worried at all about having a good drink, until i read the page on meds.

Any ideas?

Tucker.

[nomorepanic]

Hi Tucker

I am in the process of re-vamping the meds page on the site.

I am a bit confused now cos looking it up in my meds book says "no problem" but then if you google it you get all sorts of info about it!!!

I hope Meg sees this and helps out cos I am not sure now either.
Sorry!

Nicola

"Nearly all happiness comes into our lives through doors we don't even remember leaving open"

[Meg]

Th rule of thumb is that you can have a drink or two but not get competely blattered on a regular basis.

A high proportion of slightly rotund middle aged + drinkers in your local pub are liley to have been through the betablockers catagory at some stage and continued with their pub outings.

Propanolol is lipid soluable so gets excreted by the liver so you want to maintain some sort of function there... ...

Betablockers slow your heart rate and a stimulant like alcohol naturally increases the heart rate so they are working against each other..

Have a good game. As you're new on them it would be wise to listen to how you feel between pints ..


Meg
www.anxietymanagementltd.com

Watch your thoughts, they become your words...
Watch your words, they become your actions... Watch your actions, they become your habits... Watch your habits, they become your character... Watch your character, it becomes your destiny...

[seh1980]

Good luck at the game!! A few drinks will probably be fine. Just don't go overboard..:D

"Life is too important to take seriously" Corky Siegal

[mad4it]

hi
have been worried about mixing alchohol while on these. but hope its ok.

[pigspeed]

Hi Tucker,

I have to admit to frequently washing my betablockers down with alcohol when I took them about 10 years ago. However I really feel that mixing any kind of medicine - anti depressant/tranqualiser/beta blocker with a depressant, alcohol, is not such a good idea. I'm a recovering alcoholic and drank frequently convinced that anybody with panic attacks like mine would do the same. In the end I couldn't tell whether it was the alcohol making me anxious or I was anxious!

[bridgetbalderston]

Th rule of thumb is that you can have a drink or two but not get competely blattered on a regular basis.

A high proportion of slightly rotund middle aged + drinkers in your local pub are liley to have been through the betablockers catagory at some stage and continued with their pub outings.

Propanolol is lipid soluable so gets excreted by the liver so you want to maintain some sort of function there... ...

Betablockers slow your heart rate and a stimulant like alcohol naturally increases the heart rate so they are working against each other..

Have a good game. As you're new on them it would be wise to listen to how you feel between pints ..


Meg
www.anxietymanagementltd.com (http://www.anxietymanagementltd.com)

Watch your thoughts, they become your words...
Watch your words, they become your actions... Watch your actions, they become your habits... Watch your habits, they become your character... Watch your character, it becomes your destiny...

Thank you for that, it's a big help.

[Concern]

Betablockers slow your heart rate and a stimulant like alcohol naturally increases the heart rate so they are working against each other..

I'm sorry but what are your qualifications to be giving this advice?
Alcohol is not a stimulant, it is a depressant. It doesn't increase the heart rate, it lowers it. And they will not be "working against each other", they will more likely be adding to the same effects.

http://www.drinkaware.co.uk/facts/did-you-know/alcohol-isnt-a-stimulant,-its-a-depressant.-thats-why-drinking-too-much-often-leads-to-impaired-judgement,-slurring-of-speech,-a-tendency-to-violent-behaviour-and-loss-of-short-term-memory.

I am greatly disturbed by your willingness to give someone medical advice without making sure what you say is accurate. I would suggest that unless you are a medical professional, you cease dispensing medical advice. If you are a medical professional (doctor, nurse, pharmacist, etc - Not some quack voodoo witch doctor like a homoeopath or some other alternative medicine con person) then you should return to study immediately.

[nomorepanic]

Concern - Meg is no longer active on the forum but is a RGN. (nurse).

I was just wondering how you found this post as it is very old now.

[nomorepanic]

I have read loads of sites about this now and most say that although it can decrease the heart rate it will then then increase it again and loads of people report an increase in the heart rate.

There are loads of studies about it on the internet as well so I think you are unjustified in your comments about what Meg said to be honest.

[hanshan]

Hi All,

I'm reposting this from an old web post, but it does indicate that there is a difficulty with the term "depressant". A neurotransmitter depressant, may, in fact, have a stimulatory effect.


Date: Wed Apr 21 19:12:08 1999
Posted By: Phyllis Pugh, Post-doc/Fellow, Neurobiology, Medical College of Ohio
Area of science: Neuroscience

Yes, alcohol appears to act as both a depressant and a stimulant (this is referred to as a biphasic response)…

The question you ask is actually rather complex, because, in general, alcohol functions at the neuronal level to block or inhibit receptors. If the receptors being inhibited are excitatory (for example, glutamate receptors), then alcohol's effect is inhibitory (blocking a positive thing); if, however, those receptors are inhibitory (for example, GABA receptors), then the negation is actually stimulatory (block a negative thing results in a positive, just like a normal double negative.)

Hanshan

[robinbrum]

Alcohol is a depressant and that needs to be very clearly stated. However if consumed in large enough quantities it can the heart work harder to pump blood around the body. You will probably notice this more the day after or when coming off a drinking binge. If anything that's when the propanolol will come in handy. I just wouldn't take them if I was drinking more than 1 or 2 pints - the alcohol will do the job just as successfully in my experience.
If you can avoid drinking to excess - better still.
I am not medically qualified but I use betablockers and I have abused alcohol in the past.
I don't recommend it to anyone but just wanted to share my thoughts on the matter.

---------- Post added at 15:15 ---------- Previous post was at 15:09 ----------

I think it's fair to say that by depressing certain areas of the brain you in turn manage to stimulate others - I think that's the alcohol effect. Some of us may have witnessed this if we were brave - or drunk - enough to have ventured into town last night:roflmao:

[Belleblue]

Although it's many many years ago now - I also drank excessively at one time. I was told that the first three drinks raise serotonin levels in the brain, but that drinking more than this can have a depressant effect. I have no idea how scientifically accurate this is - but for me it was certainly true :chairfall:

Belle x

[K-OSS]

Th rule of thumb is that you can have a drink or two but not get competely blattered on a regular basis.

A high proportion of slightly rotund middle aged + drinkers in your local pub are liley to have been through the betablockers catagory at some stage and continued with their pub outings.

Propanolol is lipid soluable so gets excreted by the liver so you want to maintain some sort of function there... ...

Betablockers slow your heart rate and a stimulant like alcohol naturally increases the heart rate so they are working against each other..

Have a good game. As you're new on them it would be wise to listen to how you feel between pints ..


Meg
Watch your thoughts, they become your words...
Watch your words, they become your actions... Watch your actions, they become your habits... Watch your habits, they become your character... Watch your character, it becomes your destiny...

Sorry, I only signed up because I was shocked at this post and it's inaccuracy, this post immediately needs to be edited out by the moderators/admins, as it contains fallacious medical information.

Alcohol is not a "stimulant" it is a depressant drug, and drinking alcohol while taking beta-blockers is dangerous it can kill you.

If you have no clue of what you're talking about then refrain from spreading ignorance on the internet.


Edit* just seen some of the other members picking up on the fact that alcohol is a depressant.

Alcohol slows your breathing down and relaxes your muscles, and slows down your reaction time, this is exactly why it is a depressant and no a stimulant, if may give you the false perception of being a stimulant while being intoxicated but there is no reputable medical book out there which would state that alcohol is a stimulant. It's a CNS depressant, it is plain and simple as that. I am shocked to see even one of the administrator trying to endorse this so called "nurses" post.

cite: www .bridgew. edu/alcohol/fastfacts/Alcohol_Facts.pdf

---------- Post added at 15:16 ---------- Previous post was at 14:46 ----------


Concern - Meg is no longer active on the forum but is a RGN. (nurse).

I was just wondering how you found this post as it is very old now.

So, basically you can get a basic diploma and pretty much anyone can be a RGN nurse, just pay the fee. Even a level 3 nvq is enough to get into training. and eventually get registered with the NMC. It isn't like an actual MBBS.


Edit**: Sorry, it seems like my last paragraph is sounding like an insult directed at nurses. I don't want anyone to misconstrue my post as such so I want to make it clear that I am not insulting nurses, who have the credentials and do a great job, I was trying to point out that the training isn't as rigorous as getting a doctorates.

[nomorepanic]

I will pass on your comments to Meg for her to respond. Thanks