Misc Tolerance to Beta-Blockers / Propranolol?

[plumbus-nine]

I'm on beta-blockers for tachycardia, and selected propranolol because of its BBB permeability and thus anxiety reducing effects but it also makes me tired, so I began taking most of the daily dose at night. For some weeks it worked well that way and helped against insomnia but now I can take 400mg and get just some brief tiredness, wake up after 2-3h and have insomnia again. I know that it's no sleeping aid but as said, initially it worked well, that's why I continued.

Can you develop tolerance to beta-blockers and what are the implications of this?

 

[Hemptress]

Yes, I was also on propranolol for tachycardia and the dr chose it for me for its supposed extremely small help with anxiety. I'm surprised the drowsy side effect worked for you as long as it did. There were no implications from that for myself...for instance I didn't need it to go to sleep after I stopped taking it if that is what you're asking. It is non habit forming and since you have tachycardia I wouldnt recommend not taking it to reduce your tolerance and then taking it again 2 weeks later for the extremely mild sedating effect.

 

[Keif' Richards]

Hey @plumbus-nine

You definitely can develop a tolerance to drugs of this nature. I don't think the mechanism works much more differently than most of the other drugs we deal with here on a daily basis, whether they're Antihistamines or Opioids. I don't have a lot of experience with things being introduced to the body like this and the body not adjusting in an equal and opposite way to them.

I have less experience with Propanolol (Inderal), but I have a lot of experience with Clonidine (Catapres). I've spoken with other people who have experienced what you've experienced and I have experienced it myself. Outside of conditions like drug withdrawal, 0.2mg Clonidine could make me utterly hibernate for 8 straight hours with no waking and even make me sluggish getting out of bed and getting the motor warm in the morning. Tolerance does develop to these effects though.

I've gotten to the point with Clonidine where I could take 0.4mg, sleep for 2-3 hours and wake up feeling totally normal. This instance was when I was withdrawing from Methadone on one occasion and I was riding my pills as hard as I could drive them just trying to sleep and function. Now I still take Clonidine as a sleep-aid, but I only take 0.2mg per night. This helps me sleep in a normal way and wake up feeling rested. I seem to experience no tolerance of note taking it like this.

I'm sorry plumbus but the only answer might be to lay off of these for a minute. Do you have any alternatives? We can totally discuss some if you want.

 

[plumbus-nine]

@Keif' Richards What do you think are the implications of tolerance to anti-adrenergic drugs? I know that clonidine has to be tapered once one has been on it for a while, which means tolerance and rebound, but I never heard about similar from beta blockers. I don't seem to get an increase in BPM or blood pressure when I don't take the propranolol, just my usual tachycardia comes back.

Interesting that you don't get the depressive side effect I got from clonidine. Yeah, initially 0.15mg were enough to send me asleep, but it's less forced than with e.g. antihistamines.
Once I took bisoprolol + clonidine and got weird physical symptoms, my body couldn't increase blood circulation as a result and as needed so I could only walk slowly etc..

 

[Anonymous Dissident]

I only noticed the anxiolytic effect of propranolol the first couple of days I was on it. It's still helping my moderate my kratom doses and deal with my restlessness though. I'm at a far lower dose (30mg 3x/day) FWIW