Amlodipine and Headaches: What Users Say

• Nik...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 15, 2020

For High Blood Pressure "I've been on this drug amlodipine for a few weeks for high blood pressure. My side effects are I've experienced extremely bad headaches, my arms and legs feel very weak and heavy, I have pain in my chest, and I feel like I have nasal drip that I can't clear. Also, dry mouth, strange dreams. I am taking myself off of it. And let me not forget about the backache and anxiety."

• Flo...
• June 16, 2020

For High Blood Pressure "I don’t usually write reviews but felt had to with this. Only took two 5mg tablets and awful side effects and experience. Day 1 severe dizziness, headache, and very bad chest pain, and a wired feeling. Day 2 anxiety through the roof, could not think straight, dizzy, breathless. And blood pressure going up not down. Stopped it and next two days still very high anxiety, breathless, and chest tightness. Really wanted this to work and bring down blood pressure and I’m happy to ride out side effects, but this drug is scary, thought I’d have to go to A&E but rode it out. Day 3 now since I took the tablets and all improved but now bad stomach pains, diarrhea, and back pains. Think it’s all the end of this drug coming out of the system. First time I’ve taken a blood pressure med and really scared me. Disappointed. I stopped it myself as the doctor would probably say try longer, nope! Maybe more exercise. Not in a hurry to try an alternative one."

• Mik...
• December 26, 2020

For High Blood Pressure "I started taking amlodipine on November 6, 2020. My normal blood pressure is around 140/84. Dr. Prescribed amlodipine. I had headaches, nightmares, and crazy anxiety from this medication. I stopped cold turkey, and my BP went up to 150/100. I have been off of it for 5 days, and I am having heart palpitations bad. I can feel my blood pumping in the back of my neck. I read it takes 11.5 days to get this medication out of the system. I saw an emergency Dr. on December 26, 2020, and he said he never heard of those side effects. Guess he should read this page and see what that medicine is doing to people."

• Sim...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 21, 2020

For High Blood Pressure "I was prescribed Amlodipine a month ago, and let me say it's been the worst month of my life, and I have been through some hard things in my life. I've had every side effect you could think of, but the worst for me was the dizziness, lack of appetite, headaches, and rapid heartbeat. It causes severe anxiety, all I can do is lay and worry because I can't function normally from being so dizzy. I hate this drug with a passion. Please, if you're reading this and experiencing any side effects, it only gets worse. Tell your doctor to switch you. I'm back on Metoprolol as of 3 days ago, and very slowly feeling better, and hoping it continues."

• Mig...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• September 11, 2020

Amlodipine for High Blood Pressure "I started taking amlodipine in 2006 for moderate blood pressure. Most of my BP readings are 145/85. I told my primary physician that my ankles swell now, I have a chronic headache after I take it, and an earache. I went to an ENT and took a battery of tests, the ENT then referred me for a brain scan. I am debating on that referral. I stopped taking amlodipine on 9/6 and went to my rheumatologist on 9/11, without taking BP, my reading was 143/84. I have come to the conclusion that I want something other than amlodipine. The reward is not worth the risk."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 7, 2020

For High Blood Pressure "I started taking Amlodipine 4 days ago. The first 2 days I had a slight headache, but I knew it was a side effect and was fine with it. But my symptoms gradually got worse. Day 3 - chest pain and heart palpitations, extreme dry mouth, flushing (feeling warm like a fever was coming), fatigue, muscle aches, stomach pain/bloating/gas, yeast discharge, and this weird stinging sensation in my thigh like I was being stung by a bee over and over again. I also had insomnia even though I was exhausted! I stopped taking it today but I’m still feeling the chest pains and palpitations, although they aren’t as intense. I’m going to work out and eat healthy! I can’t deal with these side effects! It lowered my blood pressure, I think. I’m not sure, it kinda jumped all over the place."

• Sca...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 26, 2020

For High Blood Pressure "Been on amlodipine for about 2 months. I haven’t been able to do anything this entire week because I was EXHAUSTED and had severe anxiety. Writing this review is taking every bit of strength I have. I’ve spent so much money going to doctors' appointments trying to figure out what’s wrong with me. I’m so glad I found this thread of reviews, as my symptoms mimic much of what has been said: earache, headache, fatigue, swollen glands, anxiety, ear ringing, finger pain, etc. Giving it a two because it can bring down BP, SLIGHTLY"

• Anonymous
• October 29, 2020

For High Blood Pressure "I was started on Amlodipine 5mg for my blood pressure. I initially had a headache from it and then it turned into a weird feeling. I felt like a hamster on a wheel that could not get off it. Crazy vivid dreams and really bad insomnia. Normally, I fall asleep in 10 minutes. I’d be up until 1 am. When I did sleep, it was crazy vivid dreams. Also, skin flushing and red spots on my face. Took 5 days of it and quit mainly because of the crazy anxiety it gave me (when I don’t normally have it) and the bad insomnia. I took myself off it and now I’m trying another med. Oh, and I had heart palpitations and a racing pulse as well. Not for me."

• 11G...
• February 28, 2013

Amlodipine for High Blood Pressure "With the DASH diet and exercise, my BP was still high, and the doctor increased my daily 5mg of Norvasc to 10mg. It helps decrease my usual 170/104 to approx 150/70, but only for a few hours. I am fatigued, have headaches, and super cold feet and hands constantly. I also have muscle cramps. I feel as if I had a heart attack a few days ago, but my doctor says it's gastritis. The side effects are worse than hypertension itself! Maybe I need a new medicine and/or a new physician. Good health to you!"

• rui...
• June 10, 2019

Amlodipine for High Blood Pressure "Stay away from this horrible drug Norvasc!! I've been taking this garbage for 35 years and have had a multitude of effects from it, not realizing this whole time it was this prescription causing it. I've seen so many doctors about my side effects. They all knew I was taking Norvasc, but not one ever mentioned that it could be a side effect of this drug. I've had peripheral neuropathy (feels like someone has poured hot lava down my thighs and is dripping to my feet). I've had tinnitus, itchy rashes breaking out on my body, headaches galore, and at 62 years old, I now have TMJ. Yes, I'm blaming my TMJ (temporomandibular joint dysfunction) on this drug. It has caused my leg muscles to tighten up and I imagine it's doing the same thing to my jaw. It did control my blood pressure well, but I'd rather not take any meds if this is how I have to live the rest of my life. I took myself off of it 2 years ago, but I could not get through the withdrawals. It caused my heart to feel like it was beating out of my chest and nonstop migraines."

• JoB...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• August 25, 2020

For High Blood Pressure "I have been on amlodipine for about a year now. I was feeling okay. At first, I started to have headaches, and those were fine, until April of 2020, when I started feeling not myself. My ears hurt, and it was like I had a head change. I was dizzy, and that lasted for two months. I stopped it for a while, like a week, then got back on it. I started having a vibration in my head. The doctor thought I had vertigo caused by my ears, probably was, but I felt like doing nothing and feeling spaced out. I kept telling my doctor, but they were not listening. So now, I have been off of my meds for four days, and I feel a lot better. This is not a good medicine to take."

• Jam...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 24, 2019

For High Blood Pressure "I took amlodipine 5 mg for about 2 weeks. I was fine, but just a few days ago I was sitting, looking at the computer, suddenly I felt dizziness. I went to the ER, they admitted me to the heart hospital. I was told I needed a pacemaker. I declined. Discharged from the hospital after 1 and a half days. On Saturday, I was told by a doctor to cut the pill in half, so I did. The next day I took it, 35 minutes later I felt the dizziness and headache. I did not take the pill the next day, and no dizziness or headache. I called my PCP about my symptoms, he told me to completely stop taking it. Be careful taking this medicine, understand the side effects before taking. I don't recommend it, don't take it."

• 40-...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 22, 2023

For High Blood Pressure "I’ve been taking 10 mg of amlodipine for the past 3 months, and I have recently developed severe body aches and pains. I’m extremely light-headed and almost passed out at work. I’ve developed anxiety and feelings of depression for the past couple of weeks. I was prescribed this medication as a result of HBP. Don’t know why the doctor did not start me off on a lower dose. I’ve told her about my symptoms, but she has not lowered the dose. I’m a 40-year-old female that, besides the HBP, I do not have other issues, and I’m not taking any other medications. I can’t sleep at night as I am struggling to fall asleep. I wake up fretting. I’m having tremors and muscle twitching, as well as a constant headache and nausea. I have a consult again with the doctor this week, but since yesterday, I have reduced my dose to 5 mg because the symptoms got worse a few hours after taking the medication. I’ve never been so sick in my life."

• Des...
• August 31, 2020

For High Blood Pressure "I'm a 56-year-old female. Started using Amlodipine 6 months ago, prescribed 5mg after a hypertensive crisis. It controls my BP well but the side effects are horrendous. Headaches, sweating, flushing, eye pain, facial numbness, tingling extremities, backache, weight gain, increased urination at night, palpitations, right heel pain, muscle aches, insomnia, brain fog, neck ache etc. I've observed that the side effects decrease over time but sometimes they reappear with a surge. Propranolol 40 mg brought relief when I experienced these scary surges. I'm giving it some time, but may revert to Co-Aprovel."

• bob...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• April 18, 2021

For High Blood Pressure "I am on Amlodipine 10mg for almost 3 years. My BP before I started taking it was 150/100, and white coat effect can spike up to 190/110. I am a 40-year-old male, ex-military, etc. Also using Ramipril 10mg and diuretics (for edema, usual amlodipine side effect). The first 2 years all works well, my BP ranged from 110/60 to 130/80 with white coat effect at 140/90. However, after two years, side effects showed up: anxiety, tremors, headaches, pressure in the head, constipation causing spikes in BP, tiredness, etc. Anyway, I am fighting with these side effects every day now, they usually come after 6 hours of taking amlodipine, which is the peak time of this medication. It is difficult to stop taking it without causing any 'damage.' I tried taking it at half the dose, but the side effects are still there. I am trying natural remedies like black seeds, turmeric, coq10 enzymes, but this will take some time to see changes. I exercise cardio daily, follow strict diet with no salt, sugar, or fat, and avoid stress, these changes must stay as a permanent lifetime change."

• bob...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• April 18, 2021

For High Blood Pressure "I am on Amlodipine 10mg for almost 3 years. My BP before I started taking it was 150/100, and white coat effect can spike up to 190/110. I am a 40-year-old male, ex-military, etc. Also using Ramipril 10mg and diuretics (for edema, usual amlodipine side effect). The first 2 years all works well, my BP ranged from 110/60 to 130/80 with white coat effect at 140/90. However, after two years, side effects showed up: anxiety, tremors, headaches, pressure in the head, constipation causing spikes in BP, tiredness, etc. Anyway, I am fighting with these side effects every day now, they usually come after 6 hours of taking amlodipine, which is the peak time of this medication. It is difficult to stop taking it without causing any 'damage.' I tried taking it at half the dose, but the side effects are still there. I am trying natural remedies like black seeds, turmeric, coq10 enzymes, but this will take some time to see changes. I exercise cardio daily, follow strict diet with no salt, sugar, or fat, and avoid stress, these changes must stay as a permanent lifetime change."

• Nic...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 9, 2019

For High Blood Pressure "Male, 61 yrs, 92 kg, live in the U.K. I suffer from hypertension. Prescribed 10 mg amlodipine daily and within days felt like I was being poisoned. Saw GP and reduced to 5 mg. Side effects include vivid dreams, facial flushing, extreme lethargy, headache, palpitations at night, disrupted sleep, blurred vision. Am normally fit and active (ex-military) but now feel like an old man. BP is down considerably, which is good, but at what cost to general health and well-being? I’m weaning myself off this controversial drug and am instead changing lifestyle and diet to control BP. I think BP is a money-making racket by pharmaceutical companies and misunderstood by GPs."

• Ebb...
• January 31, 2014

For High Blood Pressure "I've been taking this medication for about 4 months. The first month was fine, it brought my blood pressure down to acceptable numbers. The side effects started gradually. I was really forgetful and would sometimes feel confused. Then the trembling in my legs started, then spread to my arms, went from trembling to twitching really fast, then it spread to my face. During this time, anxiety slowly crept in, it was getting a little worse every day until it was a constant feeling. Pressure in my head constantly and full-blown panic attacks by month 4. I discussed this with my doctor, and I stopped taking this medication 2 days ago and was prescribed something else. I can feel my anxiety subsiding."

• Lad...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 2, 2021

For High Blood Pressure "Daily resting BP readings for the week prior to taking the drug were all normal, in the 100s-130s over 60s to the 80s. I was told I had 'exercise-induced hypertension.' I was prescribed 2.5 mg amlodipine. After 1 day on amlodipine, my BP was up to 163/86, and my husband and I both thought I was going to have a stroke. I couldn't breathe, my heart would pound, skip, flutter, had horrible headaches, bloodshot eyes, dizzy, and faint-all symptoms I'd never had previously. The entire week, my BP readings were 10-20 points higher than my normal average. Terrifying. I've been off it for 4 days and already feel so much better, although the half-life of this medicine is outrageous and can take 10 days before it leaves your system. This drug was recalled in 22 countries."

• Mrs...
• January 14, 2020

For High Blood Pressure "I started taking Amlodipine 10mg 6 days ago. I was switched from Nifedipine 30mg because I had some unpleasant side effects. Every day on Amlodipine has been worse than the last. I now feel an unshakable sense of dread. My head is stopped up. I can’t taste or smell. I have a headache that will not go away, facial flushing, brain fog, depression, and very high anxiety. IT. IS. NOT. WORTH IT. I noticed the initial symptom of lightheadedness on day 3. It was like I hadn’t eaten (even though I had) and I stood up too fast all the time but even worse when I actually stood up too fast. I will immediately switch back to Nifedipine and then make the lifestyle changes necessary to wean off of BP meds hopefully for the rest of my life. They are awful. I tried to stop taking it but my blood pressure shot up to 162/91. I’ve never seen my top number that high EVER. So I took my Amlodipine because I was scared and as I had guessed everything just got way worse from there."

• Sav...
• December 20, 2019

For High Blood Pressure "I've been on amlodipine for about 11 years. For the past year, I've been experiencing horrible side effects - extremely fatigued, headaches, pain in chest, tingling all over, muscle cramps, back pains. Now I'm getting ringing in the ears, popping in ears, itchy and burning eyes. The problem with pharmaceutical companies is that their main goal is to make money, you never know when they're going to change the inactive ingredients or active ingredients to save a buck. I'm going to wean myself off this 'poison', the quality of life changes are not worth it."

• Mai...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 15, 2019

For High Blood Pressure "DO NOT take this medication amlodipine. I only took it for 5 weeks for high blood pressure, but it was the worst 5 weeks of my life from the side effects. Extreme fatigue, weakness, headaches, trips to the ER. There were times I felt so weak and sick I literally thought it was the end of me. On a different medication now but took a couple of weeks to get amlodipine out of my system and recover from the adverse side effects."

• ple...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• September 19, 2016

Amlodipine for High Blood Pressure "I have been taking Norvasc for probably 30 years. The first 20, the drug worked to lower my blood pressure well. In the last ten years, I've been plagued with scorching legs. It has literally ruined my life. Doctors never even had a clue, and I never thought it was Norvasc that was hurting me until I had trouble a week ago getting the prescription filled. I was out of it for 4 days. On the 4th day without taking it, my legs were feeling pretty good. I got my prescription refilled, took the pill, and the next day, I was back to debilitating pain. I haven't taken it since. I am now feeling pressure in my head as I've always been prone to migraine headaches. I never got one after I started taking Norvasc. I think I'll take the migraines."

• col...
• July 25, 2015

Amlodipine for High Blood Pressure "I hate Norvasc! It made my blood pressure worse. I was always borderline with my blood pressure. It didn't help that I work nights and my diet isn't the greatest. My doctor wanted me to try this medication for a month to see if my blood pressure would lower. Within a week, my blood pressure, which usually hovers at 140/80 with a pulse of 80, shot to a ridiculous 200/98 with a pulse of 98. My blood pressure always spikes around the evening. My anxiety worsened, and I got headaches. This medication does not work for me, and I am not going to be tricked into staying on it longer."

• She...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• December 21, 2019

For High Blood Pressure "I have been on the amlodipine medication for about a year and now am experiencing tremors, which are very concerning. I went on and started researching, and lo & behold, it's a medication that can lead to Parkinson's. I have had the brain fog and difficulty concentrating, but thought that was from the headaches I have been experiencing since 2013. Now I find out that a side effect of this medication is also headaches. I find it very disappointing that the medical community will just throw drugs at a person because they have been wooed by the drug companies to push a specific medication. After reading several people's responses, I no longer know what to do. I was on a generic Coversil, which is apparently known to cause bad coughing, and I was taken off of it and put on the Amlodipine. Now what am I going to be able to take? I am rating this drug low, not because of the small side effects, but because of the higher risk of Parkinson's development."