OK I've lost 42 lbs in a year throught better diet and exercise, been taking CoQ10, Celery Seed, Magnesium, Theanine, 3-4 g's Vit C/Day, started meditation a few weeks ago, but my BP is still too high and the doc put me on low dose (25mg/day) Atenolol.

The suspicion is that my BP may be high due to a lot of (hopefully temporary) stress at work lately which has caused panic reactions and adrenaline surges.

Yesterday in the doc's office my BP was 155/94 then 20 mins later 145/83. Either way she said it's too high and needs some treatment so she put me on the beta blocker which is supposed to blunt the adrenaline's effects on the heart.

Now, question is what supps do I need to avoid with this medicine? Anyone know? My supps have been pretty basic:
EGCG extract, Vit D, and those listed above, along with periodic use of rhodiola and theanine and inositol. Do I need to discontinue any of these w/ that medication?

In the meantime, I was diagnosed w/ sleep apnea after a sleep study and have a CPAP machine ready for me, pending insurance authorization (probably will take a week). I expect this will help all of the symptoms above.

Also began practicing yoga and I'm signed up w/ CBT sessions but unfortuantely the soonest I can get in is Jul 19.

Goal is to get these things resolved and get the hell off the meds.

Any help on what supps to avoid would be appreciated.

Also, I started the meds last night and in the night my legs were sort of tingly. Problem?

EDIT: Forgot to add NAC to my list of supps...

I hated atenolol so much. Everything felt like slow-motion.

Not cool. So far I haven't felt slow motion any moreso than how I've been feeling w/ the sleep apnea.

Also, the doc gave me some hydroxizine for the anxiety/nerves. It's evidently an anti histimine but I've never really read anything on it. Anyone tried it?

Normally i'd say "avoid taking any supps that will lower your BP since this may cause hypotension" but you seem to keep cheking your BP and it stays high, so that doesn't matter a lot.
I'd say however to skip theanine.
Well supps to avoid are any stimulants (caffeine, ephedrine e.t.c.) as well as diuretics since they may speed up atenolo's excretion(atenolol is almost exclusivery excreted by urine).
Supps I'd advice you to try are Hawthorn berry and arginine(i advice arginine because you are already on NAC). Again use common sense and measure your BP.

Hidroxizine is sold as Atarax here in Greece and i have used it in the past, it's a first geberation antihystaminic and you can expect some relaxation and deeper sleep with it, however you'll also have "foggy" mind for hours after you wake up and, as all 1st class antihystaminics it build tolerance very fast

Thanks for the input. You guys rock.
I'm already completely off caffeine for the last couple weeks. I certainly get less jitters being off caffeine but it blows with respect to the fact that I'm f'n tired w/ this apnea and caffeine would feel like a nice pick-me-up right now. But eventually I won't crave it anymore.

I'm basically in the worst place emotionally/mentally that I've been in for as long as I can remember. And the sad thing is that I can't pin it on anything in particular other than work has been stressful. I just want to get back to normal so I can enjoy & appreciate my wife and 2 year old daughter like I should and like they deserve.

I'd have preferred an ACE inhibitor over a beta blocker...but if anxiety is really the issue deep breathing exercises would probably help.

Hydergine lowers blood pressure.
i can see my arm veins pop out

Update: The atenolol has reduced my BP to 125/76 and pulse ~65 or so. This is resting measurement. I haven't had any problems with rapid heart rate due to stress. I think once I get through this rough patch I will ask about a different form of BP control if I still need any at all. ACE inhibitor sounds better.

Also - the hydroxyzine knocked me the fuck out. Took it yesterday evening at 6:30 and layed there dazed in the recliner for a couple hours. Of course, my sleep has been poor lately anyhow so I was probably prone to getting more sedated by it, but I kind of liked it in terms of it took my mind off my heart palps and what not.

I'm glad atenolol worked for you. When I tried it (my BP was 145/65) all it did was lower my heart rate to between 45 and 50 bpm (from 65) and had no effect on blood pressure.

Then I figured out I was CoQ10 deficient for some reason, problem solved.

my question is: what's the dosage of CoQ10? i heard that the theraputic dosage is at least 100mg per day and it take 2 months.

i have prescriped: (1)100mg Q10 + (2) 2 gram net pure DHA/EPA + (3)1 gram Cal/Mag to many people for reducing BP...it works, at least 10% of BP will be down in 8 weeks time and it keeps improving(it is according to research and the guideline of the american heart accociation AHA that taking 2 gram pure DHA for 8 weeks will get BP down by 10%)...adding exercise should be even better

finally, please note that taking BP at doctor's place might be inaccurate as you might be too nervious or you need to travel to there

My systolic pressure dropped 20 points at a CoQ10 dose of 25mg a day.

First off congratulations on the weight loss, that’s a pretty big accomplishment. I like others would recommend any other drug before a beta blocker (unless you plan on celibacy). It may be wise to address the anxiety issues as a separate entity, though the expediency of killing two birds with one stone is tempting. Your blood pressure isn’t that high and a behavioral intervention alone may be sufficient. Recently the FDA approved a biofeedback modality called Resperate to aid in blood pressure management.

http://www.resperate.com/

It uses HRV breathing like several other systems available, but it is the only one with FDA approval. I believe it generally rewards a longer respiratory cycle than most other units, but I may be mistaken. HRV training also tends to be pretty good at managing moderate anxiety. You may be able reduce your medication dosage or withdraw the meds altogether.

Good Luck

Thanks for the link. I've done some deep breathing exercises and I decided to hold off on my 3rd dose of atenolol as my pulse was 59 at the time I was supposed to take it again. The next morning, I took only 12.5mg of the meds and had pulse in the 60's and BP ~125/~70 all day (when I checked it). I have since gone without the meds and continued with mediation and deep breathing and have been off meds for 48 hours with no return of high-ish BP or pulse rate. Perhaps there will be the dreaded rebound effect but no signs of it yet. I know you're not supposed to drop the meds abruptly but I figured I hadn't been on them long enough (at a high enough dose) to make it matter.

My mental/.emotional frame of mind is much improved. We'll see what happens tomorrow when I get back to the grind at work.

It sounds like you have white coat hypertension.

Probably so. So question is, does it need to be treated or no? I'm sure my BP responds similarly to the dr's visit during my times of high anxiety (and I know my pulse races to the 120's while seated).