I was prescribed propranolol and am not familiar with it. Does anybody know anything about it in regards to fight or flight response? I saw some reviews explaining how it has the potential to effect the heart negatively in an otherwise healthy individual. Haven’t taken it yet.

It's a beta blocker most commonly used to treat irregular/fast heart rates, but also used for anxiety. According to my pharmacology textbook, propranolol can cause difficulty breathing if overdosed for a healthy individual.

Why was it prescribed to you, for the reasons why could help explain if you could encounter any negative side effects.

It was basically prescribed for anxiety and times of panic, but only because everything else my doc tried for anxiety didn’t work. I don’t necessarily have a high heart rate issue anymore, as I don’t experience fight or flight anywhere near as often as I used to. I also take ashwagandha which seems to help even further with this.

I’m just skeptical of propranolol because Ive always thought I had low blood pressure, not high. In addition to that, I wasn’t tested or anything so I don’t see why my doc would prescribe a med that treats high blood pressure if I wasn’t diagnosed.

If you don't experience issues of panic or fleeting anymore, perhaps you could speak with your doctor about placing you on a benzodiazapine for your anxiety and perhaps a combination of meds and therapy for any panic attacks that might follow.

It might be best to buy a home blood pressure cuff to measure your stats while on the medicine to make sure it doesn't drop too low. If it gets too low you need to go to the hospital. Propranolol isn't usually prescribed as a primary hypertension drug, typically other medications are tried and tested for hypertension first. Therefore I wouldn't be too concerned about it's effects on blood pressure.

I had it for a while to treat anxiety on a 'take it when you need it' basis. It worked pretty well for me, but I tried not to take it if I could help it, not because it's bad for you or anything but i didn't want to become reliant on drugs to fix my anxiety, but it certainly helped me out when I really needed it

Benzos have been unsuccessful for the most part, as I’ve experimented with them. It takes a very high dose to feel anything and my doc refuses to presribe them in that case. I’ve also been on lexapro and a few mood stabilizers, still with no success.

I never get anything close to a panic attack. As I said, I barely get any physical effects of anxiety anymore. I used to always have a pounding heart and would feel my body pumping with adrenaline every day. Now this only happens if I’m under serious distress.

The only exception is I get sweaty palms constantly, probably from anxiety. This is why she prescribed propranolol, believe it or not. Who knows, maybe this is the first thing that will actually work.

I’m glad it worked for you. I’ve always had that same mindset about drugs like this. Just hoping it will go well and not stop my heart lol

I take it and it helps me. Taking too much can lead to low blood pressure so that's something that should be monitored.

I'm simply studying to be a doctor (a psychiatrist in fact) at the moment, so what advice I give you is filtered through that, so I'm not the leading expert, by far.

It makes sense that she's prescribed propanolol to address sweaty palms, since beta-blockers are really only used to treat the somatic symptoms (sweating, fleeting, very fast RHR) of severe anxiety, it doesn't possess the same CNS depressing power as other anxiety/antidepressant medications do.

As long as you are doing well on propanolol and don't feel any adverse side effects, I would stay on it and possibly refer to therapy to treat the underlying anxiety, if anxiety medications like benzodiazipines have not worked for you in the past.

I hope all this helps, and consult with your doctor/psychiatrist for any further development or relapse in symptoms.

Thanks, I still have yet to take it. I might see a doctor beforehand to get an idea of my current blood pressure. If it is in fact low, I probably won’t take the propranolol.

It worked for me to "mask the symptoms", i.e. heart racing, and chest pain that anxiety induced... without causing too much drowsiness. It still made me feel tired tho bc it dropped my blood pressure, and I was on the lowest dose. But I didn't really feel "calm". I still felt physical symptoms of anxiety (tense shoulders, muscle pain etc). Also if you are in a testing environment beta blockers affect memory and recall. So I had to stop taking them.

I liked propanolol because it isn't too hard core. Few side effects. If you are going into a panic-inducing situation you start to have 'anticipated anxiety'. you cause your anxiety attacks because you are afraid of the anxiety symptoms. So, a beta blocker stops the reaction once or twice, you stop anticipating it, then you aren't dealing with the monster of anxiety reactions, just the run of the mill nervousness and insecurities. There are still issues you will have to address, but it is a nice little tool.

Personally I didn't have the negative effects. But different people react differently :/ maybe there is something out there that will work better for you

If you have to talk infront of a group of people for a short period of time its very useful

I had insane mind chatter which propranolol reduced a bit now. I would say it is good but not great. You should move your focus from thing that haunted your mind. Best luck.

I was perscribed it a few years ago now and from what I remember it wasn't too bad. It's moderately effective at suppressing anxiety symptoms like shaky hands, excessive heart rate, sweating etc.

its a beta blocker right? i used to take those when i had auditions on my instrument in orchestra. made me feel pretty chill even in high pressure environment

It only provides temporary relief from shakiness and a racing heart but it helps when you have really severe anxiety. I used to take it whenever I was in school.

I used to have to testify frequently in court, and I was always a nervous wreck. I read in an article that propranolol can help to calm a person down, so I asked my Dr and he agreed to write a script. This was over 30 yrs ago, it was actually Inderal then. It does keep me calm, makes social interaction easier, and I'm more confident when I'm on it. I don't like that it seems to "slow me down" tho, and I find I consume more coffee when I'm on it. I take it when needed, and usually only one half of a 10 mg pill. Interestingly, I also take Adderall and the combination really keeps me focused and steady. I'm actually at my best with this combination, but I don't combine them often at all because I'm not sure of the long term effects.
This is my first post, so glad I found this forum...thank you!

I tried this senior year of high school. Yes, it helps a lot.

I was prescribed this just for panic attacks and it seems to help but mildly. It has helped me in certain scenarios where I am totally flipping out.