Blackouts After Overdose

[mytai]

@Bedbug and @scout86, you made me laugh. I promise I will go see a nurse practitioner about the blackouts, I rarely ever make promises because I can't stand it when they are broken. So know that when I use those words I have every intention of following through.

@Lucycat, I will make sure to ask. Worst thing they can say is no they can't lend them out, but maybe they can direct me to a cheaper one then what I've seen.

@TimeToHeal, it wasn't confusing what you said. Thank you for your response. It's good to know that Narcan wouldn't cause this. I figured it had something to do with the new medication. I know I am supposed to stop taking the prazosin if my blood pressure is below 90/60. The blackouts have happened after I've turned around, so far it hasn't made a difference if I was sitting down or lying down right before. Also thank you for the information on the cardiac arrest, I didn't know if it was from that or the drugs.

Either way I will make sure to go get checked out as soon as I can.

 

[It's all my fault]

Prazosin is an anti hypertensive used to treat high blood pressure. It also has other uses but absolutely can lower your bp which is its intent. You need to call your doctor. Untreated hypotension can stress all of the body's organs and left untreated can be dangerous and even deadly. It can cause poor perfusion to your coronary arteries which could even cause a heart attack left untreated. Do not stop taking the med but your dosage may need to be adjusted. Again, call your DR. In the mean time, be sure to get up slowly from laying to sit to stand to help your body attempt to regulate, if it can. Even though it is the weekend, there is always someone covering for your MD. I would not play around with this. Free medical advise.

 

[mytai]

@It's all my fault, unfortunately I don't have a family doctor, but I will be calling around to nurse practitioner clinics today to find out if they are open tonight or tomorrow. If not I will be going in before work on Monday to get checked out.

 

[mytai]

As promised I went to a clinic. They said to immediately stop the prazosin, I've not taken it in the last 2 days and my blood pressure was still 100/60. So he said I'm definitely bottoming out if I take it.

The doctor ordered blood work to check my liver on Monday, and has ordered a test for my heart. I will have to wear a heart monitor for 24 hrs. I go Monday to a lab to get the tests done before I go to work.

 

[It's all my fault]

So glad you went. Good luck and let us know how you make out!

 

[TimeToHeal]

Good for you! :) Glad they got you off the prazosin...

 

[Echo]

@mytai - I'm glad they have now got their eyes on you again. Your body will need time to restore itself, I suppose. I hope it happens faster than you imagine, or that they can give you a drugs and nutritional regime to help you get there as fast as humanly possible.

I hope also that you are feeling safer now and able to concentrate on the positive things in your life.

 

[DharmaGirl]

I used to black out on Prazocin too. They gave it to me after one of my overdoses and it stopped the nightmares but I couldn't deal with the black outs. My BP would drop and my heartrate would be in the 18/0s. Yuck!

 

[HelenB]

I am also glad you went, and that they are going to check things out properly, and know you deserve to be looked after as well as possible, and hope you are also able to care for and look after yourself in the best possible way too, as you recover emotionally and physically from all the things which have been going on.

God Bless
Helen

 

[Powder]

Mytai, I'm so glad you came back to us. Please tell someone or post here if you feel that bad again, okay?

 

[cherryblossom]

Sorry, this is a late addition to your initial question.

Narcan is normally administered by mouth through a pill, I had to be given multiple doses intravenously because I was unconscious, and Narcan only lasts a limited amount of time. You can actually overdose again once the Narcan wears off, which is what happened to me.

You have been misinformed here. Narcan was specifically designed to counteract the life threatening symptoms of opiate overdose. As such, intravenous narcan in the most common route. Followed by intramuscular, subcut, or intra-nasal. Since it is designed to be used to counteract the central nervous system /respiratory depression caused by the opiate, it would not be practical to expect an unconscious patient to swallow a pill.

It is also quite normal to be given several doses I/V until the narcan reaches the correct amount to take effect. I would be seriously questioning the hospital, if they were not monitoring you properly. Once the desired dose of narcan has been administrated to counter the opiates effect, then the patient should be closely monitored, and given further doses of narcan the moment there are any signs of deterioration. This should ensure that respiration continues at a normal level. It sounds quite worrying to me, that the hospital allowed you to deteriorate to the point that your heart stopped.

Naloxone has a relatively short half-life - about an hour (hence why 'top-ups' may be required. Since it's half life is shorter than many opiates). Because of this, I would have thought it unlikely that the symptoms you are now describing would be caused be the naloxone, because it is unlikely that you have any left in your system.

My heart stopped at some point.

You haven't mentioned what treatment they gave you when your heart stopped. Did they give you meds to restart your heart? Perhaps that has caused you some problems?

Although it sound more likely that it is the Prazosin causing postural hypo-tension (low blood pressure when you stand up too quickly.) Hopefully, all will be resolved, now you have stopped taking it.

 

[mytai]

It sounds quite worrying to me, that the hospital allowed you to deteriorate to the point that your heart stopped.

I can't speak for what happened after I lost consciousness, but I do know that when I arrived at the hospital it had been over an hour since I had taken all the drugs. I could barely walk by the time I got to the emergency room, I couldn't see straight at that point, and I had a hard time staying awake. I was in rough shape already. They were very quick once I saw the triage nurse to get me back into a room, they bypassed several typical steps before you go back to a room. They took my vitals, wrote down what I took and how much and started calling poison control as they took me back.

You haven't mentioned what treatment they gave you when your heart stopped. Did they give you meds to restart your heart? Perhaps that has caused you some problems?

Two IV's were started, and then I lost consciousness. I only know they gave me Narcan because I asked a few days later what was done. But I have no idea what was done when my heart stopped, what was administered if anything, all I know is they didn't have to jump start it because I have no marks from that. I'm in the process of trying to get my medical records from that night, it's hard to get copies of that here. It is frustrating but I do have legal rights to them, and I think it is important for me to know what happened to me when I wasn't conscious.

Although it sound more likely that it is the Prazosin causing postural hypo-tension (low blood pressure when you stand up too quickly.) Hopefully, all will be resolved, now you have stopped taking it.

The doctor feels pretty strongly that this is the problem causer. However, I have been off of it for three days and I'm still blacking out. Not just when I stand up either, I will be walking and blackout, or standing still and blackout. So that is why the doctor from the walk in clinic last night wants me to wear a monitor for 24 hours.