Blood pressure problems are treated with guanabenz. This medication belongs to a group of drugs termed centrally acting alpha2A-adrenergic receptor agonists. Guanabenz works by bringing your pulse rate down and relaxing your blood vessels so that blood can move through your body more readily.

Untreated high blood pressure is a frequent illness that can harm the kidneys, brain, heart, blood vessels, and other body organs. Aside from other issues, damage to these organs can result in heart disease, a heart attack, heart failure, kidney failure, a stroke, vision loss, and other issues. Making lifestyle modifications will aid in blood pressure control in addition to prescription medicine. A low-fat and salt diet, keeping a healthy weight, exercising for at least 30 minutes most days, quitting smoking, and drinking in moderation are some of these adjustments.

Guanabenz is available as an oral tablet. It is often given twice daily, spread out equally. Guanabenz should be taken at roughly the same times each day. Ask your doctor or pharmacist to explain any instructions on your prescription label that you are unsure about following. Follow the guanabenz directions precisely. Never take it in larger or less amounts or more frequently than directed by your doctor.

Guanabenz does not treat high blood pressure; it only lowers it. Even if you feel well, keep taking guanabenz. Without first consulting your doctor, do not discontinue taking guanabenz. Guanabenz may cause high blood pressure and other unpleasant side effects if you stop taking it abruptly.

Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more details if you’re interested in using this drug for any other conditions.

Before taking guanabenz,

• If you have an allergy to guanabenz, any other drugs, or any of the substances in guanabenz tablets, inform your doctor right away. Request a list of the components from your pharmacist.
• Inform your doctor and pharmacist about any additional prescription and over-the-counter drugs, vitamins, and dietary supplements you are currently taking or intend to take. Any of the following should be mentioned: amitriptyline, clomipramine (Anafranil), desipramine (Norpramin), doxepin (Silenor), imipramine (Tofranil, Surmontil), sleep aids, nortriptyline (Pamelor), protriptyline (Vivactil), and trimipramine (Surmontil).
• Inform your doctor if you’ve had a recent heart attack, suffer from coronary artery disease, have renal or liver disease, or have any of these conditions.
• Inform your doctor if you are expecting, intend to get pregnant, or are nursing a baby. Call your doctor if you become pregnant while taking guanabenz.
• Inform your doctor or dentist that you are taking guanabenz if you are having surgery, including dental surgery.
• You should be aware that this drug may cause you to feel sleepy or lightheaded. Prior to understanding how this drug affects you, avoid using machinery or driving a car.
• Inquire of your doctor whether drinking alcohol is safe while taking guanabenz. Guanabenz side effects may worsen if alcohol is used.
• If you are 65 years of age or older, discuss with your doctor the advantages and disadvantages of taking guanabenz. Guanabenz should generally not be taken by older adults since it is less reliable and less efficient than other drugs that can treat the same disease.

Your doctor might advise a low-sodium or low-salt diet. Pay close attention to these guidelines.

If you miss a dosage, take it as soon as you recall. If the next dose is soon due, skip the missed one and carry on with your regular dosing plan. To make up for a missing dose, do not take a second one.

Guanabenz could have negative effects. If any of these symptoms are severe or do not go away, let your doctor know right once:

• Mouth ache
• Drowsiness
• Dizziness
• Weakness
• Headache
• Reduced sexual capacity
• Uneasy stomach

Call your doctor right away if you have any of the following symptoms:

• Fainting
• Accelerated or slowed heartbeat
• Unsteady heartbeat
• Swelling feet or knees

You or your doctor can submit a report to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting program online at http://www.fda.gov/Safety/MedWatch or by phone at 1-800-332-1088 if you have a serious side event.

Keep this medication tightly closed in the original container and out of the reach of children. Store at room temperature, away from sources of extreme heat, and out of bathrooms.

As many containers (such as weekly pill minders and those for eye drops, creams, patches, and inhalers) are not child-resistant and are simple for young children to open, it is crucial to keep all medications out of sight and out of reach of children. Always lock safety caps and promptly stash medication up and away from young children where it is out of their sight and reach to prevent poisoning. http://www.upandaway.org

To make sure that pets, kids, and other people cannot take leftover pharmaceuticals, they should be disposed of in a specific manner. You shouldn’t flush this medication down the toilet, though. The best option to get rid of your medication is instead through a medication take-back program. To find out about take-back initiatives in your neighborhood, speak with your pharmacist or get in touch with your city’s waste/recycling department. If you do not have access to a take-back program, you can find more information at the FDA’s Safe Disposal of Medicines website (http://goo.gl/c4Rm4p).

Call the poison control hotline at 1-800-222-1222 in the event of an overdose. Additionally, information can be found online at https://www.poisonhelp.org/help. Call 911 right once if the person has collapsed, experienced a seizure, is having difficulty breathing, or cannot be roused.

Keep all of your appointments with your physician and the lab. You should have your blood pressure monitored frequently to see how guanabenz affects you.

Your doctor may instruct you to check your pulse (heart rate) each day and will specify the ideal rate. To learn how to take your pulse, ask your doctor or pharmacist. Call your doctor before taking the prescription that day if your pulse is either slower or faster than it should be.

Get out of a sitting or laying position carefully to prevent lightheadedness or dizziness. You should sit or lie down if you ever feel lightheaded or faint.

Chew gum or suck hard candy filled with no sugar to ease guanabenz-induced dry mouth.

No one else should take your medication. Any queries you may have regarding medication refills should be directed to your pharmacist.

You should keep a written record of every medication you take, including any over-the-counter (OTC) items, prescription drugs, and dietary supplements like vitamins and minerals. This list should be brought with you whenever you see a doctor or are admitted to the hospital. You should always have this information with you in case of emergencies.