Isradipine or DynaCirc

Isradipine, the generic instead of DynaCirc CR (R)

I've been taking Isradipine for one and one-half years to control my high blood pressure and to see if it would be effective in controlling my Parkinson's disease symptoms while slowing or stopping the progression of the disease.

Keep in mind no two Parkinson's patients are the same, so what has helped me may not help you at all, or you may not even be able to tolerate it.

That said, when I started DynaCirc CR within the first two weeks I noticed that my swallowing problems had decreased greatly, co-workers asked me why my voice sounded so much better. I felt better like I had more energy and that helped me get rid of a lot of my depression. I had been taking Mirapex, I was able to stop taking it. Once the Mirapex was out of my system, I stopped having most of the hallucinations and complusiive behavior that had been plaguing me.

My PDRS has been at 14-18, pretty much straight-lined since I started Dynacirc CR and these are the medicinal and supplemental treatments I have been taking:
Azilect 1mg/day
CoQ10 1200mg/day
Sublingual L Glutathione 300 mg daily under tongue
Atenolol 50mg/day
Lovastatin 40mg/day.
I take the following herbs and supplements: Turmeric, Saw Palmetto, Milk Thistle, Nettle Root, Omega 3 fish oils, Slippery Elm, Fenugreek, Green Tea extract, Vitamin B complex and Zinc on a temporary basis to see if it will improve my senses of taste and smell.

The last few weeks I have been comparing Dynacirc CR which contains Isradipine, a calcium agonist that crosses the blood brain barrier, with generic Isradipine because the generic drug costs me $3.00 /month and Dynacirc CR cost $151.00 for the same 30 day supply. My doctor told me they should work the same, plus or minus side effects.

I've been using generic Isradipine for three weeks now. The only negative things are having to take two 5 mg capsules instead of one. I don't think I'm taking it at the same time each day and that's giving me a little more tremor than Dynacirc CR which stays at the same level in your blood all day. It has been suggested that I could take four 2.5mg capsules to come closer to the time release effect but that would just be two more pills which I could forget to take because I hate taking any pills.

Positive effects are that I have more energy than I had before. With Dynacirc CR I took naps several days a week. Now I take naps only infrequently.