Topic: Blood pressure

[Hush]

My blood pressure has always been on the high side of normal so I get the nurses at the prison where I work to check it for me occasionally.
Last time my doctor had my BP checked last year, it was exactly normal, in fact I asked the nurse to check it again as I had never seen it so good.
I go to the gym 7 days a week, I've lost weight, I try to watch my diet.
Last weekend one of the prison nurses was showing me the new automatic cuff BP tester and I got her to put it on me.
She was taken back abit by my reading of 155 over 104, I think maybe that is the highest I have seen it actually.
Another Officer who is way fat and 10 years older and never goes to the gym said he bet the nurse his would be a lot lower!
Anyhow he comes out at 135 over 97 and I'm gutted until he tells me he has been on BP pills since 1988.
So I'm considering a visit to my doctor and asking what the up/down sides are to taking drugs to lower my BP.
Anyone else on here take BP pills to lower their BP?

[bucky katt]

i'm on a small dosage of HCTZ, a mild diuretic. a 12.5 mg dose a day has been enough. my bp was high-normal when i started the meds. it's been in the neighborhood of 110/65 - 115/75 ever since.

[Retro Rocket]

Hello Hush, mate those auto BP machines can be hit and miss, i am a transplant patient and my BP is 120 over 80 {yes i am lucky} and i get it checked regularly but when i use the auto BP machines they give me some ridiculous readings so i get the nurse at the clinic to do it the old way and get the correct reading every time. If i was you, i would go see your doctor and have him do it with the hand pump first just to make sure. I am not saying to disregard the result, just get a second opinion on the old machine first.......Hope all is good..

Mick

[MickeyX]

Taking a medicine to lower blood pressure is very common. It's good to get it under control ASAP. It can lead to stroke, heart attack, etc. Getting to the root cause of why it was high in the 1st place is another matter. Just lowering still doesn't fix why it was high. I would want to know why my heart was having to work so hard to push all that blood through my system and why it wasn't resting so well in between. 

[TwoTired]

I began taking BP meds about 4 years ago.  It had slowly climbed up to about 155/95, even with some weight loss.  The first Doctor started me on ACE inhibitors.  Turns out I get one of the known side effects, frequent dry unproductive cough, which began about 4-5 days after starting the meds.  I switched doctors and got a prescription for Diovan.  The cough gradually went away and the blood pressure came down.  It is usually in the 115/78 to 130/85 range when the doctor measures it manually (I've put some weight back on).  The machine testers often add 10-20 points to their readings on me.

I find I can effect the readings and lower them by several methods.  There is a deep breathing and "forced relaxation" technique.  Also, if my extremities are cold, the numbers read higher, too.  Anxiety will pretty much guarantee a higher BP.  I stopped taking my own readings with my machines at home.  Worrying about it made it worse.
I've already had an angiogram which showed no vascular disease.  But, both my father and mother had High BP later in life.  I'm sure my BP would go down if I lost some weight, which I'm trying to do.

It is good to lower BP.  You can get kidney and liver damage form HIGH BP as well as increase the risk of stroke and heart problems.

[Hush]

This year I had to start wearing glasses after having perfect vision for 50 years, I was thinking it was just me wearing out but from what I have read on the subject it could be pressure from the high BP acting on the back of the eyes.
Ah well I'm well due for a full check-up and I go so rarely to the doctors that they forget who I am.
I'm off work next week and will make an appointment, I think I hate going to the doctor almost as much as I hate shopping for clothes.

[MickeyX]

FYI: ACE inhibitors have some common physical side effects, the biggies being dry cough (which they gave you the ARB for, TT) but also renal failure/damage. You have to keep your kidneys checked when on these. It's a pretty high risk. I'm not sure if it's the ACE inhibitors or the ARBs (If I remember from pharmacology class, it's the ARBs) but they also make you retain potassium which goes hand in hand with the renal failure or symptoms of... You should be getting tested for creatinine, BUN and glucose levels regularly when on these.

Besides elevated BP, they use ACE inhibitors for CHF symptoms. So yes, it does lower your BP but CHF is a big the cause of it being high in the 1st place. Get your heart and vessels checked. Lose weight, don't smoke, exercise, and keep the stress levels down whenever possible.

Smile! You'd be surprised how hard it is to be stressed when you have something to smile about.  

Good luck with the testing Hush. We've got our fingers crossed for ya!!  

[Pinhead]

I used to donate plasma while I was a poor college student eating ramen noodles every day. The first thing they do is check your BP. I remember one time they wouldn't allow me to donate because my blood pressure was 90/75. My BP was low because I hadn't eaten anything that day or the day before. The bad part is, I went there to get the money for food and gas in my motorcycle; I had just enough gas to get there. :/ Oh well, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right? 

I average around 110/80 now at age 26 with a resting heart rate of 50 bpm, exercising daily.

[GammaFlat]

My wife almost stroked out when she used one of those drugstore bought cuffs.  It was the day she was to take a physical for a life insurance policy.  She has been active... runs and works out several times a week. 

I had seen the cuff that she was using throw some unjustifiably large numbers which never matched other devices and told her not to worry about it.  After icing down the frying pan mark on my head, she passed the physical with flying colors.  I never did get an apology. 

Seriously, don't take BP numbers lightly but make sure you're using good equipment.  The cuff we had was crap. 

[TwoTired]

FYI: ACE inhibitors have some common physical side effects, the biggies being dry cough (which they gave you the ARB for, TT) but also renal failure/damage. You have to keep your kidneys checked when on these. It's a pretty high risk. I'm not sure if it's the ACE inhibitors or the ARBs (If I remember from pharmacology class, it's the ARBs) but they also make you retain potassium which goes hand in hand with the renal failure or symptoms of... You should be getting tested for creatinine, BUN and glucose levels regularly when on these.

Thanks for that. 

I did do research on the ARB  valsartan (Diovan).  The risk is only high for a small percentage of the population.  But, it is a good point about being checked.  My prescribing physician is also a Nephrology specialist and pretty sharp.  I'll talk to him about it next visit.  I had so many blood tests last year, it's pretty hard to imagine he, or the half dozen other consulting doctors, would overlook anything outside of proper parameters.
Like many drugs, there is a percentage that are intolerant.  Biology is born of chaotic design.  Sooo, unlike most engineering disciplines.

Anyway, Diovan was being used by my older sister without any side effects, so I thought it was a safe bet to try it for me.  So far...so good.  I'm still above ground...mostly.

[Bonafide]

My work insurance started mandatory health screenings this time last year. I'm not a health-freak-nut, but I do work out 3 days a week and take a proactive stance to eat healthy - no fast foods, no sodas, no fried foods, whole wheat breads, low fat milk, etc, but the forced screening by someone I dont know really irked me - so I was fuming when I went to see their (insurance company supplied) health 'coach'. They took my blood pressure with one of those electronic cuffs and it was high(er) .. 145/90. They were casual about it and said dont worry - we can tell you're not happy to be here, what's your normal reading?

This year, I went to see my own doctor a week before the healthy coach screening .. and had my yearly physical w/blood work. My BP was 130/70 - pulse rate of 70/min done manually. I go see the healthy coach .. and my BP was 160/100 .. with a pulse rate of 53/min done with the electronic cuff. The healthy coach looks shocked - doesnt loosen the cuff, turns the machine off, then back on .. and does a 're-test'. Now my hand is blue and the BP reading is 155/97. They ask if my BP is normally high and I tell them what the reading was a week earlier at my doctor's office ...'oh, well ... just have your doctor send us a copy of that report and we'll take that for your yearly BP reading' ... grrrrr ... and they wonder why my BP is high in their presence.

[kghost]

After almost 20 yrs of having my blood pressure scrutinized every 6 months by Aviation medical examiners....

As is required for a flight physical.

I wholeheartedly agree with the relaxation techniques expounded by Twotired....

[Hush]

Got one of the prison nurses to take it manually, she didn't like the autocuff either.
Last week was 155/102 with autocuff, done manually 140/90 which for a 52 year old carrying 5 to 10 kilos more than I would like to I don't think is too bad.
I've got an appointment with my Dr for Monday and BP is one of the things I want to discuss.
I workout most days in my gym and just want to be sure I'm not doing more damage by pushing myself.

[bucky katt]

considering just how much overweight i am (i probably make 2 of you Hush), my blood pressure is nothing short of amazing, cholesterol was only 187 when it was checked a month ago too.

[333]

I have a small wrist cuff and I have checked it against the Doc's.  It fairly accurate.  What freaks the nurses out is my low pulse rate.  It's normally around 45.  And I not even close to athletic.

Back on topic.  I have been on meds for 10 -12 years now.  No big deal.  They do the job.  They've switched the meds around from time to time.  Funny that this thread came up now.  I'm on our annual "after Thanksgiving Day shopping trip", and somehow forgot to bring my pills!  Never done that before.

As for the glasses thing, you're a bit late.  And no, you didn't wear them out.  As we hit 40, the lenses harden and don't focus on close things as well.

[Hush]

OK been Dr and she also dimisses the autocuff results and prefers the manual method, took my BP and it's 130/80......that's about perfect for me.
She also did some other tune-up mods on me, I asked if she could "arrange" a prostrate check for me thinking this lovely little 30ish female doesn't go around digitally penetrating guys big ends but no!
So dropping pants, facing wall, not thinking of Freddy Mercury and WOOHOOOO.....
But all good in that "area" too with no major overhaul required for the next few thousand miles.
Even got some minor panel work done on the old 57 with a rough area on my nose that I feared was the big "C" being frozen off using CO2 like they do warts, some minor skin thing the Dr wasn't too concerned about anyway.

[Retro Rocket]

Thats all good news Hush....excellent..   {including the female probe}...

Mick

[cookindaddy]

Cut down on the salt in your diet and eat more veggies and fruit. Keep up your exercise but help your body by watching what you put into it. Most "fast food" and much restaurant food is a no no. Beer is ok, but not too much.

[Retro Rocket]

Cut down on the salt in your diet and eat more veggies and fruit. Keep up your exercise but help your body by watching what you put into it. Most "fast food" and much restaurant food is a no no. Beer is ok, but not too much.

Don't forget lots of water, fibre is no good without water...

Mick

[Hush]

Isn't beer 90% water?
I intend to make a dent in the Tui companies stockpile this summer.
So that's bran flakes in beer for breakfast.

[Jerry Rxman Griffin aka MuthaF'er]

Hush,

Take your BP earlier in the day, like before work. Buy your own cuff. Then a few times during your work shift. I'd bet you will see a gradual increase from the first reading of the day. If it's work/stress related you may not really need a BP med unless it's really bad. I'd much prefer to take a chill pill (antianxiety) than a BP pill. Just have to watch for drowsiness. Some of your readings are not real healthy. Stay off the caffeine in coffee and nicotine. I'd bet you probably do coffee. How about smoking? Both big contributors to CNS (central nervous system) stimulation which will increase your heart rate and strenghten the beat. Stronger faster pump in a the same circulatory system = higher BP. Keep up the weight loss too.

And, if you use an automatic blood pressure monitor, take 3 readings and average them or go with the 2 best and discard the worst. Your blood pressure is very dynamic and always fluctuates. Not likely you will get the same reading 2 times in a row.

There are things outside meds that you can do if you understand them. If you can't make a change then it's best to go with meds.

I wouldn't suggest stopping drinking. A man has to have something. But it wouldn't hurt either. If you wish to drink sip a good shot or 2 on ice at night. Less calories and weight problem. 

[74cb750]

Damn! I'm glad I have low blood pressure (108/70), unlike the wife (155-185/110).
She has to take medicine that has finally brouhgt it down to almost average 145/100 , for her.
Be sure to take the med's, or else you could damage your body.
peace,
michel