High blood pressure

[nam1975]

At my wellness check 2 weeks ago, my BP was high for the 1st time. About 150/105 on one of the machines. Always normal before.
Doc wrote up med’s, since I don’t smoke and walked out. Follow up in a month.
I haven’t started them and have been tracking at home, with a mixed bag of readings.
Some are about 150/105, some lower like 130/90. Half the time it gives me an error.

Background: 45 yo, 5’9” 190 Lbs. Job is now 90% desk due to COVID.
Exercise is now pretty weak. Walk the dog, occasional workout.
Pre COVID was basketball, spin class and hot yoga with wife. Each 1 day a week.
No fast food, but I eat whatever at home.

Started 45 minutes walks and 30 minute workout videos, alternate days.
Cut coffee from 3-4 to 1 cup, which sucked for a week. Ok now.
Diet is next, no salt and cut portions.
I don’t booze. occasional beer or glass of wine.
Stress is ok too.

Im not crazy about meds...yet.
Don’t want to pop pills for the rest of my life.
Could be hereditary , but I feel it is correctable with some effort.

Anyone with similar experiences?

Thanks!

 

[hflier]

Exercise, and dropping sodium intake below 2000 a day (usually) 1500 drops my my BP 20 points. I’m 58. Meds are not required if you do the right things, but everyone will tell you it’s hereditary and just take the meds. Our society wants to cure everything with a pill.

Ron


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[Laelkhunter]

Lower your sodium intake (don't add salt to anything), and get some exercise, any exercise even if it is just a 45 minute a day walk. Also avoid pork in your diet, that raises BP too.
Monitor it with your own machine, I use a Panasonic EW3109, paid about $35 for it. Record it when you take it and keep a log. I found my BP is highest in the AM when I first wake up. My Dr says that's normal. It is usually lowest in the PM around 6:00.

 

[Rob5589]

Too young for those numbers. Diet, exercise, weight reduction, reassess. If your parents have high blood pressure your risk increases. Should probably have a full blood panel done as well.

 

[nam1975]

My blood work was all normal.
Cholesterol and triglycerides were almost out of range, but still normal.

 

[Bubblehide]

If you doctor just wrote you a prescription and did not discuss options, such as those suggested by members here, you need a new doctor ASAP.

 

[Sam Colt]

Mine was high. I resisted meds for a few years. Ate low fat and low sodium. Ran 3-6 miles a day to try and drop the BP. Lost 50 lbs. and got resting pulse down from 82 to 55.

Then had the stroke that took my left side.

Meds are not the worst thing that can happen to you. Get a 2nd opinion.

 

[lvtuna]

I just had a stroke. My doctor has been pushing blood pressure pills for years. Dad grandpa and grandmother all had a stroke. I ignored her. Very active had a poor diet. Thought that my activity level made up for bad diet. I take the pills she recommends now. 1 blood pressure and 1 lose dose baby asprin. I recommend following doctors advice now. Get a blood pressure machine for your home. keep track three times a day. Do not mess around. You do not want to have stroke.

 

[GNUOY]

Doctors are so quick nowadays to just write a prescription rather than look at lifestyle changes we can make. Believe me when I say that 150/100 isn’t that high. There is a ton of reasons why your BP is a little higher than normal. I would suggest getting a BP cuff and stethoscope and take you BP the old fashion way. Wrist blood pressure machines that are sold at places like Walgreens are very inaccurate. I would say keep up your exercise and make sure you are drinking plenty of water. My blood pressure was around the same as yours until I stopped eating carbs and sugars.

 

[fwafwow]

I’m not a doctor but I agree with getting a second opinion - and there are no meds without side effects.

I recommend “Doctoring Data” by Dr. Malcolm Kendrick. So far it has opened my eyes, and I realize I need to be better informed when my doctor suggests a prescription that may last a very long time.

 

[nam1975]

I have noticed the Walgreens one I bought is all over the board or gives me an error message 3 times in a row.
My cousin is a nurse and lives in the neighborhood, I’m going to stop by once a week and do it the old fashioned way.

 

[zacattack]

At my wellness check 2 weeks ago, my BP was high for the 1st time. About 150/105 on one of the machines. Always normal before.
Doc wrote up med’s, since I don’t smoke and walked out. Follow up in a month.
I haven’t started them and have been tracking at home, with a mixed bag of readings.
Some are about 150/105, some lower like 130/90. Half the time it gives me an error.

Background: 45 yo, 5’9” 190 Lbs. Job is now 90% desk due to COVID.
Exercise is now pretty weak. Walk the dog, occasional workout.
Pre COVID was basketball, spin class and hot yoga with wife. Each 1 day a week.
No fast food, but I eat whatever at home.

Started 45 minutes walks and 30 minute workout videos, alternate days.
Cut coffee from 3-4 to 1 cup, which sucked for a week. Ok now.
Diet is next, no salt and cut portions.
I don’t booze. occasional beer or glass of wine.
Stress is ok too.

Im not crazy about meds...yet.
Don’t want to pop pills for the rest of my life.
Could be hereditary , but I feel it is correctable with some effort.

Anyone with similar experiences?

Thanks!

When I was 23 I had the blood pressure of someone about to die of a heart attack or stroke. At one point the cuff wouldn’t even stay on my arm to take a reading. My average was like 150/100. Shit was crazy high. My diet and exercise habits were shit. My doctor gave me a blood pressure pill to take. I did that and started eating better, exercising and getting rid of stress in my life. After almost monthly doctors visits and lengthy discussions with him, I stopped taking the BP medicine after about a year. We decided that I had taken enough corrective actions to no longer need it. 17 years later I’m still going strong, my BP is usually 100-105 over 60ish, with a resting heart rate in the upper 50’s.
Get a second opinion but don’t act like medication is a nail in the coffin. Yes they are a bandaid sometimes, but you can also correct the problem and get off of them.

 

[fwafwow]

I have noticed the Walgreens one I bought is all over the board or gives me an error message 3 times in a row.
My cousin is a nurse and lives in the neighborhood, I’m going to stop by once a week and do it the old fashioned way.

I had a similar issue with my BP just this past year and my doctor said that BP taken in the office can be affected by "white coat syndrome" (high due to the setting). At his suggestion I purchased a monitor (Omron Silver from Amazon). I got the hang of the gadget, but it took some time to settle my BP and demonstrate to my doctor that it was normal. He also cautioned not to get too preoccupied with the BP, as doing so could impact the BP. (That part I didn't seem to follow, as I ended up taking BP 2x per day - but at least I was somewhat careful about the situation and to make sure I was following directions.)

Good luck!

 

[Bo2103]

BP is controllable, but high Cholesterol that’s thanks to our genes. No matter what a person does high cholesterol sometimes doesn’t go away and needs a pill to help. Some of the most healthy people in the world still have high cholesterol.

 

[fwafwow]

BP is controllable, but high Cholesterol that’s thanks to our genes. No matter what a person does high cholesterol sometimes doesn’t go away and needs a pill to help. Some of the most healthy people in the world still have high cholesterol.

I agree with part of the cholesterol statement - I'm not sure it's controlled solely by genes, and I'm not sure that it "needs a pill" - there is growing debate on whether the heart-diet hypothesis is correct, although if you or an expert argue against it, you will be in the minority. I do agree with the last sentence. (I'm a recent convert to that minority, but again, I'm not an expert and I'm still working through my research to see what I may be missing.). $0.02, or more accurately, something less than that.

 

[Hondo]

The salt avoidance and regular exercise advice works well to help reduce BP in my experience. I'm primarily in the office working as well these days so I know how that makes things more challenging. A couple of things I do at work that seems to help is I always bring my own home cooked low-sodium lunch, avoid caffeine and get up and walk around as much as I can, I also use a hand exerciser regularly, which studies have shown can help reduce blood pressure.

 

[ramsdude47]

I would write off the opinion of some random on the internet saying “150/100 isn’t that high” a lot faster than a Doc who maybe (but probably not) wrote a script too hastily.

If you were a family member asking me I would say take the meds for 2 months while you make your lifestyle changes. Then taper off for a month and see where you’re at.

 

[Hondo]

I would write off the opinion of some random on the internet saying “150/100 isn’t that high” a lot faster than a Doc who maybe (but probably not) wrote a script too hastily.

If you were a family member asking me I would say take the meds for 2 months while you make your lifestyle changes. Then taper off for a month and see where you’re at.

Excellent post!

I witnessed my own father having a stroke at his dinner table when I was visiting. He led a very healthy lifestyle yet had high cholesterol presumably more to do with genetics than anything else as his father died of a stroke and was otherwise healthy. Armed with this information including his doctor's recommendation, one of the most intelligent men I have ever known avoided cholesterol medication like the plague mostly because "experts" had him convinced it would kill him. He is fortunately still alive but he is not the same man. I'm of the mindset to take the physician prescribed medication now while actively working towards the goal of reducing or eliminating the need for medication in the future.

 

[ramsdude47]

My next $0.02. Buy a stethoscope and a properly sized sphygmomanometer. The technique to check a manual is exceptionally easy and much more accurate.

Below 140/100 is the target, but you really want to strive for 120/80.

 

[nphunter]

Take this for what it’s worth. I’m 5’6” and 220lbs, I use to have higher blood pressure around 145/110. A few years ago I almost completely stopped eating carbs and sugar, mostly due to some reading about reduced inflammation to help with a shoulder surgery. I’ve been full keto several times over the last few years. I’m 38 and don’t really go to doctors so last year i figured I should probably have some blood work done just because I hadn’t been to a doctor in about 10 years. They ran a full panel and came back and told me I had some of the best blood work they have ever seen. My blood pressure last I checked was 110/78 and it normally hovers around there. I eat 70/20/10 protein/fat/carbs. I put lots of salt and butter in almost every meal, we normally eat elk or deer 5 nights a week seared in butter and corn or green beans with butter.

I’m not saying you should do this but a change in diet can make a huge difference in a person overall health. I spend 10hrs a day sitting at a desk as well. I do spend a lot of time hiking, shed hunting, scouting and hunting but don’t get near the exercise most of the year that a person should.

I personally am not a fan of medications and would try my very best to get things under control myself before becoming dependent on medications.