high blood pressure

shezza

hi everyone
I have soft tissue rheumatism and have been anemiac in
the past.I have been for a blood test to see how iron levels and also to see if im on the change due to periods being all over the place.While i was there i asked the nurse to check my blood pressure she said it was very high 186/129 and i have to go back in two weeks to have it checked again.
Has anyone else have/had blood pressure ?Can anyone advise me on anything please.
Thanks

jackie1955

Hi, I used to test my bp at home and it was always on the high side, so eventually saw my gp. After having me go see him a few times he decided to put me on a bp tablet (Ramipril). low dose at first, which did nothing, then increased it after a month.
I have been on the pills for 12 months now, and my bp has gone down - not really low its average about 135/75. anyway, gp is happy with that

To help myself I do not add salt to anything at all - not even when cooking (still miss it though).

And, I have lost 2 stone in weight (still need to lose more though .

So, cut out the salt, lose any excess weight, and finally try to stay calm and have some 'me' time every day

shezza

jackie1955 wrote:

Hi, I used to test my bp at home and it was always on the high side, so eventually saw my gp. After having me go see him a few times he decided to put me on a bp tablet (Ramipril). low dose at first, which did nothing, then increased it after a month.
I have been on the pills for 12 months now, and my bp has gone down - not really low its average about 135/75. anyway, gp is happy with that

To help myself I do not add salt to anything at all - not even when cooking (still miss it though).

And, I have lost 2 stone in weight (still need to lose more though .

So, cut out the salt, lose any excess weight, and finally try to stay calm and have some 'me' time every day

Thanks for replying :-)

averyniceman

First thing to say is that one reading of high blood pressure shows nothing at all.

Blood pressure changes dramatically from moment to moment. It becomes temporarily elevated if you're ill, if you've just been exercising, if you're feeling stressed, even if you're just slightly anxious. .

Your GP will want to see three high BP readings over a couple of months before he prescribes any treatment for hypertension.

Hypertension means greater than 160 for systolic pressure (the first number)

I used to have high BP: 180+ / 70. And I was taking lots of medications.

But then I decided to get it under control. I lost a lot of weight -- nearly 4 stones -- by taking exercise and eating a healthy diet. I cut out alchohol pretty well completely. Personally I found Paul McKenna's books very helpful.

My BP came right down -- Now I'm on no medications and it's about 115/50. I'm as fit as a fiddle -- apart from the RA!

So if you're overweight and you have high BP, the first thing is to get to a heathy weight, I think. That may involve changing your lifestyle. And if you overeat or drink too much, it may involve asking yourself why.

Home BP monitors are a very good thing -- easy to use, accurate and cheap to buy. I can recommend the cheapest model made by Omron. I used to take readings once a week and then show them to my GP every couple of months. It helped, because I felt very actively involved in my own treatment.

mash65

hi,this is how i got my o/hs blood pressure down.
garlic tablets,garlic & onions in as much food as possible,no meds.
believe it or not it got his bp down in 3 months & i did away with table salt & replaced it(unknowingly) with low salt.
i read this in a book called womens self help rememdies.
by the time he had his 3rd reading it was normal.the practice nurse was impressed.its worth a try if u dont want more meds.debs

jaspercat

Hi, I had one reading of high blood pressure, my gp suggested buying a high monitor machine and taking my blood pressure twice a day, at different times, for 2 weeks and writing the results down for him to see. The end result is that I have a slightly higher blood pressure, but it gets worse in hospital or doctors.

He has put me on tablets, which have the increased bonus of being a water tablets, they have helped me lose 6 stone to date love Jaspercatxxx

averyniceman

jaspercat wrote:

Hi, I had one reading of high blood pressure, my gp suggested buying a high monitor machine and taking my blood pressure twice a day, at different times, for 2 weeks and writing the results down for him to see. The end result is that I have a slightly higher blood pressure, but it gets worse in hospital or doctors.

He has put me on tablets, which have the increased bonus of being a water tablets, they have helped me lose 6 stone to date love Jaspercatxxx

It's worth knowing that the stress caused by a doctor or nurse taking you blood pressure increases it by as much as 15 mm.

They call this "white coat hypertension"

jimmy77

shezza wrote:

hi everyone
I have soft tissue rheumatism and have been anemiac in
the past.I have been for a blood test to see how iron levels and also to see if im on the change due to periods being all over the place.While i was there i asked the nurse to check my blood pressure she said it was very high 186/129 and i have to go back in two weeks to have it checked again.
Has anyone else have/had blood pressure ?Can anyone advise me on anything please.
Thanks

Hi,

Yes, alot of these arthritic meds. make you retain fluid etc. and can elevate BP. My rheumies never check BP so I caught it from my GP and I was very surprised at the time. Having regular EKG's is also a good idea since some of these drugs can effect the heart rate over time. Keep your GP in the loop to monitor what the rheumy is prescribing you.

jimmy77

woodbon

A few years ago, I had a high blood pressure reading when I went to the GP. He had me go back about 3 times, and each time it was high, so the nurse fitted a 24 hour monitor, which took my bp every 15 mins. When the results where looked at, they were on the low side, which was good! He said he thought it was a case of 'White Coat bp'; it went up every time he took it, as I got tense. Ever since, I've had no problems when the dr takes my bp! Thats why they like to take it a lot of times before giving medication. Sue