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My High Blood Pressure
I have probably had high blood pressure for a long time. This is the story of how I found out.
My Symptoms
In hindsight, I can identify many symptoms of high blood pressure, but I either ignored them or thought they were related to other things.
The major symptom I had was headaches. Most days I would either wake up with a headache or develop one. Some of them were real “head splitters” … occasionally I would have to lie down to stop the nausea. I remember often working in front of my computer and trying very hard not to move my head to avoid feeling sharp pains.
Since being diagnosed with high blood pressure and starting medication, I have not had one headache (around nine months now). My headaches were definitely due to my high blood pressure, but back then I thought they were due to stress, or poor posture due to sitting at a computer all day … or any number of things.
My Diagnosis
I had been told for years by doctors that my blood pressure was high, but that it was probably due to the “white coat” effect. Turns out it wasn’t. I went to a new doctor, and as she took my blood pressure, she had a very worried look on her face.
My systolic blood pressure reading was over 200.
She told me to go to hospital immediately and made me promise I would not ignore her warning. At the time I did think she was over-reacting, and I pictured myself sitting in the hospital emergency waiting room for a couple of hours, waiting for a doctor to see me, giving me a couple of pills to take, and heading home.
The actual story was very different.
I arrived at emergency and was given the standard “patient detail” form to fill out. Before I was 1/3 of the way through, a nurse turned up to take my blood pressure. She also got a worried look on her face, and took me straight to one of the emergency beds. This is in a hospital system famous for making people wait hours in emergency.
I had doctors all over me … injecting things, taking blood, scanning me and god knows what else.
I “liked” a drug
My clearest memory of that day was suddenly feeling very light headed.
The doctor later told me that I “liked” a drug (I think it was hydralazine) he injected into me. I say “liked” because only a doctor could think I “liked” it. In about 30 seconds I went from feeling what I then considered normal, to being drenched in sweat, head spinning and throwing up my lunch. The nurses told me later that I was as white as a ghost.
Intensive Care
I remember asking one of the emergency nurses if she thought I would be able to go home that night. She laughed.
I ended up spending 4 days in intensive care, and 6 days in the general hospital before they let me go home.
The quality of the care, the doctors and the nurses were all amazing. We have a free hospital system in Australia which sometimes gets a bad rep, but my experience was very positive.
Blood Pressure Medication
They never found a cause … I just have high blood pressure. I take a fair bit of medication, and my blood pressure is now at normal levels.
My doctor told me to buy a blood pressure monitor and record my readings each day. Because I kept forgetting to take my readings, I wrote a software program to remind me. Below is a chart from that program of my readings:
As you can see from this chart my readings are now around 110-120 over 70-80. Much better, but more importantly, I feel a lot better … I had no idea that high blood pressure could make you feel so unwell.
If you also have high blood pressure I wish you well! (and if you have not seen a doctor about it, I highly recommend it … don’t leave it as late as I did … they can make you feel a lot better!)
Update 2010
It is now 6 years on, and the good news is that my readings have continued to be stable and in the “normal” range. I am still on medication, but I have made some lifestyle changes and continue to feel much better than I did in 2002/3.
I recently made a video that talks about what happened to me, as well as talking about my own blood pressure chart from 2004.
Click here for a larger, easier to view version of this video
34 Responses to “My High Blood Pressure”
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Steve
Create your own blood pressure chart with the My Blood Pressure software for Windows.
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Easy-to-use, and works on all modern Windows computers.
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I agree high blood pressure can make you feel bad. When mine was high I had jaw pains, which I thought were related to dental problems, I had intermittent shooting pains in my arms, lots of morning headaches which I blamed on poor sleep, and I had shortness of breath and was tired all the time. And I was actually prehypertensive.
I often wonder how many people suffer from high blood pressure and don’t know it because these symptoms are so common with other problems. I recommend every person check their blood pressure readings and take them seriously!
It can turn your life around like night and day. I have alot more energy. I am happier less agitated and I don’t feel like my body is out of control. When my blood pressure was high I literally felt like my blood was boiling and I felt out of control of my body.
It’s not hard keeping it down. I’m not on medications I just workout, watch what I eat. Alot of foods today are loaded high in sodium which isn’t needed. Foods taste just as great with lower amounts of sodium. I was worried it wouldn’t. They also have salt substitutes out there. High blood pressure made me realize the governments’ healthcare changes will not lower cost because we are all so poorly educated about the foods we eat and there isn’t low enough caps on how much sodium food manufactuers should be putting on foods, if there are any.
Many foods convenient foods I have found are very high in sodium and we live in a convenient society so that food is what we seek. High sodium foods are processed foods like canned meat, tv dinners and fast food restaurant foods, boxed frozen foods, all of which I ate regularly.
Even the healthy frozen foods were high in sodium. It’s as though salt doesn’t matter. Our government must implement lower sodium caps on these types of foods or people are doomed to be unhealthy and costs will become actually only continue to ballon out of control as obese children become parents.
Also I found out I had high bood pressure by going to the dentist. So I thank and now love my dentist for saving my life and making it brighter in more ways than just by protecting my smile, they protected my body.
I wish everyone good health and prosperity!
Hi Detra,
Thank you for your comment!
> lots of morning headaches which I blamed
> on poor sleep, and I had shortness of
> breath and was tired all the time
This sounds very familiar. Like you, I feel 100% better now that my blood pressure is under control.
I also agree that food is an important factor. Kellie has written many times about the importance of “hidden” salt in food. I also used to eat the “healthy” convenience food, which I later found out was almost soaked in salt.
> I wish everyone good health and
> prosperity!
And to you too!
I don’t have the severe problems described above. Mine rarely gets above 155/105, and that’s only when I forget to take my Metoprolol (i know, go ahead and slap me). When I do forget, I get light headed and a little disorientated on occasion. Anyone else get this? Is this lack of blood to the inner ear?
Hi Larry,
http://www.drugs.com/metoprolol.html lists feeling lightheaded as a side effect of Metoprolol. It doesn’t mention why, but another explanation could be low blood pressure.
Hi Larry, I have always had low blood pressure. It is Steve who got all the high blood pressure genes.
When my BP is too low I will always get light headed and dizzy.
Kellie
To absolutely do something about my High Blood Pressure? I got a dog and jog with it! I’m not kidding, it’s a genuine recommendation for those who suffer with High Blood Pressure and need to do something about it. My mom took me up on it and made a best friend, has an active lifestyle and better health!!!
Hi Elenor, I love your advice of ‘get a dog’.
Exercise really makes a difference! Personally it helps me reduce stress, gives thinking time and helps me sleep well at night. Glad to hear your active lifetstyle
had helped your BP. Kellie
i have persistant heaches for a few weeks now, plus my blood pressure kept risibg, the highest being 178/112, i went to the gp’s who said just to monitor for a few weeks, and not to worry.
my BP has come down abit since but the headaches are still quite bad.
Any suggestions would be most appreciated.
thanks
Ms jay Bharj
Hi Jay,
Sorry to hear about your headaches.
I am not a Doctor and can not offer you any medical advice.
If you are worried about the headaches and the rising blood pressure, I would recommend going back to your Doctor, or getting a second opinion from another Doctor.
Home monitoring your blood pressure is a good idea because it will give your Doctor a better picture of your blood pressure.
There are many reasons for getting headaches. I think I was lucky in that mine were due to my high blood pressure, and once my blood pressure dropped due to medication, the headaches went away.
Best wishes to you and I hope you find what is causing your headaches and stop them.
Steve
I have had hb prsure spikes for 2 yrs or so, at times is can get up to 180/110. An episode with vertigo and hbp 3 months ago sent me to the ER. I had a cat scan and a diagnosis of brain tumor (non malignant, totally operable), but the pressure it creates in my head makes my bp really hi. Hunidity is a triger, my brain swells, creates pressure, my bp goes up. It has taken 3 months to get an appt with the neurosurgeon to schedule surgery, meanwhile my bp still spikes, I have tried 3 bp meds so far, they only make the prsure and diziness worse. Micardis works the best so far, but when it spikes it is hard to get bp down. This has been a bad summer with the heat and humidity, I have pressure daily with bp spikes. When the weather normalizes, bp goes back to normal and pressure decreases in my head. It has been a wild ride.
Hi Mary,
Sorry to hear about your BP problems this summer, and I hope that you can have the surgery done soon. Hopefully the temperatures will start to cool down in your part of the world.
Best wishes!
Steve
Mary……..I hope you get your surgery quickly. You may want to discuss a ketogenic diet with your doctor in order to attempt to stop the tumor from growing although without knowing what kind of tumor you have it is impossible to predict if this therapy would be effective. The short explanation for this working is that tumors (especially many kinds of brain tumors) thrive on glucose. When you go on a ketogenic diet (low carb/high fat diet) your glucose levels plummet and therefore the growth of the tumor is stunted. Additionally, in some brain tumors the ketogenic diet cause apoptosis (programmed cell death within the cancer cell) which actually kills the cancer cells. I don’t mean to get your hopes up but this is something that is worth looking into.
Dr. Thomas Seyfried of Boston College is a leading authority on diet thrapy for epilepsy and brain cancers. I beleieve that most of his work is on malignant brain tumors but I don’t know that for sure. Here is a link to Dr. Seyfried’s webpage on brain cancer and refernces:
http://www2.bc.edu/~seyfridt/braincancer.html
http://www2.bc.edu/~seyfridt/publications.html
Good luck to you.
Hi, I am 34 years old and have had High BP for about 5 years. My doctros didn’t really do anything about it and kept telling me to lose weight!!! I am slightly overweight (about 1stone over) but it’s just the aftemath of having two children! I went to the doctors 2 weeks ago complaining of severe headaches and dull daily headaches. He took my BP and it was high, he then sent me away to monitor my own BP at home for a week. I was getting readings from 185 and occasionally were reaching 200!! He then referred me to a specialist to make sure it isn’t ‘white coat’! My readings with him were over 190!! I am currently having different tests done to eliminate white coat including 24 hour urine, 24 bp monitor, bloods, ultrasounds on kidneys, echo tests on my heart etc… They say high bp has no symptoms but it’s so reassuing to read that poeple do have symptoms because I do to feel awful somedays and forever feel tired but I am sure that is due to the daily headaches that are driving me INSANE!!! Thanks for reading Keeley x
BP does cause headaches, feeling unwell, dizzines, shortness of breath and feeling sick, anything over 130/84 can cause these symtoms,the higher it gets the worse the symtoms can be.
Long term alcohol abuse/binge drinking or high colestoral will cause this, not to mention portal hypotension or any other serious desease.
regards.
Keeley……….most high blood pressure is caused by elevated insulin levels which is also called Syndrome X, pre-diabetets and hyperinsulinemia. You’re fasting insulin should be under 10. Anything over 10 shows that you are insulin resistant. diet is the easiest way to reduce your fasting insulin levels. Omega-3 fatty acids, chromium, lipoic acid and vanadium supplements will also help but a low carb diet is the cornerstone treatment. It always will work. Here’s a transcript of a speech given by an expert in the USA – Dr. Ron Rosedale.
http://www.life-enthusiast.com/twilight/research_diet_o.htm
“Protein Power” is a diet book by Drs. Michael and Mary Eades notes that dramatic blood pressure reductions have been seen in their patients in as little as one week on a low carb diet. It’s worth reading.
There are also many biofeedback protocols out there involving slow breathing/calm music that have been proven in clinical trials to reduce blood pressure very dramatically in some people. Below is a link relating to one that offers a demo audio breathing protocol. Give it a try
http://www.control-your-blood-pressure.com/demo2.html
Here’s another link to a breathing exercise that I do which involves breathing in for a 4 count, holding your breath for a seven count and then exhaling for an 8 count. It is supposedly very healthfull:
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/07/07/The-Most-Powerful-Health-Recommendation-of-Dr-Andrew-Weil.aspx
Good luck!
Hello. I’m not sure whats going on. Five days ago while at work I got a sudden headache which made me feel like my head was going to explode. The right side of my face also starting feeling tight, but more like your jaw feels after you have a tooth filled and the anesthesia starts to wear off. My co-worker took my blood pressure;it was 165/108 pulse was 100. I couldnt see my regular doctor so I saw a MD at an emergency care stop. All he said was there was nothing he could do because this wasnt life threatening. He told me to monitor my bp every day in the morning before work, then again at work, and one final time after I got home. I did this for a week. The trend? my BP was perfect in the morning (121/75,on average),it then sky-rocketed at work at around 9-10am everyday (165/103 on average). After I was home for about 1 to 2 hrs, it was normal again. When I saw my regular MD, he said there is definitely a pattern and a problem. work is causing my pressure to rise. He told me to monitor it for another two weeks, and when Icome back to see him with the results, if all is the same, I need to be prepared to take blood pressure medicine, or look for another job. There has to be other OPTIONS? What do you think? I’m 37 years old, I dont eat red meat, only fish, chicken, and turkey. I dont eat or drink, sugar, sodium of any kind, frozen or canned foods, fried foods,soda,or coffee. Any advice you could offer would be greatly appreciated. I really do not want to start on these meds.Oh,I almost forgot. My husband and I work out together 4 times a week.
Thanks,Nell
Hi Nell,
I am not a Doctor so I can’t give you any medical advice.
If your Doctor thinks you should go on blood pressure medicine, I would recommend doing it.
Before I started medication, I had always thought that taking BP meds would somehow leave me feeling more sedated or “slower” etc. In reality the opposite was true in that I had more energy and felt much better. The medications do have side effects, but I didn’t get any of them. If you do, there are multiple types of medications which your doctor could try.
There are plenty of natural ways to reduce your blood pressure. Some that come to mind are diet, exercise and stress reduction exercises such as breathing exercises and meditation. If you search around the internet you will find many sites promoting various cures. It sounds like you have diet and exercise covered, so maybe you could look into stress reduction exercises.
My personal experience is that taking the BP medications helped me to find more natural ways to get my blood pressure lower, which meant that over time I was able to reduce the medication I was taking to a fraction of what I started on.
Home monitoring was a big part of that because my Doctor could see that my blood pressure was not going back up as she took away the medications.
Hope this helps!
Steve
Thanks for your reply, although we are pensioners we did find it quite easy to install once we had properly followed your instructions. My husband has recently had brain surgery at Queens Hospital Romford and since had a couple of mini strokes. We have found it reassuring to monitor his blood pressure each day as they want it raised to ensure the blood goes through the stent, but we are concerned it doesnt go too high, my scappy piece of paper doesnt look very professional to show the surgeon when we go for a check up, so I am happy to be able to present the info in a professional manner and not too costly.
Hi Myra,
Good to hear that the install went smoothly.
Best wishes to you and your husband for a speedy recovery and that you are able to help prevent any further problems.
Steve
My blood preassure has been running really high. I am a diabetic can it be from high blood sugars.
Hi Tonya,
I am not a Doctor, but this article: http://www.webmd.com/hypertension-high-blood-pressure/guide/high-blood-pressure says that “diabetes increases your risk of developing high blood pressure … because diabetes adversely affects the arteries, predisposing them to atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries)”
Steve
High insulin levels also cause water retention and loss of magnesium. Magnesium relaxes blood vessels and causes dilation resulting in lower blood pressure. Low magnesium results in less relaxation of the blood vessels and constriction of blood resulting in high blood pressure. the best way to combat adult onset diabetes is by diet. Good luck.
hi,
I am having severe bouts of high b/p 180/104 it flexuates but only very little. This has been the past month. I am now sick with a cold and a bad sprain foot. I take b/p meds in very low doses. I have autodysfunction disorder when means my b/p goes up and down all the time. I am acromegalic and had a pituitary tumor removed 2 1/2 years ago i medittae but this gives me anxiety. can I have a stroke or heart attack form uncontrolled b/p for a month
Hi audi,
Sorry to hear about your health problems.
I am not medically trained, and I can’t answer your question. I would highly recommend seeking your answers from your doctor or health care provider, who would be in the best position to help you with this issue.
Best wishes for your health!
Steve
My Health Software support
Hello.
For the last month I have had lightheaded feelings, weakness, and major headaches. I take Lexapro and Xanax for anxiety which I have had since 14 and I’m now 27 years old.
Today I went to the doctor and my BP was at a all time high of 174/114. I then launched in to a panic attack scared.
I had to wait in the hall and my doctor said it was not life threating but yes it was high and I could have white collar symptoms. But again he also mentioned when having attacks my blood pressure goes up and down. Once I had a attack and i was st 158/98. Then 20 minutes later 130/80. So I know what he means. Well today i am starting 25 mg of Atenlol. I have actually taken it before when I was 21. But I stopped and my blood pressure was good so they said I could stop. Anyways I am 30 pounds bigger since then and understand. Life change is going to happen. I just spent money on a 24 hour fitness pass and I will get through all this. We all do… I do not wanna feel like I have and so I wont! I am taking my life back and controlling this and will with my medications hard works and exercise.
Hang in there all cause we all can make this better. We must try and not give up!
Joshua from Texas
I’ve had trouble with high blood pressure since I was 16 and now I’m 32. Granted I know I have a family history on my dads side of heart disease. My doctor started me on Lisinopril when I was 21. It brought my blood pressure down and certainly helped maintain it. I moved here to WY just a couple of years ago and kind of weened myself off the medication. I workout in the gym 5-6 days week, usually for a couple of hours each day. I include weightlifting and cardio. I even started taking natural supplements that are known for lowering BP unfortunately even with an absolute impeccable diet, my BP has shot back up. Even in resting states, I average 150-170 over 90-100. So I guess I’m going to have to face the fact that I may have to continue to take medication no matter what else I do right. Boo!
Hi, My Bp is like yourself 200/100 and i have had this for 5 years . After my recent tests they say that the heart wall on the left has thicken. Which has slightly worried me. i would be interested in what drugs youve had thats made your bp normal. I dont show any symptoms of headaches and i wouldnt say i was overweight. Just pretty normal but i would like a normal bp reading.
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks
Angela
(wales, uk)
Hi Angela,
I wrote an article about the medications I was put on here: http://www.my-health-software.com/view/items/blood-pressure-medication.html
Now I just take 8mg Coversyl and 5mg Novarsc a day.
Best wishes with getting your BP down!
Steve
My Health Software support
Hi Steve. I stumbled on your page here and I just thought I’d share a bit of my situation.
I have always enjoyed a healthy blood pressure – somewhere around 90/60 or 100/70. My resting heart rate is 45 and my respiration is 7 or 8 (low, but my oxygen levels are good). My temperature is also low. 96.8 Fahrenheit, rather than 98.6, which is the norm. I am not an athlete, and can rarely work out, so I’m not sure why everything is so low. Thyroid is always normal. I am also in the normal range for body weight, and have just lost 10 pounds because of the nausea and loss of appetite I’ve had. I don’t need to lose any more.
A few weeks ago it’s like my body went into overdrive and now, when I get up and move around my bp goes way up. Last night it went up to 160/100, but usually when I’m up moving around it’s at around 140/90. Then when I recline again, it goes down to normal ranges. With the high bp, my heart rate soars to somewhere between 120 or 130.
I do have an underlying condition, in the form of Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, which is a connective tissue disorder due to faulty collagen. EDS can cause the body to whack out in different ways.
I am not sure what has caused this sudden spike, but I have had a growth on my sacrum for several years. Doctors here in the U.S. have refused to take it seriously, but it has grown astronomically. It is causing much discomfort now and I’m fighting to have it biopsied. It has spread into different parts of my torso, and maybe even into my arm. I am hoping it isn’t malignant, and trying to stay positive until I get the right doctor. Our system here is not a good one.
I also develop edema during the day, but oddly, it is not in my lower legs at all. Just my trunk, upper legs, and upper arms–sometimes in my hands. I believe this is lymphatic–there are lots of lymph nodes in the sacrum and the largest part of this mass rests right there. When I am up, the fluid accumulates and causes horrible pressure and pain, along with a rise in bp, heart rate, heart arrhythmia, and even sometimes, temperature. When I lay down for a little while, I feel almost normal again–good even. I wake up in the morning feeling great, until I am upright. Sad, eh? And I can no longer work out.
I will be starting the beta-blocker Propranolol today, but I’m nervous about it. However, I feel the effects of the intermittent hypertension so I will do it.
The main thing for me is getting this mass biopsied once and for all, and dealing with whatever it is. Then seeing if the medication alleviates some of the symptoms. The lymphatic thing–well, I don’t even know what kind of doctor to go to for that, and my doctor doesn’t seem to know either. If it’s lymphatic, I can’t take a diuretic because that’s considered bad.
If anyone is interested in my story, you can to to my blog. I’ve started keeping a photo/video journal to show what’s going on. And still, some doctors have come right out and suggested that I’ve doctored them. I’m so fed up with our system that I could scream. I think I have a good g.p. but I think he’s frustrated with my case.
Thanks for sharing your story.
Cheers!
My blog is at http://www.glueless1.blogspot.com
Hi Shawn Marie,
I have been reading your blog and you are going through an ordeal with your heath and the health system. I hope that you can get to the bottom of what is causing the problems and get some relief.
You mention on your blog that you feel that inflammation may be a root cause. If you have not seen it yet, the “Cooling Inflammation” blog by Dr. Art Ayers is interesting reading. It is very technical in places, but there is also a lot of practical information on inflammation:
http://coolinginflammation.blogspot.com/
Hope this helps, and best wishes!
Steve
My Health Software support
Hello Steve
Wondered what you think of my scenario.
BP often around 150/98 since monitoring it at home from mid Dec 11. GP has just given me a low dose of Perindopril (Coversyl) 2mg as he says it is mildly high. (Mother has high BP so guess its hereditary.) To take one in the evening to begin with then mornings. I am 48 and have underactive thyroid and asthma. I am 54kg. I guess its best to take medication….Thanks. Yas
Hi Yas,
> I guess its best to take medication
I am not a Doctor, so all I can recommend is that you listen to your Doctor! I always try and listen to mine
Steve
My Health Software support
Hi,
My name is Owen, I am a medic in South Africa. I understand your comment about listening to your Dr as I am a medical professional but I do know that many people prefer natural remedies. Many of these drugs have horrible side effects and most of the hypertension meds are vaso-dialators. I have personally seen how people control their blood pressure by following the “DASH” diet and working out more frequently. The most important thing is to monitor your BP often and to live a healthy lifestyle to increase your chances of not ending up with the condition.
In most cases by the time a patient was diagnosed with Hypertension, damage of vessele and organs has already taken place. It is important to test your BP regularly.
Thanks,
Owen – Normal Blood Pressure
I am a lyme patient that normally has very low BP (90/60) and for the past six months my BP has been spiking on and off but recently- it has been spiking constantly and my legs have swelled to 4 times their normal with and I get jaw pain, shortness of breath, small seizures, weird heart palipatations and blury vision. I can actually “feel it” when my bp is high and my whole body pounds with every beat of my heart- I can actually see it in my field of vision. Today I went for a 2 mile walk and when I got back – it was so bad- I coudn’t get off the couch. I would have gone to the ER, but my husband gets very, very angry when he has to bring me anywhere- especially the docs- and if I woke him up I would have hell to pay.
Is this something serious or am I overreacting , like my husband says.