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daily stressors

celestw profile image
22 Replies

They say to help lower your blood pressure is to manage daily stressors but what if you daily stressor is blood pressure....taking my blood pressure every day constantly being reminded of it, i get extreme anxiety right before i take my blood pressure no matter how much i try to relax and de stress before, i constant see articles about stuff like “if you have this thing with this blood pressure you’ll die in the next 13 years” or something like that, i’m always so scared because of it, i don’t wanna die at 31...it makes me scared to grow up, i’ll be sitting watching TV and then i’ll think what if i have a heart attack, or i wonder what my blood pressure is, i can’t get away from it, they say to manage your stressors but suffering from high bp is the very thing causing my daily stress idk what to do....

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celestw profile image
celestw
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22 Replies
peter999999999 profile image
peter999999999

i was just the same, the only way i beat it was not to do it, it worried me after a week and then a month, now ive not done it in months, i was that bad with anxiety doing it doc told me to stop it, if u are getting stressed just looking at the machine like i was its doing you no good, i was doing mine at least 20 times a day and it kept going higher, its hard at first but most i no are the same. docs worry you and keep lowering the number, most have been through it

Morgan profile image
Morgan

Why are you taking your blood pressure every day? I have had hypertension for over 18 years controlled by medication and maybe take my blood pressure two or three times a year if i feel stressed - its always kept low. If you are not on medication then your doctor is not worried about your blood pressure. I expect this lockdown is making things worse for you, the reports are enough to make anyone stressed.

celestw profile image
celestw in reply to Morgan

im on blood pressure medication 😔because i have high blood pressure, i was taking my blood pressure every day and i went to the doctor and they told me to continue to take it they consistently, i lowered it to taking it every other day but it still is stressful, the lockdown and pandemic are feeding into the stress considering i already struggle with depression and anxiety 😔

springcross profile image
springcross

I'm inclined to agree with peter here celest, it affects me in the same way so I probably only do mine every month or so. x

Happyrosie profile image
Happyrosie

Hello Celestew. I agree with other posters. I’ve said to you before, you must only take your pressure when you are fully relaxed. Unless your doc has said otherwise, take it once every three months.Don’t believe everything you read in the papers: journalists write things to get reactions.

You are not a medical nor pharmacological graduate so you’re not in a position to delve down deep into medical literature.

If you must take your pressure, do as other posters have recommended in the past:

Sit down quietly. Put the cuff on. Read a book. Ask someone else to take the reading, so that you can’t see. Get them to write down the result. Don’t look at it.

Remember, your pressure rises and falls all the time depending on what you’re doing. Otherwise you wouldn’t be able to do it.

Have you addressed all the lifestyle issues (exercise, diet etc) ?

Also: just think of all the people walking around who have had high blood pressure, have got it under control, and they are still walking around ALIVE AND WELL thirty years later.

celestw profile image
celestw in reply to Happyrosie

thank you! you’re right, i took my blood pressure every day and i went to the doctor and they said to continue to take it that consistently, i’ve lowered it to every other day but it’s still so stressful😔and i try to relax and i can get fully relaxed but the second i feel the blood pressure cuff squeeze my arm i start to freak out, for some reason i’m scared and i think i’ve always been like tht for as long as i can remember. I’ve also been struggling with depression and anxiety so that rlly doesn’t help the exercise and diet part of it😔sometimes i’ll go days without eating and barely get up out of bed to even use the bathroom. Sometimes i feel like i’m the only person at my age who’s struggling with this problem. Thank you for you’re advice! you’re absolutely right

Hereagain profile image
Hereagain in reply to celestw

You must stop stressing about it Celeste. My mum had high blood pressure for 63 years, and it wasn’t always well controlled, but it wasn’t that that killed her! I have had it for about 40 years now, sometimes controlled by medication, sometimes going up. Some people have a high normal anyway. Mine never goes down to levels that are spoken about online as the normal, but I have never had any heart issues. Stop worrying, you are young, enjoy your life x

peter999999999 profile image
peter999999999

in my day it was 100 plus your age and under 100 for dis, now i played semi pro football at 17 and mine was 140 odd then, now im 72 and only been on bp meds for 1 year when i was in hospital for a chest infection, so for 50 odd years ive lived with so called hp and lead a very active life,with work,lovers,wifes,sports etc so you will be fine, plus in my day they never gave pills for bp, i dont think there was any,

Dish2 profile image
Dish2

I know exactly what you mean! I am the same way. I started taking BP meds a year ago. The doctor wants me to take my BP 2x a week. At first, I was ok; but then a high reading or two & my nerves took over. When I just think about taking my BP now, I get extremely anxious. If I take it, my pulse rate is at least 100... I am trying very hard to overcome this and do using some breathing techniques- sometimes they work... other times... not so much.Most I have found on YouTube. I like the HRV videos for breathing on there. Also, Max Strom is excellent . Just taking the time to sit & breathe is very helpful... Hang in there... Good luck with your journey & God Bless.

Happyrosie profile image
Happyrosie

Hi celestw. I was reading your post again. You’ve obviously done a lot of research around reducing your blood pressure. So you know already that a lot of it is down to lifestyle.

If you stay in bed all day you are not getting the exercise that your body needs. Your heart needs to be pumping, and if your heart is weakened- as it will be if you don’t exercise it - then it can’t do what it’s meant to do.

Catlover3 profile image
Catlover3

When taking my blood pressure I visualise the numbers/bars on the monitor going down, and feel myself slowing down and sinking into the chair as I relax. It works for me!

Sleepyholllow profile image
Sleepyholllow

Hello celestw, I am exactly the same, I took early retirement from my job in august, hoping that would improve my readings, I’ve recently had to have meds doubled, but having more time to think and Covid etc, I am thinking that anxiety is making it worse, taking the readings makes me extremely stressed, I spent Xmas close to tears most of the time, trying to hide it from my family. I agree with all the people who say to you not to take it often, an in my opinion anxiety is exacerbating it.

celestw profile image
celestw in reply to Sleepyholllow

yea! i’m sorry you had to go through that, i’m going through the same thing. I do get bad anxiety and depression so i think that’s making it worse 😔

I do understand what you are going through... and having lived with anxiety for 40 years (now 65) I have had bouts of high blood pressure which three months ago ran at 200/120 and a resting pulse of 120 ... and trying to visualise , de-stress , eat the right diet and relax and excercise made not a hapeth of difference... finally came across an article about olive leaf extract and foods that produce nitrous oxide ...plus increase your intake of magnesium.If you are on calcium supplements ...stop! calcium causes muscles and arteries to tighten ... magnesium makes them relax. I do not recommend stopping any medication you might be on ... try these natural remedies alongside them .One final thought... if you are young as you are your arteries are still pliable/flexible and can withstand high BP without causing you irreparable damage.Be kind to your mind not just your body.

celestw profile image
celestw in reply to

Oh wow cool thank you for the advice!

Sleepyholllow profile image
Sleepyholllow in reply to

Jomico, That sounds great, I presume it’s ok to take magnesium while taking bp meds and cholesterol meds?

in reply to Sleepyholllow

Yes absolutely fine.Its a mineral that you should be able to get from food .No doctor would tell you to stop eating whilst taking meds would they?I would recommend you look into olive leaf extract too.

Sleepyholllow profile image
Sleepyholllow in reply to

Thank you for that, I definitely will.

in reply to Sleepyholllow

Okay there are 8 main variants of magnesium...the best for you is Magnesium L- Threonate... because this has a very calming effect...on the body and mind.i get mine off Amazon/Ebay 1 capsule a day should provide 500mg. You can open a capsule up and make a cup of warm water and put it in...just sip a mouthful over the course of the day for the first week...you can take two per day but after that your body will just send it back out.Let us know your progress thankyou.

Research Dr.Carolyn Dean she is the formost expert on this mineral and has a weekly podcast .

Sleepyholllow profile image
Sleepyholllow in reply to

Thank you, really helpful, I will

Btw my blood pressure using the above is now 125/70 pulse is 55 bpm.

valspia profile image
valspia

I totally understand and I wish I could help. Managing anxiety during this pandemic is a constant struggle. I'm also dealing with GERD and have finally managed to get an appt. with a gastro. doc. in two weeks. I've been to ER twice in 3 weeks because of very high BP and chest discomfort which I think is actually the GERD. But how do you differentiate between heartburn and chest pain? I have an appt. with my cardio doc tomorrow. But I agree, so much of this is caused by stress I believe and I am taking steps to help manage stress. I'm new to health unlocked and finding it very helpful with wonderful people. I live in the US.

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