Merry Christmas and a tale of HBP hope

Hi all, particularly those who are struggling to get blood pressure under control.

This is my story ... In June I found my BP was 180/100 and was prescribed 5 mg of Ramipril. In July my BP fuelled by anxiety peaked at 215/115 and an ambulance car took me to A & E. Result was Amlodipine 5 mg added. BP remained high although I didn't suffer any noticeable side effects. Over the next three months my medication was increased to 10 mg of Ramipril and 5 mg of Amlodipine.

I was still concerned that my BP was hovering around 150/90 and I was prescribed Bisoprolol starting at 2.5 mg and this has been increased in stages to 5 mg morning and night (10 mg in total). I have to say I find Bisoprolol brilliant for Anxiety and BP.

Finally I am getting stable readings of around 120/80. I still get higher readings from time to time but that is down to me being anxious when I put the cuff on to measure, but most of the time I am very happy with the results and do not suffer with any noticeable side effects except the odd period of tiredness (probably due to Bisoprolol).

Moral of the story is be patient and work with your GP and you can with some lifestyle changes and medication get to a healthy level. I have found the the process frustrating but also rewarding and thank the forum Members for the advice and support that I have received.

I hope my story helps fellow sufferers and offers hope for those struggling with medications and doses. Not all medications suit us and it is a time consuming trial and error process - hopefully we all get a patient GP to work with. Stick with it.

Have Merry Christmas all and keep safe and well.

Andrew

[Geronima]

Thank you Andrew! Pleased you managed to get your BP under control. I’ve a similar story to yours, after years of trial and error, a consultant finally found the perfect combination for me, Perindopril, Amlodipine and Indapamide. No side effects at all, and acceptable readings every time!

[springcross]

Merry Christmas to you too Andrew, I'm glad your BP is now stable and long may it continue for you. Thanks for sharing your story. 🎄

[peter999999999 in reply to springcross]

all those 3 a year ago gave me terrible side effects and the will to live so gave them all up,never took bp readings since it was 165/95 last time a yera ago,since then,diet exercise etc, life is now good again,im 73 walk 9 miles a day in 3 shifts, could not get out of house on bp meds, breathing exercises etc, sleep now which i never did only 1 or 2 hours a night for a year, still do not no what damage the pills did to my body, its took all year to slowely get better,never again will i take bp pills again, my bp was always about 150.90 even at 20 when playing semi pro football and never a problem, id think if my bp was 120/80 etc id fall over, my docs over the years have never said anything at 60 mine was 161 /90 so ive always gone on 100 plus age and under 100 you will last just as long.everyone i no at my age on bp pills statins etc are wrecks as far as health is concerned,

[lettingoffsteam in reply to peter999999999]

My blood pressure was high for quite a few years without my knowledge as my practice nurse put it down to anxiety.When I was finally diagnosed it was 244/133, an emergency situation.Thankfully the doctors were able to get it down using ramipril, amlodipine and a small dose of propranolol.

By losing a good deal of weight I was able to half my dose of meds which was good as they took a lot of getting used to. However years of untreated high bp has given me a condition called left ventricular hypertrophy, a thickening of the heart wall which increases the risk of every kind of cardiac event, albeit my condition is mild and controlled by using medication to keep my bp down.

My point is this: despite hating the meds I take them as I'm not keen to encourage more severe lvh or a heart attack or stroke.