I am a 67 year old female. Today I had an appointment with Professor Heagerty Manchester Royal Infirmary regarding my intolerance to all blood pressure medications that I have been given over the past 6 years.
I have recently been diagnosed with gallstones, fatty liver, high cholesterol, the bottom line is I’ve been discharged from his care, as there is nothing else he can do for me. He said that within the next 10 years I will die of either stroke or heart attack. Any suggestions for alternative treatments that might lower my blood pressure etc
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GeorgieBoy2
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I've just been told I have high BP and have done a lot of research in last few days.
It seems there are a number of things one can do to bring down all the nasty numbers thrown at us.
Cholesterol can be downed by eating various foods .
High BP can be helped through exercise and drinking lots of water.
Not sure about the gall stones and fatty liver-- but I imagine diet and weight loss will also help with these.
Perhaps you have already been given this advice by your Healthcare team and haven't really done much about it ( apologies if this is wrong) but I'm reckoning ( reading between the lines) that your Dr is fed up and trying to shock you into a change of lifestyle???
I know that my own diagnosis gave me a real wake up call, and I was in serious denial at first! 🥴😢
But now I'm doing all that people are telling me.
My grandchildren are too precious for me to be saying goodbye from the back of the ambulance!?👻
Madlegs has made some very pertinent remarks, with which I concur and to which I will add.
High blood pressure is a condition that is really controlled by the patient herself, with the help of the medical profession. I’m writing as a non- medic and without knowing your previous family and medical history and height and weight.
You’ve been discharged from the consultant’s care with a remark that you’ll be dead in ten years and he could be right. What would be far worse, though, is for you to have a severe stroke and survive, half-paralysed, confined to a wheelchair and reliant on others for your personal care. Horrible thought.
It does sound to me that all your medical issues would be much helped by your attention to diet and lifestyle, and so we are fortunate that there’s a charity to help. Go to the website of Blood Pressure UK, the specialist charity, to see what they have to say about how you yourself can help yourself.
Thanks for your response. I also have COPD, osteoarthritis in my lower/upper spine, hands and I think it’s starting in my knees. Since being involved in a RTA, my mobility has worsened after being rear ended on the motorway. I have recently been on the NHS healthy eating course which I found very useful and I’ve lost nearly 5 kilos. I fully understand what the prof was saying - it’s a short sharp wake up call, he can’t do or suggest anything else, so I have a choice to make. I hate water but for the past couple of months I have started drinking it. Living on my own and arthritis it was so easy to throw a ready meal in the oven, I rarely do this now, and always check labels, eat more fruit and vegetables. My father died aged 51 of heart disease, his mother aged 62 and his eldest sister too. My eldest sister, brother and younger sister all have high blood pressure and cholesterol.
I’m so glad you’re looking at yourself. That’s the way to go! Arthritis is hard to cope with, isn’t it! Exercise, gentle, will help you lose more weight though. The only treatment for arthritis, as I’m sure you know, is exercise and painkillers, along with a healthy diet. The exercise will help all your other issues.
well to say that to you is a discrace,how does he no, what will happen in the future,none of us have got a ticket even for tomorrow, diet,exercise,try a asprin a baby one if u dont get bleeding in the stomach,very rare,rather have that than a stroke etc., turmeric.extra virgin olive oil ,olive leaf extract all good for heart,cholesterol .joints.i would not see him again unless i wanted the lottery results if he can see in the future,
Peter he’s not a disgrace, he over the past 6 years has recommended different tablets. None suited bad reactions. It’s in a situation that basically, high blood pressure isn’t going to go away. I’ve tried antidepressants that I can’t take due to bad reactions although I really needed them. Just really guess I really don’t know where I m going from here
Exercise within your limitations, healthy eating, little alcohol and if maybe you have like me a caffeine intolerance you may have to completely give up caffeine including decaf, try magnesium and garlic supplements in short you have to declare war on BP.; good luck.
Agree with all the other advice, but will add one thing in regard to your fatty liver; I developed a fatty liver 20 years back, but I don't drink alcohol, which puzzled my doctor. He did some investigation and new (at that time) research showed high sugar intake, particularly fructose, was a cause of fatty liver, and I had been eating large amounts of fruits and even using fructose (fruit sugar) as a substitute for cane sugar, as well as eating plenty of cakes, biscuits and sweets and was around a stone+ overweight. The doc told me fatty liver couldn't be reversed (which they thought was true then) - well that was like a red rag to a bull, so I set out to prove him wrong. I cut out the powdered fructose, reduced my fruit intake down to a more normal level (a small handful of blueberries instead of a whole punnet a day for instance) and cut out grapes altogether, because they are very high in sugars. Also cut down all the rubbish I'd been eating, nd managed to lose weight - I had been told, if I could keep the weight below 10 stone, that would help stop it getting worse. But in fact, a year later, no fatty liver...
I also have had trouble with my gall bladder for years, may have stones, and for that, I had reduced fat intake and was careful about fat consumption, still am, because eating a fatty meal or item like a doughnut (especially on an empty stomach) would trigger 12 hours of horrendous pain... I did this because I wasn't too keen on having the surgery to remove the whole gall bladder, which is what they do if you keep having problems.
In respect of blood pressure meds, I think most people take something which isn't perfect, has side effects, but when its a choice between stroke and some minor side effects, well... the trick is to find a drug that has the smallest number of side effects.
Hi bamboo89, I have been battling with high BP since my twenties then it was 140/80 . It is now an average of 150/90 I have taken certain drugs for quite some years which were fine till around eight years ago when I had raised uric acid levels causing gout which apparently is a side effect of long term use of the drug I was on. I have tried many BP drugs some of which have caused terrible side effects including worsening of my lung condition symptoms and I still have an above normal uric acid reading. Raised uric acid levels can cause a stroke too. To reduce both BP & uric acid can be done as I did by reducing certain foods, exercising ect. However when I had my knee replaced and a broken foot exercise became harder as it did during the pandemic. So I feel the GPs should be more tuned to how much a patient can do with other illness, plus age & disability . In some places Councils do leisure groups of walking to suit the less able. Even if you have a mtorised wheelchair you can join some of these walks to stay healthy. Nothing is a quick fix it has to be a lifestyle change. Hope this helps others.
That's the trouble with medicines - there's always a price,and I don't mean financial...they are an imperfect solution for most conditions, but do often extend the lives of people. For instance, I've been injecting myself with a blood thinning drug for over 20 years to stop me getting repeated deep vein blood clots caused by a genetic condition so I didn't die or lose a leg - the price has turned out to be osteoporosis. When my husband had high BP, he used to take high dose vitamin E and B complex vitamins daily - this routine did lower it by 10 points, but did not bring it to 'normal' levels - but it helped.
We have already met on this site recently as you kindly replied to my post.
I have high BP but resisted taking drugs for it for awhile as concerned about side effects. When my BP was regularly over 160/102 I thought I’d better succumb 😉
Anyway, I notice you mention that BP drugs worsened your lung condition, Do you mind me asking which one/ones did that to you? I was taking Ramipril and suspected it might be exacerbating my coughing so came off that which is apparently known to cause a cough (reassuring to know that it was diagnosed after I told the nurse that I apparently have early signs of COPD 🙃) Was then prescribed Candesartin and now suspect that could be doing the same as I have a dry cough in addition to my usual mucous cough. I looked at the side effects leaflet again and realised I’d missed that one of the possible side effects is respiratory infection. Surely that shouldn’t have been prescribed to someone with possible/probable COPD? Any advice please?
Sorry for delay in reply , busy week at hospital and GPs Debs4 . Your blood pressure is slightly higher than mine. Small weight loss can reduce it a little . Tablets have to be adjusted to suit individual patients need. There are two kinds of BP tablets and many new ones on the market, I am allergic to ACE inhibiters, and small doses in any drug is better than large. You need to speak with your GP about the drugs you take and the effects , or even your chemist can reveiw side effects. You are right about the effect of drugs maybe being the cause of worsening symptoms. Those that cause respiratory infection or inflammation should not be prescribed however DRS cannot possibly know all side effects of every drug or Pharmacists you need to bring it to their attention. I have just started Losartan which so far as no side effects but it is only small dose and the BP is much the same. Have an appointment on phone to discuss next week. Beware many blood pressure tablets can cause chest problems including other problems due to long term use. They also cause waterworks problems , kidney abnormalties ect ect hence the need for supervising the administration of drugs to control it. Hope some of this helps.
Hello, GeorgieBoy 2, well firstly I have had raised BP most of my live so stop stressing is the first step. I do not have a gallbladder it was removed by open surgery in the 1980s but everthing functions OK. Your Gp can help you control your cholestrol & BP but not sure how as I have similar problem to you and the hospital seems to think theres nothing they can do and discharge patient without even looking for a different option. Not to be defeated I am trying a herbal remedy there are lots on line. I have just had Doxazosin which made me very ill, affected waterworks, caused infection in my airways, increased my cough, total muscular ache ( which I don't need as I have to cope with arthritic pain anyway. Now they think I have nothing wrong because I mentioned the side effects of the Doxazosin. Have a think about your own health and problems and do what you think is best for you. See my reply to bamboo89 Best wishes for improving your bad experience at the hospital.
milk thistle very good for fatty liver,my mate was in hospital for drinking to much was told his liver was going he went yellow, they said they could do nothing,i got him on milk thistle he is still here 20 years later and still has a odd drink every day, now people scare you with heart attack/stroke i wonder if its gone up or down since bp drugs now the normal, i bet theres more falls in the elderley breaking hips etc, you cannot win lol.
What a terrible way to be treated but sad to say not uncommon. Can you do anything yourself to help with your many but related options? Yes, do some research you've already have some suggestions. Dr Sandra Cabot is very good when looking at fatty liver, gallstones, cholesterol, high blood pressure they all connect, her book on cholesterol is a life changer. I personally take magnesium, flax seed, berberine, omega 3, artichoke and milk thistle with good results. Do your research give it a try, I wish you all the best, don't be defeated, well done for trying.
I had in the early 90s ruptured appendix, gangrene, peritonitis since then cos of the taste of the drip I really don’t like the taste of salt. I don’t add salt to my food. Processed foods that I eat are peas, heinz bean, giant sweet corn, occasionally heinz soups
im not been rude but caling yourself a bp doctor is misleading if you are not a qualified doctor, anyone can call themeselves a doctor im a brain doctor but not qualified lol, so i thank you for advising people but are you or not qualified to call yourself a doctor of medicine,if you are i apologise if not well you are giving advice freely like the rest of us
well that told me everything and more, glad then you are on here for those that cannot or wont control there bp with lifestyle changes ie they have not the time to exercise, simple get up a hour early, they dont like to diet etc, and worse they believe everyone has got to be 120/80 or some impossible goal for most without swalloing a handfull of pills,
well at your age and mine the doctors always recomended 100 plus age and below 100 up to 20 years ago whats the point intrying to get a older person below 150/90 say, lowering wont stop them having heart attack.strokes but may cause falls,broken hips etc,even 170/99 say is not a medical emergency and mostly due to anxiety i woulth think. so if you are a anxios person trying to do bp is a waste of time,might as well through the machine away,like a spelling test at school.those that could spell sail it the poor spellers felt anxious knew they might get 1 out of 20,what did that achieve nothing,sioi think its better to have bp a bit higher as you age,120/80 for a over 70 i would not want or need.at 61 years of age mine was 160/90 perfect doc said, now at 75 next year no idea what it is only no im as fit as a fiddle
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