Newbie with High blood pressure

[Moneylover]

Hello, have recently discovered that I have high BP at a five yearly NHS health check a month ago.. Was prescribed 2.5 dose Felodopine ( as am 76 it is apparently best to start low). Last time I was checked 6 years ago I was 120/80 but was 145/95 at this last check. Over a week of checking my blood pressure (3 weeks after starting medication) I have averaged out at 143/90 in the morning and 177/100 at night just before taking the Felodopine ( was told to take at night or morning as preferred). I can only presume dose of Felodopine too low to have much if any effect on my BP.

I am lucky to have always been healthy and no meds.

Female, weight 8 and a half stone, no family history of high blood pressure, very healthy diet with no processed foods, no salt in cooking etc. walk the dog twice a day and use an exercise bike twice a week. Low cholesterol readings. So high blood pressure came as bit of a shock as thought I had swerved that one.

So I can’t see any way to mitigate the situation ( suggestions welcome!) and will probably have to accept that I shall be on blood pressure medication for the rest of my life and its just ‘one of those things’.

Am going to see the doctor next week as pharmacist has re referred me. Assume there are no particular checks GP should do ? Any questions I should ask? I have looked at NICE guidelines but there clearly there is no ‘one size fits all’. Should I expect to just have an increase in dose to 5mg Felodopine or a different drug prescribed?

Obviously I would like my blood pressure to stabilise at around 140/90 day and night if possible. I assume the higher reading in the evening is a combination of it being the end of the day and the medication wearing off.

I will look at the Blood Pressure UK website that several have mentioned. Many thanks in advance for any replies.

[Hidden]

Hi! I am not sure that I am the right person to reply, but since this forum is "slowly running" I will try to make it more lively.

If you look at the list of chronic disease, where the cause is unknown, you will see that high BP is often quoted as one of the causes or, at least, one of "contributing factors". But the question remains, why the BP goes up!? The explanations are mostly naive, like too much salt, etc. Never and nowhere I found the explanation that the problem might be disturbed regulation of blood circulation (in prolonged spine cord, there are a number of ganglia, each in charge of regulating one of the basic functions of the body - breathing, gut motility, everything that goes automatically in the body), leading to spikes of BP.

With ageing, the first sign of disturbed regulation is very noticeable - loosing clear sight at close distance. I started with it at the age of about 45. At the same time, my BP went from 120/80 to increased values, but then, I did not realize the coincidence. Now, after 25 years, I am totally aware that increased BP is only one of the consequences of disturbed regulation and is actually not causing other health problems, which come quite independently - cardiac arrhythmia (poor regulation of the HR), hyper- or hypothyroid functions, poor regulation of stomach acid secretion, waves of heat - poorer body temperature regulation etc. Have been an engineer all my life, so understand the problems of disturbed automatic regulation better than MDs, lol!

Have lived these past 25 years without any BP medication (my body, my right to choose). My BP spikes now to 180/120, but I have absolutely no symptoms and function well. The best friend of mine started with medication at the age of 45 and has got to the point to be drug addict - she can not function well without medication. Not giving advise to anyone to do the same, just reporting about the result of 25 years long experiment...

Regards! P.

[Reader7 in reply to Hidden]

Really? No concern about increased risk of stroke, dementia, heart attack, loss of sight? Do you know any stroke victims? My HBP is hereditary, and despite following all the guidelines to lower BP naturally, I still take several medications to control it. I have no side effects, I'm very active, and feel quite well at 75. What does your health care provider say?

[Hidden in reply to Reader7]

Worth reading and having in mind:

forbes.com/sites/brucelee/2...

About 7-10 years ago, a medication for HBP was taken from the market because of proven connection with cancer. All I remember, is that it was used for over 30 years. Do not remember the name, maybe you can still find it in the Net. So, never trust them, they will sell you own mother, just to make the money. I also did not take the jabs, none of them. If you have, just sit and wait... What you consider healthcare, has become something else, unfortunately.

[cimarosa]

try watching this: it might give you some reassurance. Also it can sometimes be necessary to try different medications before you find the right one. youtu.be/QXE3SO05hxw(Not working as expected?) good luck.

[Robertleslie in reply to cimarosa]

Exactly what the RN at the hospital told me. In so many words that's what she was saying to me. And I hear it again. I am 70, that seems old but I am in excellent health, take very few medications, never smoked, no diabetes, normal weight and so on. And all of a sudden one day my blood pressure started spiking. I was terrified. At the end of the evening in the ER the nurse said numbers don't matter.

[Happyrosie]

don’t want to worry anyone but the life assurance industry has a long and large database. This shows that raised blood pressure is a contributing factor in early deaths.

[Moneylover]

well, interesting replies! Thank you.

I don’t doubt the life assurance databases. And acccept risk of stroke, heart attack etc so I will take medication. Can I re- iterate, are there any specific questions I should ask GP and any tests he should do?

I haven’t watched the little video yet, but I will

Most annoying thing is that if you don’t fit into any of the usual categories of overweight, smoking etc there isn’t any way to help yourself as cause of the hypertension unknown

Thanks

[monadepot]

had a brief spike...220/110...in Oct 22...ER put me on Amlodipine ..5 mg for 21 days...first time in my life on medication !!!...being a natural anti medication guy...I cut the tablets to half...and then after 2 weeks cut them off. completely..

It has been almost 2 months...I restarted my daily walking, cycling routine..dropped from 155 lbs to 150...use minimal salt, one cup of coffee per day, fair amount of water during the day...1-2 drinks of wine or beer daily max...

I am 79....my BP has stabilised to 130/78 average.... rarely it has gone to 145/85..but only for a brief time period..usually when I have woken up in the morning...

reinforcing my karmic belief as often as I can on a daily basis..

EAT GOOD FOODS, THINK GOOD THOUGHTS

Best wishes to you good people on your journeys.....