High blood pressure

Former Member · May 2005

When i recently had my tonsil operation the doctor was worried about my high blood pressure, was treble figures on both systolic and diastolic readings. they said it was possibly just down to being worried about the operation etc.. and advised me to go to my gp once i was over the after effects. so im going to the gp tonight, say i still have high blood pressure, whats the general procedure for treating this kind of thing. im a generally healthy person, excercise 3 times a week etc.. but i smoke and drink.

my dad also had problems with hypertension and eventually suffered a heart attack, so possibilities it runs in the family.

thanks for any responses.

Former Member · May 2005

My mum suffers from it, but they put her on tablets that normalise it, but she has to take those for life now.

I know when I had my tonsils out my blood pressure was sky high and they were on the verge of saying it might not be safe to give me the general anaesthetic. But then I went to the docs and had it checked and it was 116 over 72, although having regular readings with pill check ups mine fluctuates greatly.

Former Member · May 2005

Yeah they were quite worried about my pressure, they kept me there for like 6 hours longer than i should have been. i was worried myself so presume it might have been that, because i had no problems at the pre-op check.
i really dont wanna be given more pills, i really dont like taking em.

but hopefully it'll be fine when i go tonight, ive been at this doctors more times in this last 12-18 months than i have in my entire life, its a joke

Former Member · May 2005

Slight changes in your lifestyle and maybe some medication may decrease your hypertension.

Less fags and drink I am afraid, but it is good that you are going to the gym. Also if you are eating a meal, don't add any salt as increased salt consumption is linked to ^BP.

Medications - there are a huge number of different anti-hypertensive medications, from Beta-Blockers [ones that usually end in -olol, e.g. Atenolol etc], Calcium Channel blockers [ending in -ipine - Amlodipine], ACE inhibitors [end in -ipril e.g. ramipril] and a few more.

If medication is necessary, then your doc will probably star you on the lowest does possible and re-check your BP after a certain time. If it doesnt work he may increase it or change the medication.

I know it is hard for me to say, but relax!!

Not being cheeky, try to not think about the result, or worry what the result will show as this may cause your BP to be artificially high, this is also known as 'white coat syndrome'. [Although I have only met one GP that wore a white coat..:)]

Former Member · May 2005

Oh yeah they might well put you on a 24 hour blood pressure monitor as well before putting you on any tablets etc because they know a lot of peoples blood pressure is artificially high when they get it checked at the docs.

Former Member · May 2005

well im already working on cutting down on smoking and alcohol anyway so thats a bonus. and i dont like salt, so thats great.

ill try to be calm, shouldnt be a problem because i get on pretty well wth my doc! he's alright.

my father takes pills like those you mentioned, but he has to take loads. like 4 different ones. this is just since his quad-bypass thing tho, so hopefully i wont have to do anything like that. its probably cos ive seen what my dads been through that im worried.

Former Member · May 2005

koe_182 wrote:

well im already working on cutting down on smoking and alcohol anyway so thats a bonus. and i dont like salt, so thats great.

ill try to be calm, shouldnt be a problem because i get on pretty well wth my doc! he's alright.

my father takes pills like those you mentioned, but he has to take loads. like 4 different ones. this is just since his quad-bypass thing tho, so hopefully i wont have to do anything like that. its probably cos ive seen what my dads been through that im worried.

Worrying will only make matter worse.. arrive in plenty of time at the surgery - don't rush, take a paper or magazine to take your mind off it..

Most docs will take a few readings, in each arm to get an average, as they should take white coat syndrome into consideration.

Good luck...

Former Member · May 2005

koe_182 wrote:

my father takes pills like those you mentioned, but he has to take loads. like 4 different ones. this is just since his quad-bypass thing tho, so hopefully i wont have to do anything like that. its probably cos ive seen what my dads been through that im worried.

Thats different. my dad has those too, but thats heart disease, rather than just high blood pressure. People with heart disease have HBP but that doesnt mean all people with HBP get heart disease. You also have to take into account, that what might be really high for one person, is perfectly normal for another person. You cant just take one reading and make an accurate diagnosis. You have to take a few readings over time.
As Panthro said, improvign diet and moderate exercise is probably the best thing to do for your heart.

Former Member · May 2005

so i went, definately come down a lot, aparently it was 165/125 when i was recovering from my operation, which is supposed to be very high. down a lot now tho. gotta go back in a month due to family connections etc..

Former Member · May 2005

Aye it was a bit high - your diastolic was 125.. it really should be below 90.

Being nosey - what was it when you went tonight?

Former Member · May 2005

Meh.

Former Member · May 2005

Was that disgust at me or your excitable acknowledgement of a slightly high BP...?

Former Member · May 2005

Panthro wrote:

Was that disgust at me or your excitable acknowledgement of a slightly high BP...?

Well, I did correct your systolic to diastolic but then so did you, so my post was rather pointless. Meh.

I rarely get excited about hypertension these days.

Former Member · May 2005

Good to know

Former Member · May 2005

i have high blood pressure because of the tacrolimus tablets i have to take (anti rejection mediciation for my liver transplant) and i have to take 5mg of amplodipine every day.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/medmaster/a692044.html

Former Member · June 2005

well ive had another test recently and it was down. its at like 150/90 at the moment which i understand is quite high, gotta go back in a couple of weeks for it checking again before they consider putting me on medication for it.

Former Member · June 2005

The 'normal' BP is 120/80 for an adult...stress is the major factor in increasing it.Even if you are very relaxed with your GP, the thought of having your BP checked when you have been told it is previously high is enough to stress you and increase it unfortunately.As long as you are as relaxed as you can be though, there is nothing more you can do...heres hoping it will come down :thumb:

Former Member · June 2005

snapping_crocodile wrote:

The 'normal' BP is 120/80 for an adult...stress is the major factor in increasing it.Even if you are very relaxed with your GP, the thought of having your BP checked when you have been told it is previously high is enough to stress you and increase it unfortunately.As long as you are as relaxed as you can be though, there is nothing more you can do...heres hoping it will come down :thumb:

Although this is a relatively newish post - it is still, a month ago.

Former Member · June 2005

snapping_crocodile wrote:

The 'normal' BP is 120/80 for an adult...stress is the major factor in increasing it.Even if you are very relaxed with your GP, the thought of having your BP checked when you have been told it is previously high is enough to stress you and increase it unfortunately.As long as you are as relaxed as you can be though, there is nothing more you can do...heres hoping it will come down :thumb:

You say that, but what is normal for one person isnt necessarily normal for another. You have to take readings over a period of time to get an accurate picture of somebodys BP, and what their `normal` is.

Former Member · June 2005

well its a lot down from when i had my tonsil operation, was like mega high or something daft, im getting checked every 3 weeks tho at the moment, probably a good thing considering my family history

Former Member · June 2005

rainbow brite wrote:

You say that, but what is normal for one person isnt necessarily normal for another. You have to take readings over a period of time to get an accurate picture of somebodys BP, and what their `normal` is.

I understand that, but you still need a baseline 'normal' to compare a persons BP to. A persons average/'normal' BP over a period of time could be 190/100...but that does not mean it is medically 'normal', they would therefore be treated for high blood pressure and its effects. I'm a childrens nurse and we have to use normal BP, pulse, respiratory rates etc (dependant on a child's age) to help us form a picture of their medical condition...everyones 'normal' ranges are of course slightly different, but we need healthy normal ranges to compare these too.

Former Member · June 2005

i went for another check up last night and my blood pressure has gone back up to 180/90 they not sure whats going on, so now i have to have some blood tests and a ECG in a couple of weeks. they weighed me and measured me and all that, and im not massively overweight or anything. getting kind of worrying!

Former Member · June 2005

A nurse once explained to me when I should be really concerned about my BP.

Basically she compared it to a ship, with the first figure being the ship and the second being the anchor.

Basically she said the the ship can go up and down without causing a huge amount of worry. Ships tend not to sink just because the sea is rough. However, this is on the proviso that the anchor is be stable... If this moves then it represent greater danger.

Former Member · June 2005

i kinda see what you are saying man of kent, but im scared of ships...philosophical or not..hehe

i cant wait to get these proper tests done then maybe they will find something they can treat.

High blood pressure

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