High blood pressure

hologramsabc123

Hey everyone

So I've recently been told I have stage 1 high blood pressure. (140/90). I've always been 130/80 up until this year. I work a lot of hours and gained about 20 lbs in the last year which is a lot. My goal is to lose about 50 and lower my sodium intake as well as work out a lot more.

I refuse to take meds. Has anyone been able to lower their blood pressure naturally? My only worry is losing weight/on a path to a healthy life won't make a difference. There is no history of heart disease in my family besides my uncle dying from a heart attack (he was an alcoholic and heavy smoker) and my father had high blood pressure but he has it under control (also an alcoholic).

I have some anxiety over this and just needed some support/people who can relate.

Thanks!

okungbowa

I suggest keep off salt, loose weight and take your Blood pressure daily,if increasing take medication, you don't want to have a stroke

dragon_girl26

Yes. I've lowered my blood pressure through diet and exercise. In the past two months I went from 140/90 at my doctors visit in January to 134/86 at my visit a few weeks ago, and I dropped 10 lbs as well. It's still borderline, but it's making progress. My doctor is monitoring it since high blood pressure runs in my family. They're all on pills and I refuse to be.
Have you looked into the DASH diet as a possibile option?

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/dash-diet/art-20048456

BekahC1980

I used to have high blood pressure. Then I quit smoking started exercising and stopped adding salt to my food and I've been taken off my blood pressure meds. My typical v blood pressure is now 113/76

emdeesea

Do you take any other medications at all?

hologramsabc123

Wow!!! This is all very inspiring! I don't take any meds except birth control. Blood pressure meds have terrible side effects and because I am overweight I know this is a terrible cause along with stress.

Way to go everyone for lowering your blood pressure! I hope I can do the same. I have been following the dash diet somewhat yes:)

emdeesea

The birth control may be affecting your blood pressure. It affected mine. Mine dropped by about 10 pounds when I came off of it.

hologramsabc123

I heard that can be a factor. I've been on this pill for 15 years. I stopped it 6 years ago for a year because I had a temporary increase in my blood pressure and the docs made me stop the pill. It didn't do anything. Just meditation, working out and fixing terrible things going on in my life at the time did. I went back on the pill. I have endometriosis so it helps my periods feel less horrible.

rileysowner

Can you lower your blood pressure without medication? Yes sometimes. It really depends on what the cause is. Weight loss and exercise can help a great deal, at least it did for me, however, I am still on blood pressure medication as weight lose and exercise did not get rid of it. See what happens. Maybe you can get it managed that way with out meds.

Also, don't see meds as a failure. We have the wonderful privilege of living in a time where there are an abundance of meds available to manage high blood pressure, and as I said, not all high blood pressure will be completely manageable by diet and exercise only. There are genetic factors and other factors that play into this. Not being able to manage your blood pressure without medication is not failing as long as you have tried diet and exercise.

Finally, realize the issues with high blood pressure as having high blood pressure over time (barring extremely high blood pressure which is a difference situation). You have time to work on this so don't stress out, get eating at a calorie deficit logging here on Myfitnesspal. Get exercising, especially cardio. Get more active in general in lift, walking, taking stairs, biking, etc. All that will help. The advantage of logging your food is you can start to discover what is high sodium and try to figure out way to replace or modify them to reduce your overall sodium intake.

rankinsect

I went from about 140/90 to about 110/68 by nothing more than doing cardiovascular exercise and losing weight. Granted, I had a lot more than 50 lb to lose; I have about 40 lb *left* to lose after having already lost about 110.

For that cardio, I do 3x a week of HIIT on an exercise bike. I started doing other things but now do the 30/20/10 method, which in a nutshell is 3 sets of 5 reps, where each rep is 30 seconds of low intensity (30% or more of peak effort), 20 seconds of medium intensity (>60% max effort), and 10 seconds of high intensity (>90%). In between each of the three sets is a 2-minute low intensity active recovery, plus of course a warmup and cooldown at the beginning and end.

Salt is hit or miss. About 1 in 3 people with hypertension see a blood pressure drop when reducing sodium, the others don't. I recommend you log your sodium intake, log your blood pressure (buy an automatic cuff), and see if there is a correlation for you.

hologramsabc123

I definitely don't see meds as a failure it's more how they make me feel that scares me. Last time the docs gave them to me on one reading 6 years ago that was high (I was nervous and at the time my blood pressure was fine normally) and I was scared so I took them and I fell in a depression, couldn't sleep and was dizzy all the time. I'd rather have a stroke or heart attack honestly, than live my life feeling that way again. I'm super happy with my life now, overall feel great but this high blood pressure is stressing me out.

hologramsabc123

rankinsect wrote: »

I went from about 140/90 to about 110/68 by nothing more than doing cardiovascular exercise and losing weight. Granted, I had a lot more than 50 lb to lose; I have about 40 lb *left* to lose after having already lost about 110.

For that cardio, I do 3x a week of HIIT on an exercise bike. I started doing other things but now do the 30/20/10 method, which in a nutshell is 3 sets of 5 reps, where each rep is 30 seconds of low intensity (30% or more of peak effort), 20 seconds of medium intensity (>60% max effort), and 10 seconds of high intensity (>90%). In between each of the three sets is a 2-minute low intensity active recovery, plus of course a warmup and cooldown at the beginning and end.

Salt is hit or miss. About 1 in 3 people with hypertension see a blood pressure drop when reducing sodium, the others don't. I recommend you log your sodium intake, log your blood pressure (buy an automatic cuff), and see if there is a correlation for you.

That's amazing!!!!! Technically by BMI charts I should lose 80 lbs but I used to be 80lbs lighter and I was VERY skinny. It didn't go with my body type at all.

I do have my own blood pressure monitor and I check it at different times every day. Might be a bit much. I'm trying to check every other day now. So far it's very random ....145/96 - 135/84 etc. The average is about 140/90. But I trust going to my docs because I'm not sure I'm doing it properly.

I've been doing 30 min of low impact aerobics 4 times a week and meditating...I'm going to start biking again too.

Congrats on the weight loss!! This is inspiring.

navdeeprana

I went over from 160/100 to 120/80 and credit goes to weight loss and regular workout. But officially I am still over weight and need to loose atleast 40 pounds.

wannabesexymama

I just started on BP meds again after having issues with my insurance company but my doctor said if I lose weight and cut back on sodium intake I could go off of them. right now on meds I am running 110/78 it was running 130/125. I also have a history of heart disease in my family and I also have a genetic blood clotting disorder that makes me at very high risk for kidney failure but if they fail I am not a candidate for transplant so its now or never to get my body back.

hologramsabc123

Wow guys this is all very motivating. Its amazing what a lifestyle change can do. Wannabeesexy I think docs give meds out to patients with that history just to be on the safe side. Whatever works best for you!!!! Good luck with everything

rileysowner

hologramsabc123 wrote: »

I definitely don't see meds as a failure it's more how they make me feel that scares me. Last time the docs gave them to me on one reading 6 years ago that was high (I was nervous and at the time my blood pressure was fine normally) and I was scared so I took them and I fell in a depression, couldn't sleep and was dizzy all the time. I'd rather have a stroke or heart attack honestly, than live my life feeling that way again. I'm super happy with my life now, overall feel great but this high blood pressure is stressing me out.

Ok, that would be an issue for me. However, as I tell others, there are a huge number of high blood pressure medications, so there is no reason to be on a med that causes issues. I understand your issue with medication more now though.

Frankly, putting someone on HBP meds after only one high reading is sort of jumping the gun unless the blood pressure was very high. Usually it would be three consecutive high readings on different days before meds would be given assuming the numbers are not horribly high.

Hopefully exercise and losing weight will do it for you. I agree that sodium reduction only works for some people. It is worth a try though.

hekla90

hologramsabc123 wrote: »

Hey everyone

So I've recently been told I have stage 1 high blood pressure. (140/90). I've always been 130/80 up until this year. I work a lot of hours and gained about 20 lbs in the last year which is a lot. My goal is to lose about 50 and lower my sodium intake as well as work out a lot more.

I refuse to take meds. Has anyone been able to lower their blood pressure naturally? My only worry is losing weight/on a path to a healthy life won't make a difference. There is no history of heart disease in my family besides my uncle dying from a heart attack (he was an alcoholic and heavy smoker) and my father had high blood pressure but he has it under control (also an alcoholic).

I have some anxiety over this and just needed some support/people who can relate.

Thanks!

For what it's worth, until you can really commit to lifestyle changes, I wouldn't rule out medications, if it doesn't go down soon I'd suggest you reconsider. I work in an ICU and I have seen multiple youngish people (30s) that don't take their meds, don't change their lifestyle and end up with brain bleeds as their hypertension gets uncontrolled. Be careful with taking cold medications as well as they can raise your blood pressure significantly for a short time and we see that as a contributing factor pretty frequently.

Edit: and I just read your comment that you'd rather have a stroke or heart attack?! Are you being serious?! I see people with these every day and yikes, I've certainly never heard anyone say they want that to happen to them...

cwolfman13

hologramsabc123 wrote: »

I definitely don't see meds as a failure it's more how they make me feel that scares me. Last time the docs gave them to me on one reading 6 years ago that was high (I was nervous and at the time my blood pressure was fine normally) and I was scared so I took them and I fell in a depression, couldn't sleep and was dizzy all the time. I'd rather have a stroke or heart attack honestly, than live my life feeling that way again. I'm super happy with my life now, overall feel great but this high blood pressure is stressing me out.

There are a myriad of hypertension meds available so you should be able to find one or a combo that doesn't cause issues. I take meds for my hypertension and have no side effect whatsoever from them.

Getting your weight down may help...it may not. Eating well should also make a difference at least to some extent and regular exercise as well. I do all of this and my doses have been reduced, but I still have to take meds...it's a hereditary issue for me, and I'd much rather pop a couple of measly little pills everyday than stroke out or have a heart attack and possibly leave my wife and kids high and dry.

hologramsabc123

rileysowner wrote: »

hologramsabc123 wrote: »

I definitely don't see meds as a failure it's more how they make me feel that scares me. Last time the docs gave them to me on one reading 6 years ago that was high (I was nervous and at the time my blood pressure was fine normally) and I was scared so I took them and I fell in a depression, couldn't sleep and was dizzy all the time. I'd rather have a stroke or heart attack honestly, than live my life feeling that way again. I'm super happy with my life now, overall feel great but this high blood pressure is stressing me out.

Ok, that would be an issue for me. However, as I tell others, there are a huge number of high blood pressure medications, so there is no reason to be on a med that causes issues. I understand your issue with medication more now though.

Frankly, putting someone on HBP meds after only one high reading is sort of jumping the gun unless the blood pressure was very high. Usually it would be three consecutive high readings on different days before meds would be given assuming the numbers are not horribly high.

Hopefully exercise and losing weight will do it for you. I agree that sodium reduction only works for some people. It is worth a try though.

On top of that it was a walk in clinic. I had an EKG a month later and the docs said I was in perfect health and my blood pressure was down because I was taking anti anxiety meds. I was so stressed out it raised my blood pressure and the docs didn't listen to that.

The same thing is happening now. I work 60-70 hours a week and run a business so I have a lot of stress. I am learning to cope better with it with lots of exercise and meditation.

hekla90 wrote: »

hologramsabc123 wrote: »

Hey everyone

So I've recently been told I have stage 1 high blood pressure. (140/90). I've always been 130/80 up until this year. I work a lot of hours and gained about 20 lbs in the last year which is a lot. My goal is to lose about 50 and lower my sodium intake as well as work out a lot more.

I refuse to take meds. Has anyone been able to lower their blood pressure naturally? My only worry is losing weight/on a path to a healthy life won't make a difference. There is no history of heart disease in my family besides my uncle dying from a heart attack (he was an alcoholic and heavy smoker) and my father had high blood pressure but he has it under control (also an alcoholic).

I have some anxiety over this and just needed some support/people who can relate.

Thanks!

For what it's worth, until you can really commit to lifestyle changes, I wouldn't rule out medications, if it doesn't go down soon I'd suggest you reconsider. I work in an ICU and I have seen multiple youngish people (30s) that don't take their meds, don't change their lifestyle and end up with brain bleeds as their hypertension gets uncontrolled. Be careful with taking cold medications as well as they can raise your blood pressure significantly for a short time and we see that as a contributing factor pretty frequently.

Edit: and I just read your comment that you'd rather have a stroke or heart attack?! Are you being serious?! I see people with these every day and yikes, I've certainly never heard anyone say they want that to happen to them...

I've already committed:) I've lost 140 lbs before by simply eating right and exercising. I actually gained 50 back WITH the blood pressure meds, anti anxiety and anti depressants I was prescribed for my high blood pressure and stress! I got off all those meds and the docs kept an eye on me realizing I was misdiagnosed and simply going through a tough time in my life.

I am in a much more stable happy place now so it makes it easier to cope with this I just was directed from my physician to work less and exercise / meditate. We will monitor and see what happens. So definitely those young people not making any changes is quite scary.

cwolfman13 wrote: »

hologramsabc123 wrote: »

I definitely don't see meds as a failure it's more how they make me feel that scares me. Last time the docs gave them to me on one reading 6 years ago that was high (I was nervous and at the time my blood pressure was fine normally) and I was scared so I took them and I fell in a depression, couldn't sleep and was dizzy all the time. I'd rather have a stroke or heart attack honestly, than live my life feeling that way again. I'm super happy with my life now, overall feel great but this high blood pressure is stressing me out.

There are a myriad of hypertension meds available so you should be able to find one or a combo that doesn't cause issues. I take meds for my hypertension and have no side effect whatsoever from them.

Getting your weight down may help...it may not. Eating well should also make a difference at least to some extent and regular exercise as well. I do all of this and my doses have been reduced, but I still have to take meds...it's a hereditary issue for me, and I'd much rather pop a couple of measly little pills everyday than stroke out or have a heart attack and possibly leave my wife and kids high and dry.

Well, if it comes to me taking meds I sure hope I end up like you and have no side effects. I was kidding about wanting a stroke or heart attack but my point was - why live a life feeling depressed, sick, dizzy, scared caused by meds when you can try to live life naturally. What meds are you taking? They gave me beta blockers and a med that made me pee non stop...I was so weak and dehydrated and couldn't sleep for 15 days straight.

Sometimes whether healthy or not blood pressure is high but it's incredibly rare to be high if you are a healthy person at a normal weight.

JeromeBarry1

If counting calories, keeping sodium <1500, exercising, and supplementing with magnesium and potassium is too unnatural for you then I got nuthin but 116/75. My 12mg dose of prescription Lisinopril does half the work and the first sentence does the rest.

hologramsabc123

JeromeBarry1 wrote: »

If counting calories, keeping sodium <1500, exercising, and supplementing with magnesium and potassium is too unnatural for you then I got nuthin but 116/75. My 12mg dose of prescription Lisinopril does half the work and the first sentence does the rest.

That's awesome! I'm hoping I can do all that without meds as high blood pressure doesn't run in my family and I've only had high blood pressure a few months.

itsbasschick

i lowered my bp from stage to nice and low through diet and exercise - and then put the weight back on, along with the bp. working on getting it back down again now, and so far, so good. lowering sodium didn't make much difference, but i'm not a heavy sodium user so it's usually below 2000.

hologramsabc123

itsbasschick wrote: »

i lowered my bp from stage to nice and low through diet and exercise - and then put the weight back on, along with the bp. working on getting it back down again now, and so far, so good. lowering sodium didn't make much difference, but i'm not a heavy sodium user so it's usually below 2000.

That's incredible! Keep it up. We always fall off but we can get back on!!!!

momof4girls48

I had high blood pressure with my first pregnancy and 2-3 cloves of garlic in soup or garlic bread or 2 garlic pills helped a lot. Exercise it great for it, also. If you say you do not have time go to YOUTUBE and look for POPSUGAR 10 minute workouts. I love these and so do my teen girls.

positivepowers

hekla90 wrote: »

hologramsabc123 wrote: »

Hey everyone

So I've recently been told I have stage 1 high blood pressure. (140/90). I've always been 130/80 up until this year. I work a lot of hours and gained about 20 lbs in the last year which is a lot. My goal is to lose about 50 and lower my sodium intake as well as work out a lot more.

I refuse to take meds. Has anyone been able to lower their blood pressure naturally? My only worry is losing weight/on a path to a healthy life won't make a difference. There is no history of heart disease in my family besides my uncle dying from a heart attack (he was an alcoholic and heavy smoker) and my father had high blood pressure but he has it under control (also an alcoholic).

I have some anxiety over this and just needed some support/people who can relate.

Thanks!

For what it's worth, until you can really commit to lifestyle changes, I wouldn't rule out medications, if it doesn't go down soon I'd suggest you reconsider. I work in an ICU and I have seen multiple youngish people (30s) that don't take their meds, don't change their lifestyle and end up with brain bleeds as their hypertension gets uncontrolled. Be careful with taking cold medications as well as they can raise your blood pressure significantly for a short time and we see that as a contributing factor pretty frequently.

Edit: and I just read your comment that you'd rather have a stroke or heart attack?! Are you being serious?! I see people with these every day and yikes, I've certainly never heard anyone say they want that to happen to them...

I have to agree with hekla90. I am a nurse and believe me, you would not rather have a stroke or heart attack. Imagine not being able to speak, understand your loved ones, walk, feed yourself or wipe your own butt ever again. Pull up your big girl panties while you still can and take the meds until/unless your doctor tells you otherwise.

amusedmonkey

Yes, I lowered my blood pressure through weight loss alone no medications (except for hibiscus tea) from 150/100 to 110/75, but I've lost a lot of weight and quit smoking so your results may be different. I did not have to lower sodium as my blood pressure is not salt sensitive.

hologramsabc123

The doc has not prescribed me meds yet. I am seeing him on Wednesday. Based on my results however I don't think he is going to jump to prescribing me meds right away considering my history. I am borderline right now. I don't think meds are always the answer to everything. I think learning to change your life first is better - and if things don't work out at the very worst take the meds.

And considering the percentage of people responding to this post having lowered their blood pressure naturally is higher ,compared to those who needed meds - well there is my answer.

Amusedmonk I am going to try hibiscus tea. Ive heard a lot about it. How do you know whether or not your blood pressure is not salt sensitive? Again - I haven't been given the official diagnosis yet - saw my doc over a month ago last and it read 130/90 at the time. Been monitoring it since and its gone from 130-140/85-90. So we will see what my doc says this week.

amusedmonkey

hologramsabc123 wrote: »

The doc has not prescribed me meds yet. I am seeing him on Wednesday. Based on my results however I don't think he is going to jump to prescribing me meds right away considering my history. I am borderline right now. I don't think meds are always the answer to everything. I think learning to change your life first is better - and if things don't work out at the very worst take the meds.

And considering the percentage of people responding to this post having lowered their blood pressure naturally is higher ,compared to those who needed meds - well there is my answer.

Amusedmonk I am going to try hibiscus tea. Ive heard a lot about it. How do you know whether or not your blood pressure is not salt sensitive? Again - I haven't been given the official diagnosis yet - saw my doc over a month ago last and it read 130/90 at the time. Been monitoring it since and its gone from 130-140/85-90. So we will see what my doc says this week.

Because throughout my quest to lower my blood pressure I went with the most common thing people do, considerably lowered my sodium. There was zero change after 2 months. The doctor told me some people are not sensitive to salt and that it's likely the case for me. Went back to my regular sodium intake, no change, so it was confirmed.

My doctor is the kind that would first ask if I have what it takes to change a few things before prescribing meds if the numbers are not too serious and if improvement can be achieved quickly. So he did not put me on any medication for blood pressure or pre diabetes since I was morbidly obese and losing weight would have likely improved both (and it did). He told me to drink 2-3 cups of hibiscus tea a day, and since we have a hibiscus tree, it was easy (and tasty), so I did just that.

I can't tell you if the hibiscus had any effect on my blood pressure, as my weight was dropping quickly and wasn't constant for an accurate comparison.

I also considerably increased my activity level, mainly the cardio type. I walk more than I did before and I took up running. The change in my blood pressure after 6 weeks of running exceeded my doctor's and my expectations.

Again, your results may vary considerably because I was in the super obese category (300+ pounds) and my issues were most likely caused by my obesity.

jgnatca

I was on high blood pressure meds for a decade before significant weight loss brought it down enough to stop needing meds. Exercise reduced my heart rate but did nit significantly change my blood pressure.

I suggest testing your blood pressure yourself weekly to start understanding your highs and lows. Blood pressure swings all day.

cgvet37

I never had high blood pressure until my late 30's. I lost weight and was taken off of my medication. I do not eat a low sodium diet either.

Queenmunchy

I was just put on meds last week from a sudden and dramatic spike from low/normal to extremely high blood pressure in the past six months. It is very hereditary, but I also have ridiculously high anxiety.

I'm a "normal" BMI and I LOVE salt and alcohol, hardly drink liquids and I'm inconsistent with my workouts. I decided to stop drinking, cut down my salt, make a conscious effort to drink at least a few cups of water during the day/evening, increase my workouts to something sustainable, and get involved in some kind of meditation or yoga to manage my stress.

I'd love to not be on meds, but I'm taking them now along with making the above life changes that I hope will get me off of them and keep me off of them. I just don't want to take the risk of having a stroke or heart attack in the meantime.