53, high blood pressure

[tmitchell]

Curious about your experiences around high blood pressure. I'm only 53 and otherwise in very good health, but last week my Dr started treating me for hypertension.

There is some family history on my mom's side, but generally they all went on medication in their late 60s or 70s.

I had Covid last March and got over it pretty quickly ("mild" symptoms but definitely not your average flu!), but have never felt quite right since. I've occasionally had a pounding heart and the feeling of high blood pressure. I thought it was due to stress and/or drinking too much booze here & there during lockdown etc. I see a cognitive therapist and have struggled with anxiety as well, so I'm fairly accustomed to my patterns around that. This just feels different.

My job HAS been incredibly stressful over the past year, so maybe it's just the wake up call I need to finally leave, but I can't help thinking this is very odd--again, given my age.

Thoughts & experiences?

 

[Jerry1]

I can only say what worked for me. I was in pretty good physical shape but very rough mental shape. High stress, high blood pressure, anxiety. . . I was on a couple of meds but nothing was working. Long story short, went to a holistic doctor and I’m off all meds and doing much better. Main issues were poor diet and thyroid issues. Main cure, proper diet and supplements. I know many don’t believe or buy into the holistic thing, but I was on my last hope and that’s why I went. I worked for me. YMMV.

 

[Teacher Terry]

On my mom’s side of the family many get it in early 30’s despite a healthy lifestyle, weight, diet, etc. For some people it’s due to lifestyle and stress. You will find out which it is once you retire.

 

[UnrealizedPotential]

I can tell you I have had high BP for about 7 or 8 years now and I am age 51, but otherwise healthy. Both sides of my family have it and I accept it for what it is.

 

[corn18]

Timely post for me. I'm 54. Male. I have always had good blood pressure 120/80 without deviation. Had a heart attack in 2015 from coronary artery disease. Got 4 shiny stints (85% blockage in the big 3 and 100% in a smaller one). Also went on statins. BP still 120/80. In good shape. Fast forward to 2020 and BP still 120/80. And stress was always high: Navy fighter pilot, test pilot then megacorp sales.

Then I started feeling weird about 2 months ago. Tingly face. Mentally off. So I used my wife's BP thingy and it said 155/100. I asked her if that was bad. She said yes. Continued to monitor it and it stayed there. Saw the doc. Went on 20mg Lisinoprel. Still high. I'm now on 40mg Lisinoprel (max) and it's starting to come down, but still sitting @ 135/85. And I am dizzy all the time from the Lisinoprel.

So I think there is more to this adventure. I think we need to find the root cause of why it suddenly went from always good to bad. I am adopted, so I don't know my family history.

I'll keep you posted here on where this goes if you'll do the same. High BP sucks.

 

[MRG]

I've been on/off BP meds for many years, mostly on due to work and life choices.

I started on BP meds in my 30s after working for Megacorp 8 years and gaining 30 pounds. Poor sleep habits, excessive alcohol, weight gain, caffeine, nicotine and a desire to advance my career were partly to blame. Excessive beta blockers had my heart rate in the 30s for a year and later tachycardia came to visit.

My PCP guaranteed if I lost weight the tachycardia would disappear, 65 pounds later and he was right. He also suggested most of my multiple other issues would disappear and they did. A little exercise is helpful too. I was off of BP meds for about a year when we moved to 7500' and I had BP issues. After a year on BP meds a new PCP suggested a phlebotomy due to elevated red blood cell counts and I'm almost off again. Oddly the phlebotomy assisted deep rhythmic breathing in being a good response for anxiety.

Good luck on finding a alternatives.

 

[Car-Guy]

Mid 50's is when I was put on BP meds too.... It never really dropped my BP much (if any) but it seems to have held it steady... My new doc tell me he's happy where it's at (for my age/etc).....

 

[Nemo2]

My BP has always been higher than 'expected', (genetic, I presume); in my mid thirties, running 70 miles a week, and marathon training, (which entailed losing weight that didn't need to be lost), age 40...still elevated.

In some circumstances one can only do so much while leaving the rest to fate.

 

[pacergal]

Hypertension runs in our family, GrandF died at age 42 from heart attack.
I have been on meds for a few years. 2 siblings also with it. Nephew has had high normal BP ever since he was a child, started meds in his 20's or 30's.
Things that help are exercise, heart healthy diet (think DASH or Mediterranean--less fats)
Sometimes that doesn't even help if it's genetic.
Most docs will start with a diuretic or diuretic-mix med.
Sometimes it's a trial and error to find the right one for you. I was on one med for about 5 years, stopped working as well, so now trying a different one.

You don't want to mess with high blood pressure--too much stress not only on your heart, but your kidneys as well.

 

[braumeister]

My BP has always been higher than 'expected', (genetic, I presume)

Same here. Of course, there is also the issue of how you define it.
When I was younger, hypertension was diagnosed when your systolic was over 140. In recent times they have defined it down to where anything over 120 is cause for concern. That's a pretty big difference.

Mine is in the 140s, and I have tried the usual drugs at my doctor's insistence, but then I always got the "postural hypotension" issue -- feeling lightheaded whenever I stood up suddenly. That was unacceptable to me, and I decided to stop the drugs. Felt fine ever since, although my doc would much prefer to put me back on them. I'm inclined to think that a somewhat higher BP is actually "normal" for some of us. But don't quote me on that!

 

[Nemo2]

I'm inclined to think that a somewhat higher BP is actually "normal" for some of us.

Mine always/generally hovers around 'borderline', and I take a daily mild diuretic.....which may, or may not, be of some help in controlling it.

 

[6miths]

My PCP guaranteed if I lost weight the tachycardia would disappear, 65 pounds later and he was right. He also suggested most of my multiple other issues would disappear and they did. A little exercise is helpful too. I was off of BP meds for about a year when we moved to 7500' and I had BP issues. After a year on BP meds a new PCP suggested a phlebotomy due to elevated red blood cell counts and I'm almost off again. Oddly the phlebotomy assisted deep rhythmic breathing in being a good response for anxiety.

That's really interesting. Higher hemoglobin is an adaptation to living at higher altitude. And this results in 'thicker' blood which is more viscous and needs higher pressure to push through the 'pipes'. I could see that leeches (sorry phlebotomy ) could be a temporary fix. Is the plan to repeat this on an ongoing basis? Does the PCP have alot of experience with this practice. Thanks for piquing my curiosity! Hope all goes well.

 

[wompo]

I take my BP at home and it is almost always about 120/70 or just under that like 115/60 somewhere in there. my PCP always gets about 140/90 which she is not happy about. I have had BP at other doctors and they are usually about what I get at home. So I did some experiments at home and I can change my BP readings easily by adjusting things just slightly or by doing things and then immediately taking BP. Moving position of arm can change BP a lot. I think my BP is high a PCP because I always have to wait longer than I like to go in and then they immediately take BP after weight. I went to cardiologist and they got 112/60 so I believe my at home numbers.

 

[braumeister]

I can change my BP readings easily by adjusting things just slightly or by doing things and then immediately taking BP. Moving position of arm can change BP a lot.

I've mentioned this before, but it seems that the BP reading is taken incorrectly at a huge number of medical practices. There really is a standard, but the nurses are overworked and just want to get through the routine as quickly as they can. I've complained about this to several doctors when I finally got in to see them, and their normal response is to roll their eyes and say there's nothing they can do about it. They try to educate the staff about such things, but it goes in one ear and out the other.

How to Take A Blood Pressure

When you're doing it at home, it's also recommended to take it three times and average the readings.

 

[explanade]

Timely post for me. I'm 54. Male. I have always had good blood pressure 120/80 without deviation. Had a heart attack in 2015 from coronary artery disease. Got 4 shiny stints (85% blockage in the big 3 and 100% in a smaller one). Also went on statins. BP still 120/80. In good shape. Fast forward to 2020 and BP still 120/80. And stress was always high: Navy fighter pilot, test pilot then megacorp sales.

Then I started feeling weird about 2 months ago. Tingly face. Mentally off. So I used my wife's BP thingy and it said 155/100. I asked her if that was bad. She said yes. Continued to monitor it and it stayed there. Saw the doc. Went on 20mg Lisinoprel. Still high. I'm now on 40mg Lisinoprel (max) and it's starting to come down, but still sitting @ 135/85. And I am dizzy all the time from the Lisinoprel.

So I think there is more to this adventure. I think we need to find the root cause of why it suddenly went from always good to bad. I am adopted, so I don't know my family history.

I'll keep you posted here on where this goes if you'll do the same. High BP sucks.

I got high readings at about the same age.

Lisinopril was the first medication my doctor prescribed. It lowered my numbers but not really low. I noticed later that I was coughing a lot so I looked up side effects.

Then I told my doctor who immediately prescribed something else.

Now taking Losartan and Hydrochlorothiazide. My Omron BP monitor, which has bluetooth and syncs with an app, mostly shows my readings as "Hypertension Stage 1.

I get some readings classified as Hypertension Stage 2 and a few as Normal.

I show these readings whenever I see my doctor. He hasn't changed my medication or dose but emphasizes losing some weight, keeping active.

Yeah if I get exercise, then take the BP, the readings are lower. Especially after consecutive days of exercise the readings go even lower.

 

[Mark1]

When I was in my early 40s my Doctor put me on High Blood Pressure medication as my readings were routinely slightly high. I didn't particularly like the idea that I was going to be on medication for the rest of the my life, so I started exercising more and eating less. I ended up losing about 30 pounds of weight (BMI went from ~28 down to around 23). As a result of my life style changes I haven't been on BP medications now for ~ 18 years.

"In most patients, excess weight and a sedentary lifestyle appear to play a major role in causing hypertension". I have seen numbers quoted in a Medical Physiology Textbook that "excess weight likely accounts for 65-75% of the risk of developing primary hypertension".

 

[Go-NoGo]

I've mentioned this before, but it seems that the BP reading is taken incorrectly at a huge number of medical practices. There really is a standard, but the nurses are overworked and just want to get through the routine as quickly as they can. I've complained about this to several doctors when I finally got in to see them, and their normal response is to roll their eyes and say there's nothing they can do about it. They try to educate the staff about such things, but it goes in one ear and out the other.

How to Take A Blood Pressure

When you're doing it at home, it's also recommended to take it three times and average the readings.

All good suggestions.

One other factor might be that your BP machine is not as accurate as the one in the Doctor's office. I take my monitor with me to the office and measure my BP there immediately after the nurse does, essentially using my personal device to calibrate against the more accurate one in the Doctor's office.

 

[6miths]

I've mentioned this before, but it seems that the BP reading is taken incorrectly at a huge number of medical practices. There really is a standard, but the nurses are overworked and just want to get through the routine as quickly as they can. I've complained about this to several doctors when I finally got in to see them, and their normal response is to roll their eyes and say there's nothing they can do about it. They try to educate the staff about such things, but it goes in one ear and out the other.

How to Take A Blood Pressure

When you're doing it at home, it's also recommended to take it three times and average the readings.

IMHO, the reason most health care providers are not following the recommendations are two-fold. One is time. They don't have tons of it. The second is that it isn't routinely necessary.

Most of the things that are recommended are to decrease the chance of a false-positive high BP. Most providers know that if they take someone's BP the minute they come in the door and it is normal then the person does in fact have a normal BP. If on the other hand, their BP is elevated it is time to let them relax and ask them about recent espressos, smoking, fight with the parking attendant, white-coat hypertension, etc and then retake the BP in a manner more consistent with the recommendations.

 

[garyt]

I can only say what worked for me. I was in pretty good physical shape but very rough mental shape. High stress, high blood pressure, anxiety. . . I was on a couple of meds but nothing was working. Long story short, went to a holistic doctor and I’m off all meds and doing much better. Main issues were poor diet and thyroid issues. Main cure, proper diet and supplements. I know many don’t believe or buy into the holistic thing, but I was on my last hope and that’s why I went. I worked for me. YMMV.

What supplements are you using? I've tried niacin, garlic, turmeric and few others I can't recall without any change.

 

[MRG]

That's really interesting. Higher hemoglobin is an adaptation to living at higher altitude. And this results in 'thicker' blood which is more viscous and needs higher pressure to push through the 'pipes'. I could see that leeches (sorry phlebotomy [emoji23]) could be a temporary fix. Is the plan to repeat this on an ongoing basis? Does the PCP have alot of experience with this practice. Thanks for piquing my curiosity! Hope all goes well.

+1

Exactly, she's a PCP in a small town with limited specialists around her. We live at ~7500' so she deals with altitude issues regularly.

It was an interesting first time meeting her and discussing the benefits of phlebotomy. Actually she didn't really give me any benefits other than reducing my hemoglobin and hemocrit but asked me to report any unusual changes. The next morning was amazing, my breathing was slower, more productive and wow, deep rhythmic breathing was better than benzos! She didn't seem to be surprised.

So she's monitoring other numbers(iron and ?) but the plan is roughly every 12 weeks to retest and possibly repeat a phlebotomy.

 

[Rex]

I've been on blood pressure medicine....same one..Losartan....since I was 40.....56 now.

No worries....It works.....Tried to go off it a few times and that failed. I monitor my pressure and it at or just below "normal".

Be glad you dodged the pills until 53. And be glad the pill is available.

 

[Dash man]

I had been on Losartin and amlodipine for years beginning around age 50. I lost some weight and was reduced to just the losartin for a while. Then just before COVID hit my blood pressure shot up into stroke territory at around 200/105, and my kidney labs were way out of whack.
My PCP sent me to a nephrologist who started trying some different medications. We finally nailed a cocktail of four medications to get me down to an average of 115/70 and a heart rate of just over 60. It took about six months of trial and error to find the right mix, but things are steady now.

 

[6miths]

That's really interesting. Higher hemoglobin is an adaptation to living at higher altitude. And this results in 'thicker' blood which is more viscous and needs higher pressure to push through the 'pipes'. I could see that leeches (sorry phlebotomy ) could be a temporary fix. Is the plan to repeat this on an ongoing basis? Does the PCP have alot of experience with this practice. Thanks for piquing my curiosity! Hope all goes well.

+1

Exactly, she's a PCP in a small town with limited specialists around her. We live at ~7500' so she deals with altitude issues regularly.

It was an interesting first time meeting her and discussing the benefits of phlebotomy. Actually she didn't really give me any benefits other than reducing my hemoglobin and hemocrit but asked me to report any unusual changes. The next morning was amazing, my breathing was slower, more productive and wow, deep rhythmic breathing was better than benzos! She didn't seem to be surprised.

So she's monitoring other numbers(iron and ?) but the plan is roughly every 12 weeks to retest and possibly repeat a phlebotomy.

Interesting. I looked at a few papers. Seems phlebotomy has been tried for Chronic Mountain Sickness (CMS) with some short term success. The problem of course is that hemoglobin will return to previous level over the course of a few weeks. Unless one develops iron deficiency which would introduce a new set of issues. It looked like the only real solution for the small group of individuals who developed CMS (apparently less than 5%) was to move and live at lower altitude. Not always practical of course. Athlete-level exercise seemed to be somewhat beneficial in preventing CMS. I'm not suggesting that you have CMS but it was interesting to learn a bit about.

 

[tmitchell]

I've been on blood pressure medicine....same one..Losartan....since I was 40.....56 now.

No worries....It works.....Tried to go off it a few times and that failed. I monitor my pressure and it at or just below "normal".

Be glad you dodged the pills until 53. And be glad the pill is available.

Yeah, I guess I'm "glad" but I don't love having to take pills. Looks like they're working though, as the past two days has me down to normal.

It's interesting to see how many of you are dealing with HBP too. Maybe once I leave my stressful job I can try dropping the drugs. Or not. We'll see.

Thanks for chiming in everyone.

 

[Marathoner]

My friend recommended the book "How Not to Die" which is written by a doctor and has chapters summarizing scientific studies that have been done about how diet can impact different health conditions, including a chapter on hypertension. You can probably get it from your library or find summaries online.

I am not going to the extreme of the book, but he recommended certain foods to try to fit into your diet daily for overall good health (and the chapters specify which foods are particularly helpful for which conditions). Because of this book, I have made an attempt to include certain foods in my diet every day (including flax seeds, chia seeds, greens, cruciferous vegetables, berries, cinnamon, and one brazil nut a week).

My boyfriend has high blood pressure, and frequently tests at home. He notices that when he is diligent about including these items in his diet, he notices an improvement, and when he slacks off, he can notice that as well.