Fear causing Hypertension?

[ScaredOfDisease]

Hello. I had a question.

I was at the Dr. last week. I was really nervous due to the reason I was there, and I ended up having a BP reading of 150/90.

I have had like 130/80 and 140/80 results there as well.

I monitor it at home regularly. If I take it as soon as I sit down, its usually about 125/75 or 130/75. But if I sit for a few minutes and relax, its usually around 117/75. And this is normal. When I sit and relax for a bit, it always falls below 120/80. Usually between around 111/75 and 118/75.

Is this normal to get such high readings at the Dr? Or immediately after sitting down?

Thanks.

[kenkeith]

I can say it is normal, but it is not unusual to have a higher bp than under a relaxed state of mind.
A single elevated blood pressure reading in the doctor's office can be misleading because the elevation may be only temporary. Presumably, such an elevation is caused by the patient's anxiety that is related to the stress of the examination. In fact, the suggestion has been made that about one out of four people that are thought to have mild hypertension actually may have normal blood pressure when they are outside of the physician's office. It has been referred to as White Coat hypertension.