High blood pressure forum

[MichelleHBP]

Hi there!

I'm new to the heart disease forum and my current problem is with high blood pressure, particularly high diastolic pressure.

Controlling hypertension is turning out to be tougher and more confusing than I thought.

Does the discussion of high blood pressure have its own forum that you could recommend to me or should I post my question here?

Thanks and Happy New Year.

[ed34]

This is over 4 years old, I should hope the issue is resolved by now.

[shahalalm]

High diastolic pressure could be from heart blockage, it occurs due to electrolyte imbalance, hormonal imbalance etc.

How were the morning and afternoon? Is it low during the night or evening or when?

You may take some calcium channel blocker along with some supplements which help you with regulating your blood pressure  to the normal.

You may read here for more information http://www.healthdiscoveriesjournal.com/blood-pressure/

[MichelleHBP]

Hi Ed,

So when I see the doc in a couple of weeks, I'll ask for hormone balance, urine, and kidney function tests. Anything else? Potassium? Is the hormone balance test standard?

I felt a lot less dizzy today than yesterday when I was near comatose! I phoned
the pharmacist this morning and he recommended I cut out the diuretic as of today and if still faint, reduce the ace slightly and stick with the small dose of time-released ccb.

So other than a few episodes of faintness, it wasn't a bad day. Honestly, if my family weren't drowning in, or dead from heart disease, I wouldn't be so concerned. I'd really fooled myself into thinking I was exempt but now HBP hit stubbornly hard and won't go away without meds.

Finding the right combo is crazy tough. Do you take HBP meds and if so, which ones?

Oh, I forgot to mention that my LP(a) was high and so was my LDL, so I recently started taking small does of regular niacin. I haven't told the doc. Do you think it's okay to take the niacin (and fish oil) as well as the ace and ccb or am I throwing a hundred parts at the engine?

[ed34]

Yes calcium channel blockers work in a different way to ace inhibitors and other meds. However, it seems your blood pressure is more specific to an underlying problem because it isn't responding to meds. I would start by having the blood tests done and work from there. If there are no hormone imbalances, at least that can be eliminated.
I see it like a car engine with a fault. Rather than throw in 100 new parts hoping to eliminate the fault, it's best to attack each possibility one at a time. If one of those 100 parts fixes the problem, how will you ever know what the problem was with the engine.
You could say, well if it fixed it whats the problem, but if the problem returns shortly after what do you do? replace one of the 100 parts, all of them? add more new parts? the whole thing gets out of control. I firmly believe diagnosis should be methodical and blood tests can reveal how virtually every organ is functioning in the body.
High diastolic can be caused by a heart blockage, but you don't show any symptoms of angina which you should if it had this kind of effect.  Due to no angina symptoms, the only real way is to have an angiogram. Your urine can also be tested to see if there are any infections causing problems. So many things can cause high bp, it will take time but blood tests can eliminate many of those in an instant.

[Joyceplaysmusic]

And then again essential hypertension does not come from any organ dysfunction they don't know why it happens I have the same thing very frustrating

[MichelleHBP]

Thank you again, Ed.

Do you have any views about why, despite three meds, the diastolic remains high (95-110), even though the systolic is almost controlled?

I've actually only taken the ccb extended release for four days now. Does it take long for ccb's to kick in? The first two days I felt like I was in a coma and I'm sure it was the ccb's. I'm now getting my energy back.


It really depresses me to now be on three classes and I wonder why the GP didn't jiggle things with just two types.  Why the ccb? Can ccb's tackle diastolic in a way aces and diuretics don't?

I also have to lose at least ten to fifteen pounds, which I put on very rapidly in the last three months. :(

Let's say I lose the weight (LOL) in the next two months and my pressure improves. Can I just stop at least one of the meds, maybe reduce the others and which med would you eliminate first?

That's a great tip about asking for a hormone balance test and checking my kidneys. Is there a way to check for blockages?

TTYL

[ed34]

Post menopause is very significant. Blood pressure generally increases after menopause. Postmenopausal women have a higher risk of high blood pressure than do premenopausal women suggesting that the hormonal and biochemical changes of menopause may play a role in high blood pressure. I think it is believed that due to the hormone changes, your body becomes a lot more sensitive to salt. Hormone replacement therapy HRT also raises blood pressure in many women.
There are other possible reasons for increased blood pressure such as kidney problems. If you are gaining too much fluid in the blood stream, pressure will increase. Simple blood tests can determine the condition of your kidneys. It can also be caused by blockages forming in blood vessels. There are a number of reasons but it's probably due to the menopause. You need to make sure you eat lots of healthy foods, no rubbish. If you smoke, stop. Regular exercise also helps to lower blood pressure.
Maybe your GP should do a blood test to determine if you have a hormone imbalance causing the problem.

Omron are a very common make, used by virtually everyone I know. Even Cardiac Rehab had Omron devices. Every week they were sending me to the GP because my blood pressure was high but the stethascope method proved the machine was way off.
As you know, there is a line on the cuff which has to be lined up with the arteries in the
arm, at the inner elbow joint. If this is slightly off the artery the readings go bonkers. Sometimes that machine squeezed the life out of my arm making it go blue.
You could always take it along to the GP next time you have your bp checked, quickly put it on and check your bp just before the doctor and see what differences you both come up with. At least you will get an idea of how far out it is. The most accurate method I've seen for measuring bp is in critical care, on life support machines. One sensor goes into the artery and one in a vein. I'm not sure how it works but a Doctor told me it's the most accurate you can get.

[MichelleHBP]

Thanks, Ed, for answering.

My diastolic seems resistant and the GP keeps increasing the dose or adding another class of meds but it doesn't help so far. I'm now taking three classes, an ACE, CCB and diuretic. It always seems high in the morning, even though I take the CCB at night.

A lot of sites say the diastolic isn't that important but a few say that's incorrect and that a high diastolic could be a serious sign of stroke risk.

I'm female and very recently post-menopausal, in case that's significant. :)

The GP takes my readings with a stethoscope about once or twice a month and I take them several times daily. I have two Omrons for the upper arm. (I only use two when I can't believe how high a reading is and then I check it with the other one.)  I thought Omrons were reliable. Is there a better one?

[ed34]

This forum is fine. What are your problems?
How are you obtaining your blood pressure figures? are you getting a GP to check it accurately with a stethascope or using one of those gimmick electronic cuff devices?