Now not to explode...? (Medical)

[Old Ironsights]

Knowing that I'm a stress monster and feeling a little odd ticker-wise, I started monitoring my BP with a digital setup we got a few years ago when one of my wife's meds messed with her BP.

I'm averaging in the 153/95 range. Not good for a 42/yo.

I'm not a smoker, not a heavy drinker, am relatively skinny, exercise moderately, and eat reltively healthily, though I could do with cutting the sodium. My Colesterol is moderately high, but my HDL to LDL ratio is very good.

I am cutting my caffiene, and upping my workout routine, but still...

I'm really not looking forward/wanting to take a statin just because my high-stress life sucks.

Any clues?

[Hobie]

I know you can't or won't do this but...

If it hurts, don't do it. Your life is hurting you so you either change or you live with the results. I wish I could help. I really do.

[Marc]

I have one of those electronic blood pressure monitors and it reads high. I verified that at the doctor's office. I sent it back to the manufacturer and they said it is fine. I don't believe them!

[jnyork]

Ever give any thought to changing your "high stress" lifestyle? If you keep repeating the same mistakes and expecting different results, who are we to advise you?

Hope you get it taken care of, life is tough sometimes but sure beats the alternative.

[Gun Smith]

Be sure to take your blood pressure in the morning before breakfast. Any activity , including eating, tends to kick up the pressure. Follow the instructions carefully. My wife's BP tester is very sensitive to this.

[Old Ironsights]

The reading is a periodic average from 6am & 8pm readings... plus a few nooners thrown in.

All ranging from 150/95 to 153/98.

And God knows I'm trying to destress my life...

[DBW]

And God knows I'm trying to destress my life...

Considering that you're a prolific source of political issues on the forum I suggest you back away from the computer and things related to government. It's good to be involved... but not to the degree that you stress out over it. God has his plans and what will be will be.

[Old Ironsights]

Politics is how I DEstress... it's a free way to blow off steam. (Shooting is the somewhat more expensive way.)

It's the rest of stuff - you know, from the Life Stress Test, (397 ) that gets me...

[DBW]

Politics is how I DEstress... it's a free way to blow off steam. (Shooting is the somewhat more expensive way.)

It's the rest of stuff - you know, from the Life Stress Test, (397 ) that gets me...

Hmmm... my stess level is below 75.

[madman4570]

Dont laugh but just try this.
Find one of the TV shows like Namaste Yoga.
It REALLY works.When you have cumlative stress for a long period of time this wrecks your body.Just try that stuff doing what you can with them on TV, as well as you can.Then do 10 mins before bed of it.
After about 2 weeks see if your BP drops at least 10 points.(Bottom number)You are really pushing the danger zone at 95 on the bottom!
If that dont work try this(at your own risk)
Back in the 1980s I was the assistant instuctor of washin ryu karate
(1st degree BB) for about 7 years and we used a self meditation
that you really could go into a different place(mindwise)
Basically after some exercises similar to yoga(which you could do that yoga) you sit indian style legs folded
in front of a large mirror/clear your mind and stare and I mean stare
directly into your own pupils.It takes pratice but you will find eventually you will not even blink.You go into a free space.
Make sure you use a LOUD timer say after 15mins mins at first.
a lot of the older people found their BP dropped 10-20 points after
doing this for a while.
Try it, it cost you nothing,plus really try hard to not be so hard on yourself.(everyone else will be) Take care.
Also maybe AJMD429 can help you out with his Medical Expertize.
That BP is really high though!

[Blaine]

My BP and sugar would prolly go back to normal if I'd get off The Butt and lose the weight......

[Old Ironsights]

Madman - you make good points, which is why I'm changing my workout regimen back (10 years back) to 45 minutes of Aikido Forms (Shin Shin Toitsu) and Stairs rather than my mormal 10min hi-intensity PT routine...

[madman4570]

BlaineG,
ya, it can be a tough cycle.When you get out of shape you go into that non physical mode much the oppostie to when your in great shape and have tons of energy.
I find during the winter months if I start to get out of shape.
I eat a cup of Raisin Bran Crunch w/frozen blueberris for breakfast/a cup of the same thing for lunch/at 2pm a cup of skim cottage chesse/and dinner some good lowfat chicken/fish or meat.green vegtables and lemon water(about 5 glasses a day)At 8pm I eat another cup skim cottage cheese,I can lose 20-30lbs in a month.
I am 6 foot 4" w/large frame so 20lbs dont show that much,but i feel it.
Once you lose that you will feel better and become more active!
Once you get to your good weight then maintain it carefully.

[Buffboy]

I'll second the electronic cuff reading high bit. They frequently do, so make sure your BP is actually high. That caused me no end of grief because mine constantly read high when I actually had my problem under control with medication. A side by side test of my "quality" electronic and the doctor's old school cuff showed a reading similar to yours with my blood pressure quite normal on his cuff. As an experiment, it read the nurse's BP accurately, so it's a individual thing.

Your reading is high enough that you need to see the doctor about it, as in right now! He will likely prescribe a medication if his test shows it at that level.

[madman4570]

Old Ironsights,
I have faith in you.Just your caring of yourself(and for family)
shows me you are more than halfway there already.
I know you CAN do it!

Best of Luck !!!

[Leverdude]

Politics is how I DEstress... it's a free way to blow off steam. (Shooting is the somewhat more expensive way.)

It's the rest of stuff - you know, from the Life Stress Test, (397 ) that gets me...

Heck I didn't even rate on the thing. Just my observation OI but I think you let things get to you too much. Dont take it wrong, I just dont see you switching off the angst after a rant real easy. Lifes too short my friend.

[Kansas Ed]

OI...here's the deal. Back about 2001 my job took on high stress. Like really high stress. I came home at night, had a couple of highballs to calm down, ate like I was a 20 year old, but my BMI was perfect, and my cholesterol was great. My BP was the same as yours, and the doctor put me on BP meds. But I realized that the job was going to leave my family broken before it was over. I asked for more employees out at Beechcraft to lighten the load and was made lots of hollow promises. Then they gave me another whole product line on top of what I already had with no extra help. So I turned in my badge and went home.

It took a full 3 months of unemployment to finally calm down. I got to where I could actually sleep through the night. My BP started coming down. I eventually very slowly weaned myself from the meds. I ate lots of salads, exercised regularly, and started laughing again.

About a year after I left, my friend (who was in a similar role) at work died of a massive heart attack. He was 36 years old. He left a wife and a 2 year old girl. 3 years later, our manager also died of a massive heart attack. He was 50. He left a wife and a couple of college age kids. Was it worth it to them? To their families?

Companies will destroy you, you are expendable to them. They will give a performer more and more responsibility without thinking about the individual. And a performer feels like they have a responsibility to do what's asked of them and then some. IMO there are two ways out of this. Change your circumstances, or get buried. Most people would never leave their families for a lump sum of cash, but that's what many companies are asking some of their high stress employees to do.

Make your own decisions, as this is my very opinionated take on your situation. I've been there, and it's a hard thing to do. I struggled for about 5 years to find myself and a career after that. Be smart in what ever you do.

Ed

[Blaine]

Companies will destroy you, you are expendable to them

Boy, have you got that right...... "You have to max your resources before crying to me for help" After enough of that, whatever is good enough for the boss is good enough for me (even if it IS all messed up)

[AJMD429]

Your REAL doctor is your best source of advice (i.e. 'disclaimer') - BUT...

Some people have high BP regardless of lifestyle. Change what lifestyle you can, but if you still have even SLIGHTLY high BP, there is ample evidence that fixing it with some sort of medication dramatically reduces stroke and heart attack risk (even reduces ED now that we have drugs without that side effect). Statins are for lipids, not hypertension, so you'd likely do best on an 'ace' inhibitor with perhaps a touch of diuretic (combo pill runs about $4.00 a month around here). I allow 10% of my patient's readings to be thrown out, but the other 90% have to be consistently below 125/85 with NO exceptions - better yet all below 120/80. That of course needs some supervision by your physician.

Also don't let your cholesterol be 'not too bad' or your sugar 'borderline' - we gun owners tend to be 'ruggedly individualistic' but that is to our demise all too often.

I test something called LDL particle count (liposcience.com) because ordinary cholesterol tests have missed too many problems and I've seen too many patients who were told everything was 'just fine' or 'just a tiny bit high' have strokes or MI's in their 40's or sometimes 30's - yet nobody bothered to check the right test.

Interestingly, some data suggests that patients with normal lipids and normal pressure still have more MI and stroke than patients who are on statins and ace inhibitors and get to those same 'normal' levels - are they just under closer supervision because they are on Rx's, or is there some other behind-the-scenes benefit some substances cause which we don't measure when looking at lab tests and blood pressures.

Same with sugars - a fasting glucose is usually worthless other than to pick up a far-along diabetic. A 'two hour' one is a little better, and a one-hour more sensitive (but no official thresholds exist for interpretation of one-hour ones), and better yet is a fasting insulin to glucose ratio - hoping for an insulin under 10 and a glucose under 90 (that's the thresholds most doctors want for their families, and other 'special' people - HMO patients are told anything under 35 is ok most of the time). The trigylceride/HDL ratio gets out of whack in a diabetic even before the insulin, and it shoots over 3.5 or 4.

All of the above is just my opinion, and so on, but the bottom line is - don't be anything less than strict with your health - you wouldn't abuse a fine motorcycle or gun or other expensive device by ignoring problems, and at least you can get NEW ones of those when they blow up.

[OJ]

Knowing that I'm a stress monster and feeling a little odd ticker-wise, I started monitoring my BP with a digital setup we got a few years ago when one of my wife's meds messed with her BP.

I'm averaging in the 153/95 range. Not good for a 42/yo.

I'm not a smoker, not a heavy drinker, am relatively skinny, exercise moderately, and eat reltively healthily, though I could do with cutting the sodium. My Colesterol is moderately high, but my HDL to LDL ratio is very good.

I am cutting my caffiene, and upping my workout routine, but still...

I'm really not looking forward/wanting to take a statin just because my high-stress life sucks.

Any clues?

Though I'm a retired surgeon, I maintain an active license ( at a not insignificant amount - a couple of hundred per year - but my neighbors rely on me) and not required to carry malpractice insurance since my practice is "Surgical Consultations not for remuneration and family practice" so this is legal and based on more than 1/2 century of medical practice since I graduated from medical school.

That said, the best place to get advice about this is from your trusted personal physician.

Nipped in the bud, so to speak, blood pressures mildly elevated as yours are (and are best treated in early stages like yours) usually respond to a mild diuretic and either a beta blocker or ace inhibitor - none of which are expensive or carry much in the way of undesirable side effects. Procrastinating on starting treatment will only lead to undesirable results and problems not so easily controlled. Statins are not for blood pressure problems and it doesn't sound like your cholesterol levels need such.

Let us know what he/she says.

[rjohns94]

I was going to suggest Tai Chi, really helps for me. As does cutting out the Soda and walking daily.

[AmBraCol]

Five years ago I walked out of the doctor's office with a month's supply of lil' red pills and instructions to return in a month. I walked home, put 'em on the night table and never took the first one. I decided to change how I reacted to stress. I changed the way I thought and reacted and my blood pressure remains normal - never having taken the first pill. We CAN influence the way our body works by the way we live and our choices on how we react. It's not just diet and exercise - it's how we live in other areas, especially how we react to stress. Life's too short to let someone else control your moods and outlook - so YOU choose how to react when things get tough. All that said, I really need to get the ol' body back under control - it's just no fun w/o the weight training I was doing that blew my retina. I can't run and biking could get me mangled on some idjits fender 'round here. Not sure what I'm gonna do, but I'm gonna have to do something one o' these days. Once we get back into a schedule it'll be easier.

[Ysabel Kid]

OI -

Three words for you. "Heed AJ's advice".

153/95 is going to get you a heart attack. Probably before you are 50.

I was at 160/100+. My little electronic do-hickey read high, but this was from the doctor's office, with real BP equipment. I had just turned 44. I knew I had high BP, but didn't realize how much worse it had gotten. It is job-related stress. I don't like taking medicine, but like the idea even less about leaving my wife a widow and my kids without their father. I started on Diovan, and my BP has been 120/70 or less since then. Started working on my cholestrol too. Taking medicine everyday for the rest of your life sucks - but it is better than the probable alternative...

[Old Ironsights]

Well, I got in to see the sawboens this am, and, as typical for me, my BP started falling last night... down to the low 130s by this am.

Typical.

Dunno why it spikes like it does every now and again, but still..

Anyway, by this morning it was low enough to have him suggest all the things I'm doing, plus daily monitoring.

thanks.