I have been having a problem with high blood pressure for about six months. I am a 20 year old male who is in great physical condition. I play college basketball. Recently I have been suffering from anxiety and when I have been going to the doctor I have been getting high bp readings. They have been fluctating a lot. Sometimes I get high readings like 170/99 and then I'll get another reading of 140/90. Last time I went to the doctor it was 160/90. Sometimes I can feel my pulse in my head and sometimes it feels like my heart is going to jump out of my chest. Six months ago I went to the doctor for our team physical and my bp was 124/82. High bp runs in my family but I think it is very strange with my age and physical condition that I have high bp. I have been having the anxiety problem for about six months also. I had many test ran on my heart one time when I went to the emegency room for chest pains(turned out to be acid refulx) and everything came back great. I was wondering if my anxiety is causing the high bp readins. My anxiety is constantly causing me to worry about my bp. please help. I am so worried that I am going to have a stroke or heart attack. I really don't want to take any bp medication.Any anwsers will help.Thanks.

Yes, it very well could be. I had full blood tests, a cat scan, everything, but I only get High Blood Pressure at the doc. All of my tests came out perfect. Maybe, the doc. can prescribe something to help with the anxiety.

I have been having the same problem. I am 29 and have never had a blood pressure issue until recently. I have been diagnosed w/ Generalized Anxiety Disorder and I take an anti-anxiety med for it. When I do not take my meds and know my blood pressure is up-it just makes it worse and go higher. It also does not help that I work in a Dr's office and they make me more nervous if I have them take it and it is high (they tell me I could have a stroke, etc). Bottom line-see a Dr about taking either Blood Pressure meds or anxiety meds. Sounds like you may need anxiety meds since you admit to an anxiety problem.

Stress and anxiety can cause high blood pressure. I know, because it raises mine. Also, it sounds like you have classic white coat hypertension. It's highest when you are at the doctors office. You are stressed out and thinking about it as you are waiting for him to take it. I have the same problem and my doctor knows it, so he doesn't push the meds on me. You don't want to get on blood pressure medication if this is the problem.

Many people get White coat hypertension but this sounds a clear case of anxiety. You may like to go to a psychiatrist who will be able to prescribe some anti anxiety medicines. Get this done now and spare yourself sleepless nights.

Take care

You're not alone with the high blood pressure/anxiety problem. I suffered from anxiety and high blood pressure, and couldn't figure out if the two were related, until I saw a doctor. And I still don't really know if one causes the other. (I'm not a big fan of Doctors since then)

What you need to do is think back and find out which came first? Were you having anxiety problems, and than found out that your BP was high, or did you get some high numbers on your BP reading, and then start having anxiety attacks?

Once you figure that out, you'll be able to know which doctor to see!

I take a drug called Benicar for my BP and it dropped my readings from 150/95 to 115/75 in two days...and now my BP is steady. Prior to that it was all over the board.

I take a drug called xanax for my anxiety. Those two treatments coupled together allow me to live a normal life without having to worry about if I'm going to have a stroke.

I would suggest getting your BP under control first, before you get with a psychiatrist for the anxiety. See if that calms your system, before you have to see the shrink.

It might be possible for you to take the BP medication.....(get with your doctor) and once your BP stabalizes...see if your anxiety goes away.

Contact me if you want to talk [ removed ] I know how bad it sucks to be worried about that stuff all the time. You're not alone.

Good luck!

Hi,

Just a thought given your age and blood pressure and anxiety attacks. Has your Dr checked out your adrenalin levels via a 24hr urine test where you collect all the urine in a bottle and it's checked for adrenalin levels?
Either this or blood can be drawn during a 'panic attack' and checked for a condition called "pheocromocytoma" which is a usually benign tumour on the adrenal gland. It can run in families and be the cause of anxiety, feelings of doom, racing heart, facial flushing, needing to urinate during an attack etc.
Otherwise if this and other tests have been done it is possible that pure anxiety can cause these levels!
I had a BP reading during an attack when I got them back in 1987-92 of 260/160 and despite heaps of tests nothing has ever been found. Now my BP is normal and I don't have panic attacks (if that's what they were any more)

Good Luck and Take Care, Sam :)

Honey I know just what you are going through. I have had anxiety since I was 15 and I am now 24. I went to the doctor about six months ago and my blood pressure was 140/100. I totally freaked out and had to leave because I felt like I was going to have the biggest panic attack. I would suggest that you take your blood pressure at home on a monitor. I do that and it is normal most of the time. I meen don't get me wrong every once in a while it will be high but alot of peoples probobly is but just don't know it. I wish you the best of luck!!!

juju,

Buy yourself a cheap self inflating BP tester and test for two RESTING readings a day , maybe afternoon and evening..Each period take 3 readings (switch arms)and toss the first one...record the average of the other two.
After a month of readings, you'll have a good idea of what your BP really is: the average of your 60 readings.
If you feel like it you can scribble an annotation of how you felt each day (a word or two recorded AFTER the test.)
Maybe you can spot a pattern; maybe not. In any case, you'll see whether your BP is high enough to warrant the meds <always best to avoid if you can>.

Hey,
I am a 29 year old female and have recently been having episodes out of nowhere. I can feel patches of warmth radiate over parts of my body and I feel this immense pressure in my head like it is going to explode. I can feel my heart beat really fast and I feel dizzy and like I am going to black out...except I never do. More recently is a feeling of vertigo or loss of balance when I try to walk, or get up suddenly. I checked my blood pressure and it was 125/70. This now is called prehypertension, and I think what I am going through has all the signs of anxiety. I mean I am too young to have high blood pressure, right? I do take xantax .5 miligrams a day, but I only take it when these signs start to happen. Unfortunatley, they have been happening more than twice a day for the last couple of weeks or so. and the xantax seems to make these symptoms go away, but like, what the heck is anxiety? Doesen't everbody have some form of anxeity, and why is this anxiety suddently presenting itself in this dramatic of a nature. These episodes come on out of nowhere, it's not like I am getting excited or angry about something, it just happens. It's starting to scare me, and when I get scared during these episodes, they tend to escalate and then what appears to be a full blown panic attack comes on. I start feeling like I am going to have a heart attack, or explode or go insane. ..I don't know..I guess my question is what is going on in my body that makes it react so physcially to anxiety. and are these anxiety attacks harmful to my health, or is it just in my head...I don't know....any feedback would be great.

For starters 125/70 when you are having an anxiety attack is not high blood pressure. I had readings of 170/90 back when I was having my panic attacks.

Secondly it is sometimes difficult to find out what exactly causes panic attacks. When I was your age I had them very bad and they became more frequent. I never did find out what exactly was causing them but rather how to deal with them. I had sever attacks for about 4 months and then periodic for a year as they gradually improved.

Xanax was very helpful to me but be careful because it is also very addictive. I would continue to take Xanax when needed and try to get some help from a support group or psychologist in learning how to deal with these feelings when they overcome you. It is not easy but in time you will learn, as I did how to beat back an anxiety attack without medication.

Also if I may ask do you get a lot of exercise? Exercise can be an excellent stress releiver and it is good for you too.

Try to hang in there and know there are others who understand exactly what you are going through. Also know that people who have not suffered these attacks cannot know the sheer terror and difficulty of dealing with them. They may not understand and think you are crazy but know these attacks are very real and not something your imagination is doing to you.

One last thing that really helped me is if you feel the need to then pace, walk, run, yell, do whatever to get it out of your system. I was told to try to calm myself by sitting still but that is very hard to do when you are having one. DO what you feel you need to when it is happening and try the calming techniques once the main part of the episode has passed.

Thanks for your tips. I have been reading up on xanax and addiction rate is so high, I am worried that perhaps I could have a problem with this medication in time. I have found that on the onset of an attack, if i rub vix vapor rub under my nose, it alleviates the problems I think I have breathing, and takes away from me catching myself holding my breath. i think you are right. I think learning to "deal" with the sensations can lead to a cure w/out meds. The last time I felt one coming on, I "dealt" with it in small ways, and it was a little better. Once your mind is set on the fact that you are having one, good luck, your're toast! I have started rollerskating with my dog in the morning and do feel phsycally and emotionally better. I will hang in there, and if I come across any helpful tips in my journey through this bizarre thing, I will share.

Hang in there and it sounds like you have come across a good idea with the Vicks Vapor Rub. I wish I had thought of that when I was dealing with them because like you said it helps with the breathing problem. Keep up the good work.