I developed high blood pressure when I was pregnant with my last child 12 years ago. I was put on medication. I was told that usually once you go on blood pressure medicine that you never go off. After all of these years I am still on the medication.I have since lost 75 pounds and feel great. My question to everyone is Can you get off blood pressure medication once you are on it?
Yes, some people can. I would say that with your hypertension occuring in pregnacy, and that you have lost 75 pounds, you are a possible candidiate to reduce if not eliminate medication.
What blood pressure drugs are you taking now and in what amount? What is your blood pressure now days? Do you have some other heart or kidney problem your blood pressure meds might be helping with? Do you have a home monitor so that you can check your own resting blood pressure? Are you close to your ideal weight or do you still have a lot of weight to lose? Are you eating a well balanced diet low in salt? Do you get at least 30 minutes of exercise most days of the week? Do you smoke? Presumably you aren't taking an estrogen birth control pill since you are on blood pressure meds.
Does your doctor insist you stay on meds? I'd bring it up for discussion again and if your doctor insists, ask for the reason(s) why you can't consider reducing or eliminating meds. It would greatly help if you could show your doctor your home readings to prove your point that your bp was not high.
If your resting bp readings are below 140/90 consistantly, and you don't have any other health issues, you might think about cutting back a bit on your meds and see what happens. You need to take home readings with a reliable monitor though while you are doing this.
I am not a doctor and am not qualified to tell you what to do. I throw out some suggestions, most important are to get a home monitor and use it consistantly, and to have a conversation with your doctor about your blood pressure.
Sure you can Suzanne.
As Graylorn says, sometimes the hypertension of pregnancy is a temporary thing.
First order of business is to determine your unmedicated BP.
What drugs are you taking...some must be weaned?
Buy yourself a BP tester...digital and self inflating and take your BP regularly as you wean or cold turkey from the drugs. For the first couple weeks don't react to awful numbers unless they go above 180/110 or something similarly scary. High blood pressure isn't dangerous short term but an acute SUPER high spell might be. It will take a couple weeks to settle to your REAL BP because of the drug residue and your body's adjustment to them over the last 12 years.
Be patient and record your readings for a month or two, average them, and judge whether they need to be medicated.
I think anything averaging below 140/90 without medications is just fine, 135/85 if you are fastidious! Remember, that's a rested average...several readings over 140/90 should be of no concern whatever!
Thank you for your advice. The blood pressure medication I am on is Benicar 20/12.5. I would like to lose 30 more pounds then I will be at my ideal weight. I do not smoke. I work out three times a week at the gym and I also either walk when the weather is nice or I walk on my tread mill everyday. I have no kidney problem, I do have a heart murmur. Everytime I go to the dr. my blood pressure is around 138/82, which the dr said is good. I am going to talk with him the next time I see him and ask him what his reasons are for me staying on the medication. Thanks again Have a great Day!
Everytime I go to the dr. my blood pressure is around 138/82, which the dr said is good. I am going to talk with him the next time I see him and ask him what his reasons are for me staying on the medication.
If your BP is 138/82 on meds, it would no doubt go up into the hypertensive range without meds, so it doesn't sound to me like you are ready to go off meds.
If you don't have a good home monitor, get one. That will give you a much better idea of what your usual resting BP is.
I didn't consider reducing my medication until my usual resting systolic was around 125 with occasional readings as low as 110 or less. At that level I felt pretty confident that it would still stay under 140/80 without meds.
I don't know, if she has some white coat, the relaxed home readings could be significantly lower. Suzanne1 should get a home monitor and see what her at home resting readings average out to be. Even if they are in the low 120s/upper 70s, she might try cutting back on her meds and see what happens.
Good job losing that 75 pounds! Another 30 might make the difference. Even if it doesn't get you off blood pressure meds there are so many other health benefits from getting to your ideal weight, its certainly worth it. Not to mention how much better you feel about yourself. I lost 35 pounds and am ecstatic at how good I look now.
High Blood Pressure medication 
I developed high blood pressure when I was pregnant with my last child 12 years ago. I was put on medication. I was told that usually once you go on blood pressure medicine that you never go off. After all of these years I am still on the medication.I have since lost 75 pounds and feel great. My question to everyone is Can you get off blood pressure medication once you are on it?
and I also either walk when the weather is nice or I walk on my tread mill everyday. I have no kidney problem, I do have a heart murmur. Everytime I go to the dr. my blood pressure is around 138/82, which the dr said is good. I am going to talk with him the next time I see him and ask him what his reasons are for me staying on the medication. Thanks again Have a great Day! 
