Is there any symptons of HBP? - High & Low Blood Pressure Message Board

lovinthev8 · 12-29-2006, 09:45 PM

What do you tell people? Have you ever sat and talked with someone who you KNOW isn't health conscious about these kind of things and tried to persuade them to check their blood pressure? Is there any symptoms, maybe numbness or anxiety or something that could make somebody aware that, oh man, maybe I should check my blood pressure, etc?

btw - HBP itself doesn't cause any damage, right? It just leads on to cause heart attack and stroke, and THOSE are what can cause damage... right?

violet312s · 12-29-2006, 11:43 PM

Unfortunately there is a reason why high blood pressure is called the "silent killer". There are no openly visible symptoms.

And it is wrong to assume that HBP does not cause any damage. In fact it is the cause of many illnesses. The pressure on the blood vessels causes damage to the heart, kidneys, eyes and many other major organs. This can lead to stroke, heart attack, kidney failure, etc.

So...if you know someone who probably needs to check their blood pressure, ask them if they would like to go blind or need kidney dialysis once a week.

On the plus side, high blood pressure is very treatable.

ICC · 12-30-2006, 05:08 AM

I had wonderful BP readings all my life until about 3 years ago. my boss upset me to the point of extreme anger. I left work early as i just felt funny. it was a friday and i continued to just feel weird. sunday morning i looked in the mirror and thought "why is your face bright red" i didn't know since i never had HBP. made an appt with PCP on monday and my BP was 167/97. that explained it.He put me on catapres and out of work for 2 weeks. Since then the catapres worked at 1 a day but being under extreme stress for the past 8 months has now put me on two to keep it regulated.

ICC

lovinthev8 · 12-30-2006, 07:23 PM

Geez, 167? I know my jaw dropped when I walked in kmart and checked mine on the machine there and saw it was 158/89. But I was doing a fast paced walk in, sat right down and took it.

The next day when I went back I got a better reading of 128/82, and even then I didn't wait at all before taking it, I just didn't do a powerwalk across the store to the bp machine.

Barbara_Ann · 12-30-2006, 11:34 PM

True there are really no "noticable" symptoms for hbp.

I evidentally was walking around with it for what we suspect was about 2 years and didn't know it.

I ended up at the doctors office because I was having some severe symptoms that unbeknownst to me was low thyroid. While there, naturally they took my blood pressure and it was 170/100. Part of that was white coat syndrome but not that much. She put me on low dose bp med. and when I went back 2 weeks later she upped it. I eat plenty of garlic and really watch my sodium intake now.

Having a low thyroid - was affecting the hbp that I already had and was unaware of. Finally, my body sent me a big message. I was lucky.

Now on thyroid med. and bp med - I'm balanced and doing great.

BTW, I also go for regular check ups now - as I wasn't doing before. I'm a believer now.