Really Worried

[Gtpchic31]

Hi, Im really worried about my dad. He has high blood pressure and has for quite a few years now. Hes on meds for this but i would say in the last month he has started to feel light headed and sick feeling sometimes during the day. He wen back to the docs right away and they switched his meds. Well this didnt help any. He sleeps an awful lot and still complains of the light headedness. My parents went to florida for some business meetings this week and my mom called me the other day early in the morning say she had to rush my dad to the hospital. He was white as a sheet, really light headed and complained that he just felt ill. So at the hospital they took his bp and it was 190 which is high. Im not sure what they did for him there. SOmething about adjusting his meds. Me and my mom are both really concerned about him. I know hes under alot of stress and thats not helping any but our doctor just doesnt seem to be doing anything about it, its like hes not really concerned about it. Im not ready to lose my father to a stroke hes to young and so am i. Any idea what could be causeing his light headedness?

[crabbyroad]

I would get a referral to a cardiologist, especially if the current medication isnt of great concern to his general doctor. They can do stress, echo's, and they know BP medication better than a general doctor. Dizziness could be the prime indicator of his high BP, how is his diet, exercise habits? But definitely don't wait till dizziness occurs before seeking treatment, when the symptoms appear they are usually very high readings then, headaches, dizziness, sweating, chest pains, etc. It is a very silent condition till it reaches these symptoms. You could also get a very good home monitering kit and take it a few times a day. Ive learned from the boards here and it holds true for me, the first one is always the highest from my generalized anxiety, toss out that number, take it two more times, at least 2 to 3 mins apart, then average those two readings.

Crabby

[Gtpchic31]

thank you so much for your reply. My dad has at home moniters and he keeps one a work too. He also works out at least 4 times a week. His eating habbits arnt the best but are getting better. He is mildly over weight. Me and my mom both think he should go in and get some tests done to. All our doc does it a blood test, he hasnt refered him to a cardio doc. The only problem we face is getting my dad to go het these tests done. Now that he has been in the hospital im hopping that he will go get them done. Thank you again for your relpy

[zuzu8]

Gtpchic,

Were your Dad's meds adjusted again after the Florida incident? What are his blood pressure readings at home now?

zuzu xx

[zuzu8]

P.S. I want to add that the dizziness and feeling lousy could be due to side effects of the meds.
What is he taking? It's hard for us to help too much here without his input or more info about his medical history, age, etc.
But Crabby is right.... at least an intitial consult with a cardio person wouldn't be a bad idea.

zuzu