high blood pressure why????

[yogabug]

Does anyone have any insight as to why I could have high bp? I am normal weight, vegetarian, no family history and 39 yrs old. It has been high for almost a year-now at 180/103 so my dr is putting me on meds. I just can't get my mind around being on meds for the rest of my life for this. I have tried yoga and meditation, though not as regularly as I should. (2 kids) I feel my heart racing and am also extremely tired in the afternoons. This isn't due to lack of sleep. I am usually in bed by 10:00 up at 7:00 and the kids don't usually get up anymore. Has anyone had any similar situations? I thought I may have read something about this on the boards before relating to adrenal fatigue. Any clues would be much appreciated. Thanks.

[babygrant]

Originally Posted by yogabug 

Does anyone have any insight as to why I could have high bp? I am normal weight, vegetarian, no family history and 39 yrs old. It has been high for almost a year-now at 180/103 so my dr is putting me on meds. I just can't get my mind around being on meds for the rest of my life for this. I have tried yoga and meditation, though not as regularly as I should. (2 kids) I feel my heart racing and am also extremely tired in the afternoons. This isn't due to lack of sleep. I am usually in bed by 10:00 up at 7:00 and the kids don't usually get up anymore. Has anyone had any similar situations? I thought I may have read something about this on the boards before relating to adrenal fatigue. Any clues would be much appreciated. Thanks.

Could it be anxiety?  I know that when I go to the doctor my BP is always high because I am so anxious.  I bought a BP cuff to take it at home when I'm feeling relaxed and it's always normal and even on the low side (100/60)

[purplegirl]

Have you had your thyroid levels checked lately?  

[Panserbjorne]

and how about your blood sugar?  How's that doing?

[yogabug]

I'm having all new blood work done next week. Last time it all came back normal except for low vitamin d.

[loveandkindness]

Could be hyperthyroidism - often causes racing heart and high BP.  Could be some sort of physical problem, such as a narrowing, which causes the blood to pound to get through.  Nutrition wise, perhaps you are not getting enough protein, or too much sodium.   I'm amazed your bp has been so high for a year and you are just now being put on meds. 

Some things to try -- hibiscus tea.  Drink it hot or cold, 3 cups a day.   Also just read about a study where patients squeezed a hand grip for 6 minutes a day -- after a month or so their systolic dropped average of 10 points.

I hope you can figure this out and get it under control.

[tanyalynn]

DH's blood pressure came down when we really increased the amount of supplemental mag he was getting and we had to switch to 2x/day from 1x/day.  And I've had odd heart rhythms from lack of magnesium--had them for years, odd skips and funny-shaped beats and racing (had an ekg years ago as part of ruling out anything serious), they're gone now that I'm closer to getting a reasonable amount of mag.

The better solution for DH seems to be diet changes, for him low carb (and no gluten/dairy) caused a good-sized decrease in his BP, about 20 pts systolic and 15-20 diastolic, which pretty much made his BP normal (it was borderline/maybe high before).  He still takes a little magnesium, but a lot less than before--maybe 200mg now vs 800 mg before. 

For me, the late afternoon tiredness is adrenal, and for me it corresponds to unhealthily low BP but I know that isn't universal.  I haven't used a lot of herbs meant for adrenal stuff, if you do look into that, make sure they're compatible with high BP--most people with adrenal issues have low BP and so they don't have to consider that. 

[beanma]

Low thyroid (hypo as opposed to hyper) can also cause high blood pressure as well as high cholesterol. Hypothyroidism, of course, also causes fatigue.

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/733788

[yogabug]

Thank you so much for the replies. It will be interesting to see what my thyroid levels are. I only take a regular vitamin - will check magnesium levels. I really hope to figure this out. I hate being so exhausted all the time. It was easy to ignore when the kids were smaller. Now it is definitely not normal. My diet is vegetarian and not low carb at all. Trying to cut down on salt too. Thanks again.