178 over 106
 

So I go to the doctor for a sore throat and when the nurse took my blood pressure, her eyes went buggy. :)

They would not let me leave for hours trying to get the 106 below 100. After a few different pills and taking my blood pressure 6 times, it finally dropped to 98.

I have never really understood the numbers but after their reaction, I had to look it up. 178/106 is just a touch high. :)

Now I have to give up some of my favorite foods and my favorite of all spices, salt. And of course, there is the daily pill I have to take.

I am tired of getting old. :)

I've got fantastic blood pressure but cholesterol from hell.

My blood pressure is 100/60, my cholesterol levels are good, I'm not yet going grey and I can still pass the pencil test....BUT...I'm having trouble with my hip! Seems if it's not one thing, it's another.

I'm sick of getting old too. :)

Welcome to the hypertension club :D
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypertension
178 over 106 is higher than fuck (I know I'm on 40MG of Lisnopril)
I have to warn you Mexican food with no salt is barely edible |huh

My Dad has been on a low sodium diet for quite some time due to his high blood pressure.

He says he's not so sure that the low salt diet is going to make him live any longer, but it certainly makes it seem longer.

They just stuck me on 20 mg of Benicar until Friday when I see my real doctor. I assume that will be when I get all the new life instructions.

I never saw anyone use as much salt as my Grandfather did (until I grew up). When he was told he had high blood pressure, he had to start hiding the shakers from my Grandmother. That will be the hardest part.

My son's dad has horrible blood pressure (Jamaican, high level of salt in diet because he thought his dick would go soft without it |loony| ) and refused to listen to me about the salt.. finally had a Dr. scare the hell out of him and he gave it up. But even with meds its still high. one day about a year ago i was looking for an alternative remedy to exema which my rug-dawg has.. in reading about basil .. i found that in studies by the JAMA that basil in the diet significantly lowered the BP. He started taking 1 Wholy Basil pill a day and adding fresh basil into some of his food (not daily on the add in) .. it has lowered his BP and his cholesterol significantly.

Basil huh???
The only time I really eat Basil is during Sunday noodles and gravy. :) But in my gravy I use a rack of pork ribs, plenty of sausage and a lot of meatballs. I'm sure it does more harm than good.

I have been looking at the DASH diet for this thing. God knows, I could go on a diet and get a little more exercise.

Just got back from the Doc 184/101 he added another pill
Scarred the shit out of the wife (she went with me to make sure I was telling her everything) he said "it almost killed you in February and you will either stroke out or be dead by next February if we don't get your blood pressure under control"
Be prepared for a lecture when you go see the Doc Jim
And yes getting old sucks |cry|

Jim its not so bad, I am on blood pressure meds and I have found some good things because of that..... #1 I grill everything, chicken, fish, beef and veggies, I have found adding lemon, pepper and other spices take the place of salt when things are grilled, (and a little salt is not gonna kill ya, use sea salt, a little goes a long way)

#2 no more beer for me, nows its all red wine (my waistline likes the no beer part)

#3 you can say "dear, i don't want to go to greenies for dinner, he makes me eat salt" now you don't have to blame the dogs every time he asks ya ;)

Good Points there Spooky!! Also Garlic is an excellent flavor addition and it's very good for general heart health. Fresh garlic is always the best.. crush some and use it as a rub before you grill.

TP: do not make me come down there and kick your ass!!! I will.. I swear.. I'm jonesing for a road trip and this might be just the excuse i need.. |club| ..now go out and find one of the Vortex's they are selling in Sedona and let all that stress just float away.

Strangely enough, I am having no problem giving up salt. I just use more pepper. :) Of course, I am not really doing anything other than giving up salt until I see my doctor on Friday.

On another note...is it common to get really tired and dizzy from these damn pills?

yes, your doctor should have warned you... that for the first few days some bp meds can really mess you up. you should call the doc who prescribed them to you though, let them know.

I can't believe I left out the garlic, i use it on all the chicken i cook, and fresh ginger

make sure you film it when you kick his ass :D

Wow, something I can relate to in this group. I'm diabetic and have high blood pressure and take pills for the problem also. One of the side effect of the BP medications is ED, keep a carefully watch on that one

I just did call them. I thought after a day or two it wouldn't happen. But, only 1/2 hour after taking the pill this morning, I feel dizzy when I stand up and not really tired...just sleepy. It makes me nervous when I drive my truck or car. But no where as nervous as when I ride my bike. Not sure if I ever mentioned this but my bike went from having a 80 cubic inch motor to 110 cubic inches a couple of years ago. I can easily hit 130 mph going "up" the steepest hill around. That's really a big change since my bike is an 800 pound Road King Classic. At about 100 mph last night, I felt dizzy and found myself on the wrong side of the road. Since I live in a small town and know every cop on the force, I have no fears of getting a ticket. Hell, I even wear an old timey leather helmet and the cops just laugh at it :) I have often told my wife to never put me in a position of choosing between her or my bike. I'm not really sure if I am ready to say the same about the choice of dieing and my bike.

Anyway, I digress. Since I am seeing my own doctor Friday morning, they told me to just stick to the meds until then.

Tell me Pat...are you only taking the meds and not on a diet? I ask because yesterday my father told me all he has to do is take meds and his high blood pressure is under control.

First of all Jim stay off that fucking bike until your blood pressure is stabilized and your system is used to the pills, you know they call high blood pressure “the silent killer” and you don’t want to be taking anybody out with ya :D
I felt out of it for a few days when I started taking the pills, it doesn’t take that long to get used to them.
I went years with just a pill a day and no special diet as has my Dad, now I’m on a low vitamin K and low salt diet because I’m on a blood thinner.
Mortons Salt Substitute doesn’t taste bad at all |thumb

Table salt... not so bad.
 

The FDA's recommendations for sodium intake give you a full teaspoon of salt per day... That's a heck of a lot of salt.

When we actually look at your sodium intake, most of us find that the vast majority of it comes from prepared foods and the like - not from salt used as a seasoning. If you can cut out the foods that have 500mg of sodium per serving, you'll likely see a significant impact - without taking away salt as a seasoning. I recently compared a couple of items at the store. I have no idea what they were ... a sauce, a dressing, maybe a frozen lasagna or some such? One had 50-150mg of sodium, the other 500mg ... these were two different brands of the "same" item.

Depending on your current diet and body, if you watch what you're getting pre-packaged, you may be able to lessen the impact quite a bit.

Good Luck!

-jbn

i hate it when the time comes i need to control my eating habits. i love eating but i always make sure that i'll have my regular exercise :)

You are so correct. Stay away from frozen dinners but low fat frozen dinners usually have higher sodium then regular. Also check bread, crackers and the likes.

In general you can have all the frozen fruits and veggies that you like but read the labels on all canned goods and anything with more then 1 ingredient (i.e. mixed veggies with a sauce).

A little lemon juice, hot sauce, vinegar and even wine offers a little acid which is one of the things that salt offers. I've served many dishes with lemon juice and 0 salt to see if people notice. No one did :)

This explains those headaches, Jim.

You should be a good boy and take your pills and naps and coffeinfree coffee and avoid tea and you'll be ok in no time.

My sympathies Jim, I've had high BP for a few years, and I got the same bug eyes response from the doctor when he first took my pressure. However although you tend to panic when first diagnosed, and the pills can cause problems at first, you will find your body will 'get used to them'.

Just one quick point, although it is a good idea to cut down on the caffeine high drinks like coffee, tea, and cola. Do NOT switch to decaffeinated coffee. Decaffeinated coffee contains chemicals (used to decaffeinate it) that increase your blood cholesterol level. This will will not only undo the advantage of no caffeine, it often makes matters even worse.

I had an appointment yesterday and now my blood pressure is in the pre-hypertensive area. I have my own blood pressure machine and it appears to be accurate.

And, the headaches are gone. :) I often thought about high blood pressure but just kind of dismissed it. Even when the pharmacy machines said my blood pressure was high, I thought they were wrong.

As for coffee...I drink one cup/day. It's the Diet Pepsi that I have to cut down on. But, I have been drinking a lot of water since last Monday.

Oh yeah, I had a complete physical yesterday. The first one since I was in the Army back in 79. Nothing quite like a "woman" about the age of my Daughter feeling my balls. :) It wasn't fun...