What is the best natural thing to do for high blood pressure?!
Question: I am 56 yrs. old and have always had low blood pressure. Just recently my blood pressure has gone up. I have had severe head aches, lots of pain in my chest, arms and cramps in my back and legs... Since I have acid reflux also I never know if the pain is from that... I am on thyroid medicine. I thought maybe it was too high. The Dr. says no. I was put on 25 mg Metoprolol once a day. The last few days I have been taking it twice a day because my blood pressure has been going up in the evening also. I feel real awful when my blood pressure is high. It is very hard to function... I have 3 teenagers to care for and am finding it almost impossible....
Answers: I am 56 yrs. old and have always had low blood pressure. Just recently my blood pressure has gone up. I have had severe head aches, lots of pain in my chest, arms and cramps in my back and legs... Since I have acid reflux also I never know if the pain is from that... I am on thyroid medicine. I thought maybe it was too high. The Dr. says no. I was put on 25 mg Metoprolol once a day. The last few days I have been taking it twice a day because my blood pressure has been going up in the evening also. I feel real awful when my blood pressure is high. It is very hard to function... I have 3 teenagers to care for and am finding it almost impossible....
i'm 30 and have high blood pressure already. it used to be low, but i started taking an antidepressant that caused my bp to rise. some things that have helped me a lot:
1. change in diet. low/non fat, low/no cholesterol, low sodium. cut out red meat, or better yet, all meat (beside fish), cut out/down on cheeses (esp. hard cheese), try to cut out sodium as much as possible, cut out caffiene and alcohol if possible (i still love coffee, but i'm drinking much less). cut out all processed foods.
2. don't smoke. that is a really big one.
3. manage your stress. meditate when you can; and remove yourself from stressful situations if possible, even if only for a few minutes.
4. garlic is shown to help blood pressure. also, i SWEAR by flaxseed oil, and fish oil and primrose oil (taken separately) are also proven to help. vitamin E improves heart function and acts as a blood thinning agent (do not take with prescribed blood thinners). take your multi vitamin too!
5. eat a high fiber diet (very important) and lots of fresh fruits and veggies.
6. avoid over the counter cold and allergy meds and anti histamines.
7. ask your family if you snore when you sleep. people with hypertension often suffer from sleep apnea, which can effect high blood pressure.
8. excersize! (i know, it sucks) at the least, try to walk at least 30 minutes per day. aerobic excersize seems to be the most effective for lowering blood pressure. it also helps to maintain weight, which plays a major role in blood pressure problems.
these are just a few of the things you can do to help. there are good books out there to help you out too.
The best natural thing to do is to limit the amount of sodium in your diet. Stay away from foods naturally high in sodium and do not add salt to ANYTHING. I would also advise you talk to your doctor. If the metoprolol alone is not controlling your blood pressure you probably need to be on a different drug or a combination of drugs. There are many other drugs that you can use in addition to metoprolol. I am always leery of taking herbal supplements to control blood pressure as they are unreliable and often times inconsistent. Call your doctor fairly soon as high blood pressure can carry serious consequences.
The only natural things that I have found to work is plenty of exercise and staying away from caffeine and salt. My sister had a similar problem with her blood pressure going up at night. The doctor gave her a vasodialator (catapress) that seems to have cleared up the problem.... She is 42. She had previously tried taking her regular blood pressure med as you did twice a day, but the doctor thought that the cause of her blood pressure problem was hormonal and a different type of med would be better. Ask your doctor about it.
Better Stress Management....
You said NATURAL.....
Otherwise a mild sedative, legal or illegal....;-).....
Your teenagers will know about the illegal ones....
Remember, DEATH will also cure the high blood pressure issue.....
Sodium sensitivity is a significant factor in hypertension.
Hydration can also make a difference so drink a lot more water and cut out coffee and especially soda with artificial sweeteners.
Family history can be a guide but if your parents or grandparents seemed "fine" with a particular thing in their diet, don't take that as a green light for your diet. The new field of epigenetics suggests that gene expression is more complex than anyone ever imagined.
Let your doctor worry about your "sickness" and focus on wellness. That's the other side of the coin and that's the part which is your responsibility.
Good luck!
You're just going to have to take time to take care of yourself. You also need to talk to your physician because you are taking more than the recommended dosage of the metoprolol. Metoprolol is one of many beta blockers used to treat hypertension; there are also things called calcium channel blockers and ACE inhibitors your doctor could try with you. Stress does have a huge effect on your blood pressure. I'm a nursing student and tend to go, go, go. I ended up at the doctor w/ a blood pressure of 156/101 and I'm 22. I'm having to prioritize and realize that my health comes before an A, or before trying to be a super friend, super daughter, etc. Talk to your teens and tell them that you need for them to help pick up or you may cause yourself serious illness or death. If they argue about not wanting to, just remind 'em that if you've passed away, then they won't have any of your help at all.
Fish oil, garlic and many other natural remedies that you can find in a search for "high blood pressure" + "natural remedies".