Hey everyone, been a little while.
I have a concern and hope people here can help.
I went to doctor yesterday because I did my BP at Walmart and it was 140/90, went directly to doctor and was pretty much the same, a little lower on one arm? Panic attack between Walmart and doctors.

I've been on Weight watchers since November, lost 15 pounds, still 20 overweight .. but have beeneating well and exercising at least 4-5 times a week, and have had about 2-3 glasses of wine a night, maybe other alcohol on weekend binges.

PLEASE don't tell me I need to go to AA.

Here's my question issue ... and I would have thought NOTHING of it before yesterday, I am a travel agent, so travel often. I am leaving Thursday March 15 for an all inclusive vacation. YES, I drink while I'm away, probably excessively, not to the point of drunkeness every day but I know I drink all day ... and eat, because you can't do that here. I was just away in mid-January as well.

Friends of mine who have high BP, told me not to worry ... I'll be fine ... now as is always the case of Ms. Worrywart, I'm afraid I'm going to get there and have a stroke or something and I haven't slept all night with worrying about it.

PLEASE your thoughts? you could post here or email me at shine@thetravelnetwork.com

Greatly appreciated.

Hey Shine,

I would doubt you are going to stroke out on vacation. Your blood pressure is just borderline, five years ago it would have been normal per some docs!!! They just changed the guidelines. What do your other labs say? Total cholesterol et al?

Good for you on your weight loss! No small feat there!

I just want to say that your drinking is more excessive than is healthy for your heart. They say one glass (4 oz) of red wine per day has curative results, whereas, more will not have any health benefits and actually hurts your health. I'm not sure what to make of the AA comment, unless you're thinking that your drinking has become a problem or you're getting comments like that from others??? Can you limit your drinking to one glass of wine at night? And maybe just a bit more on the weekend?

I know it's so hard in your line of work. It's all about the socializing while working.

I hope that you'll just go on your trip, be thoughtful overall, and relax and enjoy.

Peace and love
Bonnie

Thanks BONNIE !!! First of all for replying to my post, but secondly for helping me through this. I just had all my other labs done as a matter of fact, everything including my EKG was perfectly normal, he did mention my cholesterol was just a tad bit over normal, but nothing that they wouldhave called me for.

I make wine, I drink wine ... I never really thought it was a problem, honestly ... until I started WW. 3 glasses is 6 points so I've been eating less/working out to ensure I could have my wine at night ... weekends, I tend to imbide in other drinks, either vodka or yummy drinks, like Dooleys or Kahlua ... my treats to myself for the weekend. I have heard others tell me to battle my alcohol addiction before battling my weight loss and it angered me, quite honestly ... my leaders and others at WW meetings all drink and as long as they "count" for it, no one seems to have a problem.

I plan to follow the one drink a day when I return from Vacation, just before I"m off again in early April on the next one.

Thanks again, I KNOW that worrying sets a whole bunch of new symptoms, in fact, just reading up on BP, I think I'm having a brain stroke small sharp headaches, teeny bit of blur now and then ... see what I mean ... I've been real out of it yesterday and today probably because of the stress of all this.

Shine

What did your doctor say, regarding the numbers? Did he suggest anything be taken for it, ie, clonodine or aspirin even?

I just had mine taken too, once by my gyno (who told me the number in a rather strict voice) 129/90; and two weeks later my gp 125/90) who was dismissive, and said it was at the high end of normal, but neither made suggestions to lower it.

I asked my gp how much varience there could be on a daily basis, and he said it swings up and down all day, and all night. He also commented that police often had the highest numbers about 2 hours before awakening, in anticipation of daily stress.

Shine I agree with the girls dont think its anything to worry about, especcially because you are doing so great on the weight loss.
I do agree though since you say you drink alot on your travel trips can you please try and cut down on it, it isnt good for you its hard on all your organs everything in moderation right? Also on the eating since you say when you are away you eat alot to. I am so proud of you though for losing the weight I have been trying and its so hard it seems as if it is just stuck on like glue
I Also have had bouts with BP spikes now that I am I get them at the end of my period and right now am having a few naughty days like 140/80 or 127/75 see these numbers arent great but not to be alarmed about. Doc put me on diuretics and potasium I am not crazy about being on any meds but I think these are minimum meds not as strong as BP meds.
I agree with bonnie that your numbers wouldnt have been a problem a while back before they changed the numbers.
Now something real important when we are out and about rushing around our numbers probably are higher you were at walmart moving about.
I take mine at home after sitting for at least 5 or 10 min., having done my pee pees, and sitting with both feet on the ground and my arm on the desk.
So just keep an eye on it, enjoy your cruise take some valerian tea with you when you arent having your drinks and it can relax you.
I drink one called 7 blossoms or siete azares and its a blend of many soothing herbs and I add a splash of honey and lemon.
Have a wonderful trip,
Tinks

Shine, Just want to say that alcohol will have different effects on different people. I for one have high BP and if I drink over one glass of wine in the evening, my BP will stay elevated for many hours and I am on medication!! My numbers were like yours for many years and then shot up. The older you get the less elastic your vessels are.
I like a glass of wine in the evening but am actually thinking that I may have to abstain all together because of my blood pressure and seeming to be more sensitive to alcohol the older I get.....



SusanC

Shine: Lord, you could be me. Those all inclusive vacations are fun, but they can do a number on your body. I too, over-drink on them...after all, you're in paradise, they're free, they're delicious, etc. I can almost bet you a hundred bucks that if you stopped drinking alcohol all together for one month, your BP would drop like a rock. This is what happened to me. I was always 140/90 (which by the way is NOT high enough to stroke out...do you know how many people are walking around with these same numbers??? TONS.) I stopped drinking completely for 3 months. My BP went to 108/70 and stayed there. However the decision to drink or not to drink is an intensely personal and private one, so I won't give you any advice there. I do, however, have a suggestion, based on something I did the last time I went on an all-inclusive to Aruba. I drank as much as I wanted to, but I made my self go to the gym every morning and do 30 mins on the exercise bike. I know you're probably thinking "yuk, vacation + exercise = no way!",but honestly, it alleviated my worries and fears and allowed me to enjoy myself more because I knew I was doing at least one good thing every day for my body..to counteract all the naughty, fun stuff! If you can't stand the thought of going to the gym, how about a one hour brisk walk on the beach (or round the resort...not sure where you are going...) every morning. You'll feel great afterwards, trust me. And you won't fret as much about your health.

Let us know how you make out. Oh yes, the next time you're worried about whether you are having a stroke or not, I read about this test you can do:

1. Raise your hands above your head.
2. Smile.
3. Say a complete sentence.

If you can do all of these things normally, (ask someone to observe you), you are NOT having a stroke.

Hope I helped some...have a good time on vacation!!!!

Robin

Tinkywinkerbean

I see you're on duiretics, and are not dead chuffed about it... I've had this issue all my adult life I wonder if this would suit you? (In the summer, I retain so much water you could float the Spanish armada in my ankles. I used to rub the souls of my feet raw rubbing them against the wood frame of our water bed.) I don't use Rx for it any more; instead I found I could get relief from

*tossing 4 or 5 juniper berries in my coffee pot
*eating cucumbers, or drinking the juice of,
*making tea out of the peel of dark coloured oranges. The darker the red or orange colour, the stronger the effect.
*Asperagus, my personal favourite. oooh I could do with an asperagus sarny right now, in fact....

I'm sure there's more kitchen-cures, and its one less script to buy. I've got more than enough of those.

Tinks...Hey you little bug you! This numbers stuff gets lower and lower every time I wake up in the mornin' Your numbers look really good to me as one who has had hypertension since she was 37 and ran 120/90 in my 20's. My concern with going to the doctor now is that they want to keep bringing my numbers down and even when I am "good", for me, which is 130/80, they want to throw more meds at me and then I turn into one big zombie. Sigh.

SusanC
A.K.A. careergrl

Hey Susan, I read with interest your post. My blood pressure has always been good. Last April when all this peri stuff began happening, tingling, anxiety, sleeplesness et al, weight gain (up to 164, though, I can't actually call shoving food in my mouth without a single thought, or nary one purely meno related) and health anxiety my BP was inching to 135/80. It took 9 months of fear before I found this web site, and voila, I am doing better, we joined WW, lost 16 pounds and then checked with the doc again and my BP dropped back to normal!

He said that even though I didn't look over weight, dropping those 10 pounds or so had a serious affect on my BP and it's the perfect example of what they are always saying, drop ten pounds.

Just wish it were easier. Right now I've made this awesome garlic pasta with veggies and chicken, then I had an RC, and a little bag of Jay's dill pickle chips and topped it off with a Nutter Butter ChocoStix. Oh, it's hard to be good. And gosh, why come up with something as good as those chips and those chocolate sticks? LOL.

I have to run. I should have been running from a while ago.

Peace and Love!

Hi Bonnie! You know, I was just thinking about something my mom told me re; weight and high BP. When she took off 30 pounds ,she was able to go off of all meds except 12.5 Mls of hydrochlordyzide...she has always told me that the weight off is the ticket for the lower pressure. So, I was lookin' at my spare roll this morning which is called a menopot by More Magazine(don't ya just love 'em, NOT) and thought, well girl, you better take off ten. I'm going to give it a try and see if the BP comes down.

Hugs,
SusanC

Speaking from my experience as a former nightly heavy duty wine drinker (almost 2 bottles a night), alcohol definitely raised my blood pressure. My borderline to high BP was resistant to daily consistent exercise, attention to diet and weight loss. My BP went from an average of 145/90 down to 108-110/60-70 approximately 6 months after I quit alcohol all together.

That said, there may be different factors as to why yours is borderline. Genetics, aging, hormones and yes those last 20lbs may be contributors. If you really want to get it down, you need to work on eliminating one thing at a time and see if it makes your BP drop. Alcohol was the primary reason was mine was teetering on the high side.

Thanks so much everyone for your replies, they have helped me tremendously !

I DO plan to cut back to one glass of wine a day, it is a definite goal!

BUT, after the All inclusive vacation, that was my main worry ...

Thanks again, and I just hope it doesn't go UP while I'm away, as I did plan to exercise as much as possible as well.

Anybody interested in a "drop 10 for better bp" thread?

Barrie??? I did 1 to 4 in London!

Yeah Duch! I think that would be a grand idea...a drop ten for better BP. I am willing to try.

SusanC

What's 1 to 4? grades?

Thanks again everyone, I'm feeling a little better today, at least I slept last night ... I wish I didn't dwell on every little thing ... I REALLY want to just enjoy this vacation.

Career Girl - how about a weekly report on weight gain or loss? If the individual chooses the day, maybe each one can choose the day of the week that she's best able to also get a bp reading from a public bp machine.. or do you think the anticipation would drive up the numbers?

Shine - sorry. Hubby was at UWO, in London. They wouldn't let grad students leave campus for more than 2 wks year or the students - called it residency, hence the 1 to 4 crack.

i need coffee - should read "They wouldn't let grad students leave campus for more than 2 wks year - called it residency"

Duch, I think that's a grand idea. Once a week weight and BP check. I have my own BP monitor at home. I weighed myself this morning and have yet to check my pressure. I am going to keep a weight and BP journal. The thing that drives mine up is going to the doctor, "white coat syndrome", so I don't think mine will go up in the comfort of my own turf...if ya get my drift.

Where should we start the thread?

SusanC

P.S. Monday will be my day...why not start the week off with a Bang! says she

I have a bloggish thread, called "horse and hound", but I think a new thread is needed to attract anyone else who wants to drop a few, for or not for bp. Perhaps under the heading of "Weight, Eating Disorders, Fitness". YOu could pick an existing thread, or just start a new one.

I think Monday is a good day, too, but Sunday is the more likely day for a bp check. The key is consistency, I think, so I'll try for Sundays. As it happens I weighed myself first thing this morning and was up a whopping 4 lbs over night. Must be the pizza. I swear they put salt on those things as if they're to be used by the Highways Department during blizzards.Anyway, if I started today I'd have an unrealistic weight drop by Sunday. I put on a few peri-pounds around jan-feb-march of last year. Just enough to not be able to wear my new Christmas clothes. Deeply annoying stuff. I dropped about 8 lbs over 7 months, so as you can deduce, I'm no wizard at this stuff. Tenacious, yes, but not super-driven.

PS I'm jealous of your bp monitor. I want one too.

This is an interesting thread. When I first started having peri symptoms and my heart was going all weird I went into the doctors office and my BP was 140/90. I remember the nurse asking me if I had been drinking. I do think alchohol will raise your pressure.

I too check my pressure at home since I have the white coat and it is usually pretty good. It still can be 138/85 or something but most of the time it is 115/70. I would like to loose at least 5 lbs too. I know I gained it over the holidays and winter. Even though I exercise every day the darn pounds just stay on me like glue. (

Mopsy

Guess what?
I had to do it !
I'm leaving tomorrow and I just HAD to know before I left, or get reassurance, I don't know.
Went BACK to my regular doctor today, my BP was 128/78 (or something like that) ... he was surprised by the weekend reading and we went over previous readings and they were all "normal".
STILL, it awoke me to a few issues ... I'm going on this vacation, I"m enjoying myself but have new rules and goals for regular every day life upon my return.

Oh yeah, I also weighed in today, now down 14.8 pounds ... we'll see how THAT goes next week away

TTFN and thanks again for all your kind words and reassurances.