Out of interest Blood Pressure

[nonethewiser]

Take my bp every couple of months taking 3 readings then taking average of those, Omron monitor does this average for you.

Always take bp readings before diabetes check up & tell them what they are, they still check it in clinic but it's interesting how they can differ from home readings, like @Eddy Edson I do think keeping bp under control is as much important as keeping bg levels in check.

 

[indio02]

I do worry a bit that this might just be me getting older and less fit, but there's no way I should be at ~150 bpm most days. 120, sure, when I'm walking quickly (which is how I normally walk) or dancing, and maybe a bit above that when I'm dancing.

Went for a moderately quick 5k this morning ~8min/mile and max HR was 136 with an average of 125.
150 sounds painful! What are you using to measure your HR? Is it possible its giving you an incorrect reading?

 

[indio02]

I do think keeping bp under control is as much important as keeping bg levels in check.

Agreed, was speaking to a friend and it was the BP that 'got' his father not the diabetes.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

What are you using to measure your HR? Is it possible its giving you an incorrect reading?

I'm relying on my Pixel Watch. And yes, I wouldn't be that surprised if it's sometimes wrong. But it kind of feels like it's not too far out. In the GP surgery it matched the BP meter (I'd sat in the waiting room for ~10 minutes and walked up the stairs, and I was at ~140 bpm). And just feeling my pulse it's not that far out. So yes, I think there's something wrong, but I'm quite willing to believe whatever it is is awkward enough to determine that the best thing is just for me to take beta blockers to fix the symptoms.

 

[Eddy Edson]

I'm relying on my Pixel Watch. And yes, I wouldn't be that surprised if it's sometimes wrong. But it kind of feels like it's not too far out. In the GP surgery it matched the BP meter (I'd sat in the waiting room for ~10 minutes and walked up the stairs, and I was at ~140 bpm). And just feeling my pulse it's not that far out. So yes, I think there's something wrong, but I'm quite willing to believe whatever it is is awkward enough to determine that the best thing is just for me to take beta blockers to fix the symptoms.

Nothing like this, but I get "elevated BP and HR waiting-room panic syndrome".

Stuck in an air-conditioned beige doctors' waiting room wondering how late my appointment is going to start, my subconsious starts to panic like I'm in a sub-Twilight Zone B-movie where everybody on the plane actually died in the crash and we are all lost souls stuck in waiting-room-limbo for eternity, probably starring Lloyd Bridges.

I hate waiting rooms.

 

[Felinia]

I do home monitoring twice a year. 4 times a day for a 3 week period and GP records the average. I was originally told I had to get below 120/80 but I've been stable around 130/80 for years now on the maximum dose of medication, so the GP has accepted that.

 

[Inka]

I check mine rather intermittently. I might go a couple of months not thinking about it and then check a few days in a row and then weekly and then back to not checking again until I want a repeat prescription of HRT and I have to supply result. Not on any BP meds and BP is at the higher end of normal and has been for years. Very occasionally I get one just slips over into the amber zone but if I recheck it a couple of minutes later it is back in the green. The machine says my average is 129/77. Resting heart rate is usually 60-65, very occasionally high 50s. I probably should be more diligent about regular checks.

That’s like me. I bought a meter a year or two ago, planning to do regular checks, but I keep forgetting. The only time I remember is when I’m rushing around stressed and I think “I bet this has put my blood pressure up!” but then, of course, I don’t want to check it at that time because it might be unnaturally raised. When I’m sitting down calmly in the evening, I forget all about it!

I do think keeping an eye on blood pressure is important though. A family friend has just had a stroke and, unknown to them, had very high blood pressure that had clearly developed since their last GP check.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

Nothing like this, but I get "elevated BP and HR waiting-room panic syndrome".

I sometimes get higher BP (and they measure it twice to counter that). I don't recall higher HR but it wouldn't be a shock. And generally I can imagine a diabetes review being a bit stressful but in this case it just wasn't: I hadn't got the results (HbA1c, cholesterol, etc.) before but I was pretty sure they'd be fine and they were. (HbA1c of 50 (so slightly down), total cholesterol low, LDL low, all other tests fine).

It can happen, though, so I hope anyone with high BP is helped to test at home, too. (Seems like a cheap intervention to offer a BP meter for a week or two for people who can't afford to buy one, just to see if it's also something that appears outside medical settings.)

 

[rustee2011]

Well, I started this morning on one called Indapamide. Dr is aware of the ones that messed me up before. I read it widens the blood vessels. Which in turn helps lower it. Fingers crossed it does the trick, along with the amlodipine.

 

[Sarahp]

Really hope your Gp can help you

 

[Inka]

Hope it works for you @rustee2011

 

[Eddy Edson]

It can happen, though, so I hope anyone with high BP is helped to test at home, too. (Seems like a cheap intervention to offer a BP meter for a week or two for people who can't afford to buy one, just to see if it's also something that appears outside medical settings.)

Price is pretty low for a decent home device these days, and I'd be surprised if the health economics of prescribing a device for at-risk people weren't better than eg prescribing BG monitors for general T2D's.

Anyway, my home read is always around 105/65 resting, these days. Sometimes my surgery read is the same as that, sometimes higher - generally correlated it seems with how long I've had to wait in the waiting room 🙂

I've validated my nifty little Omron wrist gadget against my doc's system, and we just go by my home reading now, given how stable things are.

 

[nonethewiser]

Price is pretty low for a decent home device these days, and I'd be surprised if the health economics of prescribing a device for at-risk people weren't better than eg prescribing BG monitors for general T2D's.

Anyway, my home read is always around 105/65 resting, these days. Sometimes my surgery read is the same as that, sometimes higher - generally correlated it seems with how long I've had to wait in the waiting room 🙂

I've validated my nifty little Omron wrist gadget against my doc's system, and we just go by my home reading now, given how stable things are.

Odd that as when looking for bp monitor many years ago Dr told me to avoid buying wrist version as they won't that reliable as upper cuff type.

 

[Eddy Edson]

Odd that as when looking for bp monitor many years ago Dr told me to avoid buying wrist version as they won't that reliable as upper cuff type.

I think the issue is that the unit needs to be aligned with your heart for accuracy. The more recent wrist devices have a sensor which tells you when it's properly positioned.

 

[rustee2011]

Wow... Most I have seen as a response to my question. Excellent.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

I only take mine occasionally a couple of times a year. Plus it gets checked annually, of course.

Where I’ve had readings that were a little on the high side I’ve checked more frequently until it has settled again.