High Blood Pressure

[Pompal 09.]

Hi all! I was wondering about some input on this subject. Recently I seem to be having problems with high blood pressure. Symptoms include headaches, occasional dizziness, dryness of the skin and mouth (no matter how much I drink I feel like a grain of sand!) and tiredness. Yes, I have been under a lot of stress (as some of you may know) over the last two years and doing my best to try to curb it. I am under a doctor's care, and taking two medications to keep it down but would like to see if there are any alternatives that are available. Any suggestions?

 

[Sarah M]

I'm sorry you are dealing with this. You said you are on two medications. Since they are not really working, further medical investigation should be done. Was your thyroid checked? Low thyroid can cause BP problems, along with other serious symptoms. It can also cause dry skin and dizziness, among other things. Doctors tend to treat the symptoms, especially the ones that "require" meds like high blood pressure, when simply regulating the thyroid would result in less need (or no need) for those meds. Checking for thyroid issues is fairly rare, for some odd reason.

Otherwise, diet and exercise management is required for effectively treating high blood pressure. One of my favorite books is Prescription for Nutritional Healing - it lists lots of foods high in the vitamins/minerals that help, along with herbs. A lot of libraries carry it, now.

 

[Thistle (BU)]

I would speak to your physician to see if perhaps you shouldn't try a different medication. BP meds can be tricky and what works for one person, doesn't work for another. I had to try 10 different medications to find the one that would lower my BP without causing any side effects (one med I was on did lower my BP but it caused my entire body to flush red)

Good luck, try switching meds.....take care of yourself (all the typical suggestions....eat well, get rest, avoid stress, exercise)

Angie

 

[KaeleighDenise]

My thyroid was checked along with several other tests to make sure everything was normal, which they were. I was originally on just one med and she added a second one to assist the first. We have been working with the Omega 3&6 oils but thinking that I need to look at this more long term than short fix. Get too impatient at times! Thanks for the insite!

 

[Me ^.^]

Ugh, I'm dealing with this too...

I've been working with homeopathy and herbs, hoping to control it to the point of not needing pharmaceuticals.

A few things that are very helpful with HBP:
Passionflower and Hawthorne Berry tinctures
Co-enzyme Q-10
Vitamin E

Ditto the diet and exercise speech - harder to implement but a whole lot better for general purposes than popping meds.

Good luck, to us both!

 

[The White Guinea Pig]

Dodab,
I had troubles regulating my BP until the Dr. put me on a very mild dose of diuretics, along with keeping my original BP meds the same.
It really did the trick for me.
Might be worth bringing up to your Dr.
Good luck.

 

[HexagonalZebra]

My mother does rather well regulating her high blood pressure with herbs like cayenne pepper. You can take it in capsules so it doesn't set your mouth on fire Some people find that it upsets the stomach a little; this doesn't mean it'll give you an ulcer, though. If this happens, taking a few ginger capsules often does the trick, while also adding its own beneficial effect on blood pressure.

Check out: http://www.cardiologychannel.com/hypertension/treatment_naturopathic.shtml

Also, the book "Prescrptions for Nutritional Healing" by Phyllis Balch, CNC, may be extremely helpful to you. (My story: This single particular book changed my own life as it helped me understand that Zoloft and other antidepressant drugs are NOT the only way to control even moderate to severe clinical depression. Doctors said I'd be on meds the rest of my life. Well, it's been over 5 years Rx-free and I find I actually function better, with a higher quality of life, than I did when I was ON the meds!) I hope it does the same for you If you buy one book this whole year, make it this one!

Hugs,
~Jyoti

 

[RealEstate]

Dodab,
I had troubles regulating my BP until the Dr. put me on a very mild dose of diuretics, along with keeping my original BP meds the same.
It really did the trick for me.
Might be worth bringing up to your Dr.
Good luck.

The second med that the Dr. put me on was this. I have noticed, however, that the BP is much lower, by as much as 30 points, when laying down. When it was high I was feeling like crap, but have been more conscious of taking all of my meds and vitamins EVERY DAY and have noticed a difference in how I feel. I'll have to look into the cayenne pepper as well as the RX book, been wanting that one for a while anyway. Has anyone tried garlic? My grandmother swore by it.

 

[Pompal 09.]

I'm also dealing with this, and seeing a naturopath to treat it naturally if possible. We're doing a combo of homeopathy and herbs, in addition to the traditional "diet and exercise" routine.

Other things that are effective with HBP are Passionflower and Hawthorne Berry tinctures, and heart protective supplements are Co-Enzyme Q-10 and Vitamin E.

I'm hoping to avoid pharmaceuticals if possible, I'm still nursing my 20 month old. Coincidentally, I was hospitalized with pre-eclampsia and PIH, and my BP has never returned to "normal". Dang it anyway. :roll:

Good luck to us both!

 

[ericalynn429]

I have been taking in addition to the Omegas, Vitamin E and A. I did read the article that jyoti posted and noted the Q10, which I was not aware of and will look into getting. I do need to get more active, walking was what I use to do years ago, but have to admit I need a shoe horn to fit it in somewhere. The weather here in Michigan hasn't been to cooperative lately to do so, maybe I can start walking at the school in the evenings. :roll:

Good luck to both of us indeed!