Blood Pressure and Anxiety

[goodman]

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for taking the time to read my post.
I suffer from Health Anxiety and worry constantly about my body and its symptoms. I have had this i was a kid im now 35. Ive had every test under the sun and all OK, im under the care of a Psychiatrist, and General Practitioner. Im on a SSRI for anxiety and Valium when needed ( would have one once a month if that ).
From time to time i get a high reading for Blood Pressure, when im wound up or anxious its raised. Normally its 130-80 etc. Ive been anxious and emotional of late and last night i went to my Dr about something and he checked it and it was higher than normal. 158-100. (Ive had loads of ECG's a Stress Test a couple of years back all normal..)
It went back down in the nurses rooms to 145-90 about 5 minutes later however he said to stop me worrying they are going to do a 24 hour BP test and that way i wont obsess any more about it etc.
I'm a little anxious about it all and hope to God its normal. Does anyone get White coat or had a similar experience? Id love to hear from you.

Thanks so much
Jason

[AlexandriaUK]

Yes all the time, none of your readings are off the scale but your Dr is doing the right thing by getting your mind to except your BP is not a health problem but a by product of your anxiety.
Once you have done the 24 hr test your mind will not focus on it and it will settle back to normal.
Don't worry about it just be thankful your Dr cares enough to want to do something to ease your anxiety.

[Ruby13]

Yes, white coat syndrome is common. I also have high blood pressure readings at the Drs.

[AnxietyDJ]

I think most people go higher when visiting the doctor (I def do!). High BP is easily manageable these days, so even if you do need help, it really is nothing to worry about. A 24 hour test will help get a better picture overall and allow your GP to give the best advice and treatment that he can.

Aside from improving the aspects of your life related to stress and anxiety, it can be a good idea to manage your diet and exercise more effectively, if you can. Small changes in these areas can reduce your BP naturally without the need for medication :)

Good luck, hope you are doing well today :)

[Catherine S]

Mine is always higher at the docs too. In fact I have a home monitor...not ideal for health anxiety but ive had mine a long time and now only use it very occasionally...and my doctor asked me to take it with me on the next appointment because he didn't trust me when I said my BP was always lower at home, so he wanted to check the machine was working properly and of course the reading was really high even on my machine because I was in the doctors surgery!

My readings are usually around 138 over 80 at home but have been as high as 160 over 110 at the docs in the past. Taking propranolol has helped bring it down though. I'm 60 now so they don't expect my BP to be as low as someone in their 20s and even with a high reading its only a cause for concern if its persistently high for many years, then it might...might...do some damage, but as DJ said there are ways to control it really well. Ive also noticed that its come down quite a bit since stopping drinking so much alcohol in the evenings.

ISB x

[goodman]

Thank you so much for all of your replies. I'm just trying to stay focused and positive and come what may, I'm thankful i have had normal readings in the last six months and glad i can move past this once the test is done. I'm not over weight but you can always lose a little and my sugar and cholesterol levels are perfect. He thinks its my anxiety for sure and so do i but that little voice in my mind is like yeah but what if................

Thanks again!

[goodman]

Hi all

Had the machine fitted was super anxious at first with a reading of 180/110 at DRs got home went down to 140/79 then during the day been low as 114/67 and at night 120/60. Machine woke me up just then and I turned light on to see 126/67. When I was out to lunch and shopping was 150/90

Amazing to see how much it rises and falls!

[Female healthanxiety]

This post even made me quiver!! Blood Pressure and Anxiety.............:wacko:

I am the same - addicted to me having high blood pressure - not that I want it of course.

well mine have been anything from 130/180 - 85/120....

So really wouldn't worry at all...

Seems like your resting blood pressure is good - and your readings are not exactly consistently high, so chill!

I do know what you mean about how it rises. Apparantly just by getting up it can rise by about 10-30.

If I go anywhere other then my DRs and they ask to take my blood pressure - I freak! and say no only my DR can do it -- as they always make me feel uneasy and say Oh that is quite high - when my DR knows I have bad White Coat Syndrome!

x

[goodman]

Hi there,

My results came back all good, lowest at night was 104/62.
I think my average over 24 hours was about 125/70. Dr said it was perfect for a anxious person lol.

Cheers