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Anxiety monitoring blood pressure at home

Posted by lulu59 @lulu59, Apr 4 7:56am

I had normal blood pressure until around my early to mid 50s. I am 59. I developed white coat syndrome because of my BP getting higher. I don’t smoke or drink and I am a very healthy weight /thin with a zero score two years ago on a coronary calcium scan but had a postpartum stroke in 2009 from which I recovered quickly. I started a low dose of amlodipine in January. After two months no change. Two weeks ago my awesome PCP increased it to 5mg. I checked my BP yesterday. Still high. This is all just background. My specific issue is over the last year especially I’ve now developed so much anxiety around monitoring my BP that I can’t tell if it’s accurate. I need to check afain next week and weekly. I have the omron arm cuff and the link to the app. I’ve tried : 4-7-8 breathing which I do daily anyway. Watching fun distracting videos like the food network. Watching those calming type videos. I’ve done my best to make sure the arm cuff placement is correct. I have limited times if day to check given my life parenting a living in a small space but I find late afternoon is best. I work out in the morning and have my coffee in the morning and havent consumed caffeinated beverages during the day for many years. Please any other tips to calm my anxiety and get a proper reading ? I am very good at calming myself down in other stressful situations. I have my tools. Just not working with this and I do need to know if the increased dose is working. Thank you so much.

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lulu59 | @lulu59 | Apr 6 5:16am

Thank you ! Did you keep taking it at that time to get to “tedious “ or just at other times or days to decondition yourself? I’m of course nervous anticipating the result. And as you say the process makes it so much worse. Thank you very much again.

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jc8 | @jc8 | Apr 6 5:29am
In reply to @gloaming "I am not an expert, and cannot give expert opinions or advice. However, if you'd like..." + (show)
Profile picture for gloaming @gloaming

I am not an expert, and cannot give expert opinions or advice. However, if you'd like to hear what other physicians say about blood pressure, please take a look:


This is a Canadian team:

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@gloaming thank you for these videos. They should be required for BP information. We just lowered my mother’s medication and she feels much better and her BP and heart rate are fine.

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lulu59 | @lulu59 | Apr 6 6:38am
In reply to @roslansky "Try doing BP first thing every morning and diary the results. It will be a habit..." + (show)
Profile picture for roslansky @roslansky

Try doing BP first thing every morning and diary the results. It will be a habit and the anxiety may ease up once it is a routine. I know you’re busy but this should only take 5 minutes a day. Best of luck.

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@roslansky Thanks! I'm not in a situation to do that for several reasons and unfortunately it takes me a lot longer than 5 minutes given my situation and environment. I do appreciate your input -thanks! I do see the benefit of perhaps taking it more often. My device's app loads all results which I save to a file -thanks!

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jc76 | @jc76 | Apr 6 6:57am

@lulu59
Stress and anxiety will definitely raise your BP. Have you tried finding an exercise you like to do? With your doctors approval it can go a long way to reducing stress and anxiety and lesson the adrenaline that stores up in your body when under stress and anxiety (fright or flight hormone).

Does not need to be any professional level. Walking in a nice areas like woods walking trails, beach. I do water aerobics and love it. We exercise to music beat with water weights that come in all sizes.

Not into exercise. Look at a hoppy. Anything you would like to do that will bring a smile or enjoyment to you is going to reduce your anxiety and stress levels thus adrenaline being stored. When I post his information I always post (I am an avid reader of history books) that FDR during WWII spent an hour or more every day on his stamp collections. He loved (per history writers) his stamp collection. He also swam and would go to hot springs in Ga. because the water was full of salt and other minerals it would hold him up and become weightless.

Every consider yoga? I took this for many years until class stopped. I learned to deep breath, create a relaxing picture in my mind, stretches, etc.

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lulu59 | @lulu59 | Apr 6 8:02am
In reply to @jc76 "@lulu59 Stress and anxiety will definitely raise your BP. Have you tried finding an exercise you..." + (show)
Profile picture for jc76 @jc76

@lulu59
Stress and anxiety will definitely raise your BP. Have you tried finding an exercise you like to do? With your doctors approval it can go a long way to reducing stress and anxiety and lesson the adrenaline that stores up in your body when under stress and anxiety (fright or flight hormone).

Does not need to be any professional level. Walking in a nice areas like woods walking trails, beach. I do water aerobics and love it. We exercise to music beat with water weights that come in all sizes.

Not into exercise. Look at a hoppy. Anything you would like to do that will bring a smile or enjoyment to you is going to reduce your anxiety and stress levels thus adrenaline being stored. When I post his information I always post (I am an avid reader of history books) that FDR during WWII spent an hour or more every day on his stamp collections. He loved (per history writers) his stamp collection. He also swam and would go to hot springs in Ga. because the water was full of salt and other minerals it would hold him up and become weightless.

Every consider yoga? I took this for many years until class stopped. I learned to deep breath, create a relaxing picture in my mind, stretches, etc.

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@jc76 thanks! I've been working out regularly since 1982 (3-5 times a week plus walking miles a day otherwise, most days) and daily since around 2011 (I skip one day a year for religious reasons and will skip a day if I am very sick -typically I skip on average 2 days a year). I also do a lot of brisk walking every day as I walk to all errands and am on the move constantly. I don't do yoga as I focus on working out (limited time to devote) but I practice 4-7-8 breathing daily for years now. I agree that exercise is key and until my early 50s my BP was always normal. Thanks so much!

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lulu59 | @lulu59 | Apr 6 8:03am
In reply to @jc76 "@lulu59 Stress and anxiety will definitely raise your BP. Have you tried finding an exercise you..." + (show)
Profile picture for jc76 @jc76

@lulu59
Stress and anxiety will definitely raise your BP. Have you tried finding an exercise you like to do? With your doctors approval it can go a long way to reducing stress and anxiety and lesson the adrenaline that stores up in your body when under stress and anxiety (fright or flight hormone).

Does not need to be any professional level. Walking in a nice areas like woods walking trails, beach. I do water aerobics and love it. We exercise to music beat with water weights that come in all sizes.

Not into exercise. Look at a hoppy. Anything you would like to do that will bring a smile or enjoyment to you is going to reduce your anxiety and stress levels thus adrenaline being stored. When I post his information I always post (I am an avid reader of history books) that FDR during WWII spent an hour or more every day on his stamp collections. He loved (per history writers) his stamp collection. He also swam and would go to hot springs in Ga. because the water was full of salt and other minerals it would hold him up and become weightless.

Every consider yoga? I took this for many years until class stopped. I learned to deep breath, create a relaxing picture in my mind, stretches, etc.

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@jc76 I never had a hobby really but I am an avid reader and have a very busy life between work and parenting and housework -I like to keep busy, though. I love the input on how to lower BP generally as well as the input here related to how to monitor it more effectively.

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