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94 YO independent mother BP meds question
My mother who has had a minor stroke 8 years ago and a pacemaker 5 years ago with a history high BP since then. Her cardiologist prescribed carvedilol 12.5 twice a day. And AMLOdipine 5mg, each morning. And, if her systolic BP is above 150, take 0.1 mg cloNIDine. I found out today she's been taking 2 of these regularly but not checking her BP every time because she claims she can feel it when her BP is too high. She's happy with the way things are going but I'm wondering if we should contact her cardiologist for clarification. After seeing her doctors dealing with her in the past, I get the feeling if she's got good vitals they don't want to mess with it. Any comments about BP meds and older folks is appreciated. I also have been on BP meds for many years after bypass heart surgery and I have had to tweak my meds many times. Thanks for reading
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Hi there! My father is 74 years old and had a stroke last year; his blood pressure is well-managed with carvedilol—I think it’s the same dosage you mentioned.
Since your mother’s on multiple medications, if it were me (or my father 🙂 I’d probably want to clarify with the cardiologist. I’m just that kind of person, and it does no harm to double-check, right?
In my family’s situation, we are all extremely sensitive to medication, and so the general philosophy, including with his care team is that the least amount of medications, the better.
Specific to the BP medication, my dad’s cardiologist advised him not to take it if his blood pressure was low enough. In fact, my mom is a retired RN who worked in a skilled nursing facility (aka nursing home), and she specifically asked him: “Is there a cutoff when he shouldn’t take the medicine?” And that’s when he gave us the cutoff, but I can’t remember what it is right now because I’m not the one who doses his BP meds. I guess it’s common.
Also, my dad was getting side effects taking a higher dosage and/or taking it too frequently. He was getting headaches, dizziness, and fatigue. Those side effects went away when adjusting the dose and checking his BP.
If your mom is bothered by side effects, it’s probably nothing to worry about, but it also wouldn’t hurt to double-check. I get that it can be a pain to check BP all the time, but maybe it’s one of those things where finding a super easy to use blood pressure cuff—for example I know they have ones that just go around your wrist—might be worth it if it would remove a barrier? Sometimes I have to trick myself into doing things >_<
Hope that helps to hear another family’s experience!
Ugh typo, I meant: “If your mom ISN’T bothered by side effects…”
Thank you for your comments. Simply put, my mother is bothered more by the idea she has to take anything from a big Pharma company. She listens to health podcasts for hours and has been the target of mail order vitamin sellers for decades and buys everything that sounds like it'll help her live to 122. She's an amazing specimen but she might even be better without the hundred or so supplements she takes. Her diet and exercise routine since she was in her 50's was amazing. She pumps so many vitamins through her kidneys who knows what effect it has had. But, when they didn't help control her BP, she listened to the doc. She manages her pills 100% and if she caught us looking in her box, I'd be out of the will. And that's bad since I'm her only child.
As far as side effects... she hasn't said anything outside of the issues she's been dealing with for years. She has problems with hearing, balance and aches that don't keep her from driving or navigating the cellar steps on a regular basis. When I try to explain the risks of steps and falling she says "it'll never happen to me." Even though she has fallen and had stitches three times in the las four years. She has no recollection of the six weeks she spent in a rehab facility after almost dying from a UTI in 2021. She finally told me she was having terrible pain in her back which she blamed on her PT. It was a UTI that had spread to her kidneys and she started vomiting. I had to pick her up and take her to the hospital because she wouldn't put clothes on. Sorry but it's almost funny how tough she is and thinking about side effects. I take her to get her toenails cut. She told the doc she was concerned about varicose veins she just noticed. He told her to get compression stockings. She's been using them for 7-8 years after seeing a circulation doc when we chasing a reason for her balance problem. She ends up selling the doctor a supplement for bone growth which I think makes her nails grow at an incredible rate. That's enough for now, sorry.