226/119
I was upset because my BP pressure was still high. I received encouragement from my wife who said even though my pressure was higher than I wanted it to be, imagine if I wasn’t focused on it.
I have high blood pressure. I’ve been taking medication for it since I was in my mid-30’s. I consider myself to be in pretty good shape. Up until about 2019, I was a long distance runner, until a combination of incorrect meds and the “jab” put me out of running… for now.
I’ve tried everything from teas, beet powders, even a product called “Tiger Nuts” to lower my pressure. I bought a home blood pressure cuff and was checking my pressure regularly. Nothing seemed to work. I’m not obsessed with my blood pressure but I was hoping to find a treatment that would not require me to take the pharmaceutical trash the doctors prescribed.
One day I came home very upset because with everything I was doing, my pressure was still high. I received love and encouragement from my wife. She told me I was doing fine and even though my pressure was higher than I wanted it to be, imagine what it would be if I wasn’t focused on it.
Well imagine no more.
226/119.
First let’s look into these numbers.
We’ve all heard high blood pressure called the silent killer.
“Medical professionals call high blood pressure, also known as hypertension, the silent killer because it can go undetected for a long period of time and leads to death. Most people who have high blood pressure do not have any symptoms; testing is the only way to determine if someone has it.
Left untreated, high blood pressure significantly increases the risk of having a heart attack, stroke, brain aneurysm, heart failure, kidney failure, clogged arteries creating blockages in the legs, and dementia. High blood pressure also can lead to sexual dysfunction and vision problems, including blindness.”
Most of the reading I have done answers the question of why the folks in the ER were asking if I had any chest pain or dizziness, etc. It seems high blood pressure is only dangerous if your numbers are high and you have chest pain, shortness of breath, or symptoms of stroke. Stroke symptoms include: Numbness or tingling. Loss of feeling in the face, arm or leg, often on just one side of the body.
I did not have any of these symptoms.
My story goes like this; my medications were getting low and required my doctor to let the pharmacy know to refill my prescriptions. I’m on 2 medications. I called late on the first prescription and ended up going a long period of time without it. As the other medication was running out I called to get it refilled. I also called my doctor’s office to find out why they hadn’t refilled my first prescription yet. I was told they would take care of that. It turns out the doctor who should have called in the prescription refill went on vacation without calling it in. No one else thought calling in a prescription for blood pressure medication was important.
My second medication ran out on Friday, August 23. I had not heard from the pharmacy so I stopped by to see if they had my prescription. They did not. I was told the doctor had not called the order in. I wasn’t panicked but I decided to check my pressure on the machine in the store. It was 220/118.
Some level of panic set in.
So I had a decision to make. Do I ride out the weekend with no meds and a BP of 220/118 and hope for the best or do I go to the ER now.
I immediately went to the ER.
When I checked in I let them know my blood pressure was extremely high. When someone finally took my pressure they saw how high it was, asked me a few questions such as was I dizzy, or did I have any chest pain. My answer was no. I was told to go back to the waiting room and I would be checked in soon. I was called to another room where they took my BP again and asked me the same questions. I was sent out to the waiting room again. Soon two ladies came and took me to have my chest x-rayed. I asked why that was necessary and they said so they could see how my heart looked.
After that I was taken to a room where the nurse took my blood and my BP. That’s when it was 226/119.
I’m not a medical professional, but it seems to me that there should have been a higher sense of urgency when a 64 year old man presents with numbers that high. No one was in any sort of rush. Perhaps that was good so as not to increase my level of anxiety. Finally the doctor came to see me. He did not appear to be busy and he didn’t seem to care. He asked the same questions I had already answered. His tone and demeanor were as if I was wasting is time, since I didn’t present myself as being sick and needy. He told me he’d fill my prescription, provide me with some medication to take now and I then I could go home. I had to ask the nurse who released me the results of my blood work and x-ray.
My wife wasn’t happy that I didn’t call her on my way to the hospital. I’m hoping there won’t be a next time so that issue will be resolved.
I don’t like that I can’t get off this big pharma junk I take. These doctors, in my opinion, are legalized drug dealers. They don’t do anything to help you get off medications, because for anything that make you ill, they’ve got a pill or a shot or an inhaler for that.
Anyway, let me close by saying, I’m alive and kicking.
Don’t mess around when it comes to your health, but be sure to investigate ways to improve your health so you don’t have to take medications that cause more problems which require you to take more medications. Stay active, eat real food not processed trash and cut back on sugars.
If you plan to disregard everything I’ve said just remember the numbers 226/119.
Cecil, I’m a CRNA, the person you often meet when being put to sleep. The physicians have explained it better than I would as primary care/ internal medicine isn’t my specialty. I’m also on triple meds for HTH. Mine is genetic( my dad had HTN from probably 45 YOA til death) and also related to a non functional kidney d/t corrective surgery at age 12 that caused essentially a kink in the blood supply 40 years later. You know kidneys are directly involved in BP management and when the BP is chronically high, kidney damage will result. Other organs are negatively impacted as well. I see patients daily with HTN and many are black. Also disproportionately in black men diabetes and kidney disease often d/t poorly controlled BP and diabetes. Not knowing the rest of your health history, if I were you, I would want to know my kidney function. Your PCP can tell you that info based on lab results and depending on the results, I would consider consulting a nephrologist. I see one every 6 months and he has my BP dialed in. Kidney docs are thorough, IME, getting BP in line. PCPs are good but specialists are sometimes what you need to better manage an issue.
Abrupt stoppage of BP meds seems to have some refractory increase in BP that wouldn't normally be there if you were weaned off. Obviously not your fault for the abrupt stoppage, and good for you for addressing it directly and quickly. Regarding the ER, asymptomatic patients rarely will get much attention until an opportunity arises based on acuity. Wasn't there, but I bet a candid conversation by the doctor to you directly would have gone a long way in your assessment of their level of care. I try to tell my patients that if it bothers you, it bothers me. Regarding the "legalized drug dealer" comment, I think we deserve the heat. I'm truly bothered how complicit we've been in the very real issue of what we call "polypharmacy". There needs to be more accountability across the board between patients and providers. To be honest I truly believe it's the system's problem as we have let government and public health initiatives become priority over positive transactional interactions with providers and individual patients. We can all do better.