Low Blood Pressure

[Barry]

My blood pressure is low 90/70, leaving me feeling like a slug much of the time. Doc has doubled my beta blockers in hopes of enhanced heart functioning, suggested I increase fluid intake, reluctantly suggested I increase salt intake (I use very little - never have. Don't care all that much for it).

Anyone else have any swell ideas for how to get your blood pressure up? I've asked the Romanian Women's Gymnastic Team for assistance, I know they could do it, but they are declining to help.

 

[strawberry]

How about watching the evening news? Taking the most congested way home? Try and get an eight year old girl out the door in time in the morning?Just kidding. Let me know if you find out. I run so low I can't stand up without blacking out. I was on the high school gymnastics team but I was no Nadia.

 

[Nan]

Sorry, I don't have any good answers, but I do know that some people actually can get used to a blood pressure that low, that it can be normal for some folks ( I am not one of them, I thought I was dying when mine got too low with Beta BLockers, the dose had to be reduced....)

Are you trying your doc's ideas of more fluid and salt etc? It might actually help if you can tolerate it. How about some chinese food? That has LOTS of sodium! If you like it...

Hope you feel better soon.

 

[Barry]

.... I thought I was dying when mine got too low with Beta BLockers, the dose had to be reduced....

Are you trying your doc's ideas of more fluid and salt etc? It might actually help if you can tolerate it. How about some chinese food? That has LOTS of sodium! If you like it...

Hope you feel better soon.

Yeah, I thought it was odd that with low BP the doc doubled my dose of beta blockers (25 to 50mg of Toprol), but she explained it to me and it made sense - that the increased function of the heart hopefully will raise the pressure more than the anti-hypertensive effect of the drug lowers it.

I've been drinking lotsa water, salting my food in moderation, I'll take my BP tomorrow and see if it's had any effect. As with most things, I don't expect immediate results. I'm hoping that the low BP isn't a sign of heart failure.

Maybe I could arrange to be subject to an IRS audit...

 

[PJmomrunner]

Barry:

That's the same dose, same drug I'm on. Are you taking it all at once or half in a.m. half in p.m? ( 25mg a.m., 25mg p.m. is what I do.) I was told if my BP is "too low" (hasn't been--nothing like yours) to drink "two big glasses of cold water". Maybe the "cold" part is important--I guess one's heart would have to work a bit harder to warm up the suddenly increased volume??? I haven't had any need to try it out. Good luck.

P. J.

p. s. #3 cat says "hi."

 

[Barry]

Barry:

That's the same dose, same drug I'm on. Are you taking it all at once or half in a.m. half in p.m? ( 25mg a.m., 25mg p.m. is what I do.)...

p. s. #3 cat says "hi."

I take it all in the evening. It's the time-release version, maybe that's why they're not having me split the dose. I explained to the doc that I was quite sure that Cocaine Hydrochloride USP would raise my BP, but for some reason she didn't think that was a really good idea...

I dunno if the temp of the water would make any difference, but I've since found on an internet search that low BP can be a sigh of dehydration.

PS Cat #3, huh? You moving to the country? Does your cat fully understand the implications of being numbered instead of named?

 

[McCln]

Barry

Barry

Have my SBC bill headache. I have been trying to get them to get the bill I paid credited to my account since February. Talked to some dumbies that made my blodd pressure go through. I was shaking from the anger this morning in trying to deal with someone. Finally, got home, had dinner, then called them again, got someone with a brain. So, you are welcome to my blood pressure raiser. Good luck on the meds and talk to the doctor about the salt,no sense in making you take in more salt than you want to do. Keep us posted.

 

[Barry]

...no sense in making you take in more salt than you want to do...

Not necessarily. There's an interesting family history here, especially in view of my low salt intake being simply a matter of taste preference and not a health decision. My mother became psychotic at one time due to not eating enough salt!

Very weird, all the symptoms of paranoid schizophrenia (a cabal of evil Catholic monks were conspiring against her and forcing her to do things against her will through their dark powers) along with the sort of general confusion and ditziness that one associates with dementia. To make a very long story very short, when, after long last we negotiated the system well enough to get mom into the crazy-place for treatment it turned out that the problem was that she had so reduced her salt intake that her electrolytes had gotten out of whack and she'd gone nuts. Cleared up quickly although, alas, she was never quite so sharp afterwards as she had been before.

Now, why are you evil Catholic monks conspiring against me, that's what I want to know!

 

[PJmomrunner]

Toprol XL half in a. m. half in p. m., Wonder Why?

Toprol XL half in a. m. half in p. m., Wonder Why?

Hey Barry - I didn't know it, but my Toprol XL is also time-released. I wonder why I was told to take it half in the a.m. and half in the p.m.

BTW, #'s 1, 2 & 3 stay indoors out here in the boonies.

 

[terryj]

My husbands blood pressure runs very low all the time since his AVR. He takes prinivil,lopressor,zocor,coumadin and wears a catapres patch. He also uses the treadmill everyday. Some days his pressure is 90/67. But,the doctors are reluctant to take him off any medications. He seems to have adjusted to the low pressure and it doesn't seem to effect his energy level. He never adds any salt to his food and he eats lots of fresh foods. One day his pressure went very low 86/55 and I told him to eat some potato chips(which he never eats), that seemed to bring it back up to normal for him. But, I didn't know if that was really a good idea or not. But, if you were told to do that I guess I did good with my suggesstion.

 

[Mb]

Hello!

My husband also takes a beta blocker. His blood pressure runs low as well. When it goes below the 90/70 mark, he will get quite faint. So he also splits his dose, and that seems to avoid that real drop in the BP. He is in a-fib, and it was always my understanding that the lower BP is actually good. Does dig also lower the blood pressure? He was on 50gms.of atenenol, but it got lowered about 2 years ago, as he was having a fair amount of dizzy spells. But, from what I understand the beta blocker is almost a must, as it prolongs longevity in CHF patients. - Marybeth

 

[Georgia]

Toprol XL

Toprol XL

I used to take Toprol XL and doc had me taking them twice/day; I asked her why - she said it was to keep the level of medication the same over 24 hours, rather than having it decrease toward the end of the 24 hour period.

(I went to generic metoprolol after a year, because the copay is half of Toprol)

 

[PJmomrunner]

Georgia:

That makes sense--on both counts.

P. J.

 

[Baldrick]

Believe it or not, 90/70 is still considered to be around the low end of normal. Mine was usually around 100/70 until my cardio put me on a low dose beta-blocker (12.5mg atenolol) to prevent expansion of my aortic aneurysm. Now I'm consistently around 85/55. She told me as long as I'm not passing out, that's fine.
I guess my point being that before you take drastic measures to raise your BP, first see if it either starts rising slowly on its own or you get used to the lower pressure.
If all else fails, bring your car out here and try getting across Midtown during rush hour...

 

[Nancy]

I think there is a point when low is too low. I remember when Joe had some pressures at 80 over (can't remember) and his cardiologists were very concerned. Your body has to have good blood circulation to keep things working, otherwise it starts to affect yout organ functioning.