My blood was boiling!

Okay, that’s dramatic, but I was shocked at the doctor’s office when my blood pressure measured at 184/92. What?!! The nice medical assistant took it a second time: 170/85, and a third time: 182/90.

What is going on? I’ve always been proud of my good health. I don’t take any medications, exercise five days a week, and eat plenty of colorful foods. (Thankfully, I’ve never been tormented by food noise.) But suddenly, I have hypertension?

I began logging my BP, and it seems the first high reading was an anomaly. Still, my baseline after taking several readings was around 140/84. I visited my primary doc for the annual checkup and she asked me to take a full month of readings. All through June, I diligently measured and Bill even bought us a fancy new cuff. Turns out, my baseline is more at 130/82. According to my doctor, it’s an excellent average blood pressure for my age.

Before I did the June measurement, the doctor was all set to prescribe medication. I asked her to hold off until we got a good look over a month and I’m very glad the readings were average. No meds for now but, trust me, I will happily take the prescription if needed. Who needs a stroke?

One trick to lowering my BP is a daily walk. If I walk 30 minutes and take my BP, it reads around 120/80! I’ve also lowered my daily caffeine intake.

If you’ve found solutions to lower your blood pressure, please share them with me. And just for fun, take a month of your BP. You might learn something that could save your life.