Blood pressure question

[sarahp]

My BP was 120/60 this morning when I woke up (it's normally around 95/58 first thing in the morning) and was consistently around 120-130/60 all day.

I spoke with the cardiologists office and they said not to worry but keep an eye on it over the next week or so, and if it doesn't go down then to call them and they'll decide then if it's worth doing anything about.

Thanks all for your concern and advice!

 

[starryeyedtiger]

Originally Posted by sarahp

My BP was 120/60 this morning when I woke up (it's normally around 95/58 first thing in the morning) and was consistently around 120-130/60 all day.

I spoke with the cardiologists office and they said not to worry but keep an eye on it over the next week or so, and if it doesn't go down then to call them and they'll decide then if it's worth doing anything about.

Thanks all for your concern and advice!

Lots of vibes headed that way then that it's just a fluke and all will be ok!

 

[carolina]

& to you Sarah!!!

 

[strange_wings]

Originally Posted by StarryEyedTiGeR

Have you had Vaso-vagal Syncope ruled out by your cardiologist? It can cause dizzy spells, fainting, etc. If you're having dizzy spells, it could be heart related. I have that syndrome and have found a lot of relief with Fludrocortisone 2x a day. Just a thought.

So you finally got diagnosed with something going on with your ANS, but just that? hmm POTS was completely ruled out via tilt table test and catecholamine monitoring during tilt? Not that it matters, that much, since you're getting the correct treatment for that, though there may be other meds that could help you too.
Your florinef isn't a BP med, btw, it's just used because fluid retention causes raised BP as a side effect. If your meniere's wasn't a misdiagnosis, that steroid and the high salt diet you need with it could make the meniere's worse (I've came across others trying to balance the two before). It seems like some sort of cruel joke in those that have these two issues together.

Back on topic. One can have normal or high blood pressure and still have problems with not getting enough oxygenated blood to their brain because of episodes of orthostatic hypotension. You won't see anything when you're taking your BP unless you're looking for it (your BP falling directly after you stand or sit up from a different position). There's also the little problem that the BP in your arm doesn't necessarily reflect what is actually getting to your brain, that takes a specialized and uncommon test to check that.


As for vasovagal syncope - specifically the orthostatic related type, there would be a gradual fall in blood pressure when standing and sometimes sitting. You can try to look for this by standing up and taking your blood pressure every five minutes or so to see if there is a decline. If you can stand up and in place for a while (be it 10 minute to even an hour) this is probably unlikely. An example would be if you were 90/55 sitting, stood up and five minutes later were at 85/50, fifteen minutes after standing 78/45 and after that you couldn't stand (generally that doesn't happen that dramatically to me since tachycardia will push it back up to 80s/50s and fight to keep it up or BP won't fall at all because 150+ tach is rather effective)

However, heart issues can look a lot like this, so yes, please do push your cardiologist to make sure nothing has changed recently if this doesn't get better soon.

As sharky suggested, and in my post right before her's where I mentioned blood volume, you could be dehydrated. When your blood volume lowers it can make a person more sensitive to circulating adrenaline which could make the systolic look high while the dystolic is still low.

 

[tari]

Sarah, I'm glad to hear that you've talked to your doctor's office. I had a very similar situation when I was on Metoprolol...after I had been on it a while I started having occasional dizzy spells. I'd feel fine and then out of nowhere I'd start feeling very lightheaded and like I was going to pass out. When I'd check my blood pressure I'd get the same thing...the top number would be high and the bottom would be low. After a few minutes they'd go away, but I'd have kind of a weird disconnected feeling for a little while afterwards.

The last one I had was while I was on a trip with some of the pathologists I work with.

They took my pulse and found it was very low and told me to call my doctor and tell him that.

I did, and it turns out that what had happened was that the beta blocker was occasionally slowing my pulse down too much, causing the dizzy spells. The problem was solved easily by changing my blood pressure medication to a different kind of drug. (It's more expensive because there isn't a generic yet, but at least I'm not having the dizzyness.) Just like you, I had been on the Metoprolol for a while before it started happening.

If it happens again, you might try checking your pulse and giving that information to your cardiologist as well.