Question about Blood Pressure Reading - Strange

susiestar

Roll With It
I know this is strange but please bear with me.

My husband has high blood pressure. Not terribly high, but still needs to be treated. He is now becoming a bit obsessive about taking his blood pressure.

Anyway, he is really strange in the morning. He has this idea that he must take the reading before he goes to the bathroom. I have never heard of this and have NO idea why this would be important. It actually seems that if you are dancing around to try to hold it then the reading might be higher than normal. but maybe that is too logical. This doesn't seem to matter at any time except in the morning - he seems to be taking a morning and evening reading and he INSISTS it has to be before he goes. but he wakes up having to go and is a real jerk about the entire thing. I am about ready to throw the machine away myself and tell him to drive into town to ahve it done at the fire station - they do it for free at any time. But he won't because then he would have to use a bathroom somewhere not at home. And he just won't do that.

Does having a bowel movement make that big a difference in a reading? Or any difference other than the stress of holding it making readings a bit higher and making you act like a jerk?

The meanie in me wants to start hiding the machine in different places and making him hunt for it - just to be as annoying as he has been this last week about this!
 

Andy

Active Member
Hmmm - I wonder if he is just following the instructions "When you get up in the morning" a little too precise?
 

Andy

Active Member
Found this: (he is looking for his lowest reading)

Blood pressure levels fluctuate throughout the day, with the lowest readings usually occurring when a person is asleep. Once a person rises in the morning, blood pressure levels begin to increase. Several medical conditions and lifestyle factors can also cause increases in morning blood pressure readings. Controlling these factors can help reduce blood pressure levels in the early hours.


Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/29182-causes-high-blood-pressure-morning/#ixzz1QOHIKtc4

Google "Blood Pressure Readings in the Morning"
 

susiestar

Roll With It
Andy, that might be the case but it would mean he would have had to READ the instructions. And he hasn't. I pulled them out of the trash right after he tossed them in - as soon as he opened the box. He is male so he figures that he doesn't ever need to read instructions. My mother was right. Testosterone kills brain cells.

His morning readings are not high, esp not since he went on medication. Actually all his readings are pretty good, which makes this even stranger to me. I wouldn't really care if he didn't make such a big deal about it and wasn't a total jerk as he did so.

Thanks for looking that up for me.
 

Hound dog

Nana's are Beautiful
Um. No.

I'd laugh except his obsessing about it isn't really funny.

But take it from someone who has spent YEARS taking countless blood pressures.......makes no difference. Blood pressure does fluctuate through out the day and can increase / decrease according to activity.

husband has REALLY high blood pressure that is untreated. mother in law had a wrist gadget that takes your b/p. Handy lil thing, accurate too. husband obsessed for weeks. Until I made it disappear. If you're not going to go to the doctor, what is the point? I also have high b/p caused by the kidney issues, really high sometimes. Yet I don't take it all the time. Oh.....if I notice some symptoms I know are related to it being super high I'll check it, otherwise, no.
 

KTMom91

Well-Known Member
I was taking my BiPolar (BP) morning and night for a awhile, too...but I went potty, pulled my hair back, and put on clothes FIRST. I would not have been very happy if I'd had my hair in my face and a full bladder distracting me.
 

susiestar

Roll With It
Lisa, with as dirt cheap as many beta blockers are, why on earth is your husband not treating his blood pressure? And YOU, my dear, are a NURSE who is not treating her own HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE???? EXCUUUUUUUUSE ME, I am SURE I didn't read that one right.

I know for a fact that you can get 3 mos of blood pressure medications for $10 per 3 mos - and that Wally World is making a FORTUNE in profit on betablockers at that price. They literally were $1.42 without insurance at the higher price local pharmacy here just three months ago. Cause that is what I paid for them. For husband, not me. Then his doctor got the idea that even though these were working fine he should change to a medication that was a combo of two medications. Now he gets both of those written separately and it will be $20 for 3 mos because the medications written separately are that price and together are about $40 per month. Sort of like taking plain generic sudafed and plain generic benadryl vs. the cost of even generic night time cold medication capsules. One is just way cheaper but they do the same thing.

Untreated blood pressure is a HUGE health risk. There is NO reason to not treat this. Even if you must sit in the free clinic waiting room all day, it is too important to ignore. Do you WANT to just drop dead and leave husband to allow Katie and M to move into your home and run off your daughter's and grandbabies? Cause you KNOW she will try and your husband will let her "just for a little while".

Please, even if you don't get husband to go get medications, PLEASE go and get medications to treat your own blood pressure. Please?
 

Hound dog

Nana's are Beautiful
Susie you're a dear. Mine IS treated, husband's is NOT.

Even with medications mine will go up and down due to water retention. :bigsmile:
 

Marguerite

Active Member
Straining to empty bowels would push BiPolar (BP) up. But a healthy person's BiPolar (BP) should stabilise again fairly quickly.

If he's busting to go, I suggest he goes. Then gets back into bed, reads for half an hour, then takes his BiPolar (BP). It should be back to a good morning resting rate by then.

Marg
 

JJJ

Active Member
How about keeping the BiPolar (BP) cuff on his bedside table? Thenn he just sits up, takes his BiPolar (BP), and then goes on with his day.
 
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