The leg issue sounds to me like possible early peripheral artery disease. Have the medications affected that?
Also, from my experience, it sometimes takes experimentation to figure out which BP drugs, singly or in combination, control with minimal side effects.
I have known people with complaints related to blood pressure and heart rate who went to Traditional Chinese Medicine Doctors who gave them herbs and acupuncture, and it resolved complaints that doctors told them would be with them the rest of their lives. I mean that in a few months they are as good as new with no medications or further care.
If you were my relative, I would tell you to see the western doc first, and get squared away according to western medicine. Then seek out an older TCM doc who provides herbs and acupuncture, and who was trained in China preferably, and have him try to massage your system while the western doc keeps an eye on you.
TCM uses more primitive tools than modern medicine, but they have been accumulating and using them for thousands of years and conscientiously perfecting the art, so the final product is much more nuanced than modern medicine which simply attacks everything with a jackhammer to get immediate results.
Your mileage may very but the people I know who use it swear by it, and view it like a secret weapon in health.
What worked for me to reduce cholesterol is Cholestoff...made from pine bark.
For BP and general fitness I started the "super slow exercise" also called "the power of 10"...reduced BP over time ..also increased my bone density by average of 4% in 2.5 years.
Quit smoking
Check the red wine...there was a scare a couple of years ago about high arsenic levels in cheap red wine.....my arsenic levels (measured with hair test) was high about that time.
Avoid Statins as can cause muscle loss and bad decision making with elders
Now am 75 190 lbs and uber driver.
I’m 58 with high blood pressure and a grade 2 over 6 heart murmur. I figured it could wait till it became 3 or 4 over six before I checked it out.
I had heart failure in July and needed emergent surgery to replace a valve and three bypasses. Moral of my story is get it checked and act earlier rather than later. I am improving some since the surgery.
Since your symptoms are pain in your legs and moving up into your arms it could also be aortic disease (the biggest blood vessel in your body) or vascular disease as opposed to heart disease though, it could be both. High blood pressure is bad for all of these. Quit smoking, take your meds, and get ahead of it before it gets worse. When you start to feel better don’t back off from the meds, diet or non smoking. You will want to but don’t.
Sounds like a possible TIA. You may want to get scanned. Mom’s been dealing with the same.
stressers in your life can contribute, including people stress, eating too much processed food, not enough sleep, water. I think it’s good you are aware of themes it happens, just look for other factors in your life that can contribute - plenty of ideas on web. Good you are under doctor care but many times lifestyle plays a bigger part than we think.
I was told by primary and cardiologist to start statin drug. I resisted for over a year as numbers kept getting more out of range. I finally made lifestyle changes and it dropped 96 points in less than 6 weeks. My primary got mad at me during that time for not starting the Rx statin and she took it up with the board and had me terminated from the practice while in the mean time I had scheduled with another provider in the same practice and had blood redrawn. When a woman from the admin office called to tell me she was resending me letter of termination that I did not accept at postoffice, I explained the first primary was pushing Rx drugs even though me and that primary verbally agreed I had no plans of taking any but vital Rx. I did not need Rx statin i need to change lifestyle and proof was shown when I had lab work by second primary and 96 point drop as well as my thyroid came properly back into range (first primary wanted to up my drug for that) The admin woman told me they would rediscuss and let me know if the board will allow me to continue to see 2nd primary or if I truly have to go elsewhere, which I will in time do, but right now juggling many things and no time to search out new primary that works with patient as a whole person and encouraging about life changes, not just dictate and Rx drug push.
Prayers for you to find your path to good health.
Your high blood pressure has probably already caused considerable damage. Take your meds and follow your primary doctor’s orders else you will die.
You need to see a cardiologist soon. Get a nuclear treadmill test. The Cardiologist will act on that information. My guess with your family history you are headed toward at least angioplasty if not by pass.
My understanding is that if you reduce SODIUM, you will decrease the amount of water your body holds and has to PUMP through the body.
That means no added SODIUM/Salt on foods and drinking lots of water/fluids.
It is my belief that my HIGH POTASSIUM was a FALSE POSITIVE.
I proved that to myself by INTENTIONALLY adding salt to my diet.
After that, blood tests should my POTASSIUM was normal...
This is hardly the place for medical opinions.
15 different posts could suggest 15 different things.
If your MD isn’t helpful,see another one.
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I more or less follow the training program laid out in the Body by Science book by Doug McGuff. I'd recommend seeing if you can find natural ways to reduce your blood pressure so you can gradually cut back on the amount of prescribed medications you need to keep the blood pressure down. In general, doctors don't know natural. Doctors know diagnosis and then writing prescriptions to treat symptoms while giving practically no thought to the underlying CAUSE to those symptoms. The cause of your high blood pressure wasn't a deficiency of those drugs you're now taking.
Time to give up the cigs bro. I was a half pack per day when I laid them down at 50. I still drink the red wine. :-)
SSDD. Lose the smokes. A world of good it will do you...
On those same drugs for six months. My numbers have barely dropped. Frankly, I believe the wee little bit they dropped was due to low carb and a bit of weight loss and not in any way due to the meds. They haven’t gotten me down to normal range.
Just a heads up. I was on Lisinipril and had to get off of it. At night it made me cough and cough and cough, I never got any sleep and had to keep cough drops under my pillow. It happens to some people. If it happens to you get to the doctor and tell them your symptoms. I am thrilled to be on something else that does not make me cough and I can sleep at night!!
He uses "blood pressure factors" by "Michael's naturopathic programs"
Includes:
--Vitamin D3 from lanolin
--Vitamin B6
--calcium (from/as Dicalcium Phosphate and Calcium Amino Acid Chelate)
--Magnesium (Magnesium Amino Acid Chelate)
--Manganese (Manganese Amino Acid Chelate)
--Potassium (Potassium Amino Acid Chelate)
And also included in the largish pill is a Proprietary combination of:
--Hawthorn Berry
--Apple Pectin
--Garlic Bulb Powder
--Hops flower
--Valerian Root
--Taurine
--Cayenne fruit
--Celery Seed
He also takes 2-3 tablespoons of Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar in water with some honey 1-2 times/day.
He has some beet powder as well as juice but hasn't needed them and tends not to take them.
He also takes rat fish liver oil from Norway (not cheap but powerful).
He also takes about 2-3 tablespoons of coconut oil 1-2 times/day.
Get off the lisinopril, that shit is poison. It should be outlawed. It can cause kidney failure.
Cayenne pepper reduces blood pressure very well.