The Dangers of High Blood Pressure.

This post on blood pressure is sponsored by Aeroflow in collaboration with Chronic Illness Bloggers.  As always, all opinions remain my own and were not influenced by the sponsor.

Do you know what your blood pressure is?  When was the last time it was measured?

The first time that someone told me I had high blood pressure, or hypertension, was about three years ago.  I was at my OBGYN’s office getting checked in for my annual exam, and the woman holding the monitor asked if the 130/90 measurement was normal for me.  It wasn’t, but at the time I was two weeks out from my move to Germany so we thought that I was just stressed.  I figured it was a one-time thing, especially because I had been in the 120/80 range for all of my adult life.  Surely that measurement was an anomaly.

Wrong.  A few months later I was sitting in a rheumatologist’s office in Germany, seeking answers for the pain that started ravaging my body shortly after our international move.  He pointed out that my blood pressure was too high at 140/100.  Yet, he didn’t say another word about it or offer any sort of treatment.  The pain specialist that he referred me to also failed to address my hypertension.

When I returned to the USA a year later I had a flood of doctor’s appointments.  At each appointment someone would take my blood pressure, see that it was high, joke that I must be nervous, and move on to the next thing.  There were so many other things wrong with my body that I didn’t think much about it for several months, until I starting having symptoms of stage two hypertension.  My primary doctor then prescribed medication for chronic hypertension in addition to recommending lifestyle changes and a home blood pressure monitor.

The medical staff treating me should not have ignored my high readings for so long, but I am grateful that I showed symptoms and received treatment before it became more serious.  It is actually rather rare for people to have symptoms before things become critical.

I don’t want you to suffer from the consequences of untreated chronic high blood pressure – it’s too hard on your body.  So in this post I will discuss the dangers of high blood pressure, why it’s important to monitor your blood pressure at home regularly, and how Aeroflow can provide you with a monitor and a full range of support.

The Dangers of High Blood Pressure.

What is high blood pressure?

Let’s take a moment to review what blood pressure is and what the numbers mean.  Every heartbeat is your heart squeezing in order to push blood through your arteries.  The force of the blood against your vessels is your systolic blood pressure – the top number in a measurement – in mmHg (millimeters of mercury).  The pressure of the blood when your heart is resting in between beats is the diastolic pressure, which is the bottom number.  That’s why it will be lower since your heart is resting and the flow of blood has briefly slowed.

Systolic pressure can fall into these categories:

• < 120 is normal
• 120-129 is elevated
• 130-139 is stage one hypertension
• 140 is the start of stage two hypertension
• 180 or more is hypertensive crisis

Diastolic pressure follows a similar pattern, although the numbers are lower:

• < 80 is normal
• 80-89 is stage one hypertension
• 90 is the start of stage two hypertension
• 120 is a hypertensive crisis.

If your blood pressure is higher than 120/80 then you should be treated for whatever stage you fit into – once you reach stage 2 hypertension, like myself, you will likely receive medication as part of the treatment.  A hypertensive crisis means that you need immediate medical attention.

More than likely you won’t be able to tell when your blood pressure if fluctuating so you will need to check it – which is why it’s so beneficial to have a quality monitor from a company such as Aeroflow.

My current blood pressure medication, labetalol.

Why is high blood pressure dangerous?

The American Heart Association states that your risk of cardiovascular disease doubles every time your blood pressure rises by 20/10 above the safe level.  Recently, their recommendations for beginning treatment have lowered from 140/90 to 130/80.  They are rightfully insisting that high blood pressure be treated earlier and more aggressively due to the fact that it can put so much stress on your body, particularly your heart and kidneys.

Almost half of Americans have high blood pressure and few are aware or concerned about their blood pressure.  This is partially because people assume they will physically feel any high blood pressure in their body, but that is one of the biggest myths about hypertension.  The vast majority of people have no symptoms of high blood pressure until it becomes critical.  Unfortunately, the first symptom is usually a stroke, heart attack, or kidney damage.  Statistically, someone in the USA dies from a cardiovascular event every 43 seconds.

Why do I need a home blood pressure monitor?

Getting a home blood pressure monitor helps you to determine any causes of high blood pressure – like caffeine intake, eating salty foods, or stress – as well as figure out if your treatment plan is working.  It can help motivate you to continue or improve your treatments; for example, if you see a big drop in your blood pressure with every ten pounds you lose (weight loss is a very effective treatment for hypertension) then you’ll be more motivated to keep trying to reach a healthy weight.

My husband using my blood pressure monitor (which is why there is a good pressure reading).

I tend to have high blood pressure when I’m in a lot of pain (this is called pain induced hypertension).  I took readings regularly and compared high pain days to low pain days – this helped me to communicate to my doctor that getting my pain under control was likely the most important part of my hypertension treatment plan.

Since I have lupus it’s especially important to monitor my hypertension and check to see if my kidneys are being damaged by high blood pressure (or conversely, if they are the culprit).  Anyone with chronic pain or illness may have several factors that can impact blood pressure and a home monitor will help to narrow them down.

How can Aeroflow help?

I’ve worked with Aeroflow Healthcare previously when I wrote about my husbands sleep apnea, which is yet another source of high blood pressure for many people.  Aeroflow is a leading provider of medical equipment in the southeastern USA, where I live, and they offer service nationwide.  They have tons of medical devices and supplies, including a blood pressure monitor (at the time of writing there is only one on their site).

Their arm model blood pressure monitor is priced at $27.99.  Arm models are typically recommended over the wrist models, as they tend to be more accurate.

Update May 2020: this monitor is no longer available.

Monitor photos provided by Aeroflow.

My monitor is very similar to the one pictured.  In April 2017, when my doctor instructed me to get a home blood pressure monitor, I went to my local pharmacy to buy one but I was overwhelmed by the large selection.  I actually ended up getting one from a family member, but if I had needed to buy one I would have preferred to work with a knowledgeable person from Aeroflow’s customer service team instead of  trying to figure it out myself.  Aeroflow employees are well educated about their products and able to help you throughout the entire process – from ordering to learning how to use your monitor properly.  You can be confident that you’ll be able to connect with a qualified person who is dedicated to assisting you (which is not necessarily the case with some major retailers).

One of Aeroflow’s greatest strengths is that they work with your insurance to cover the claims for medical equipment, when appropriate.  There are some cases where insurance may cover a blood pressure monitor, such as dialysis or hypertension in pregnancy (wish I had known that earlier this year – I might have gotten a newer model).  So you can sit back and let Aeroflow handle the claim with your insurance company if you think you may be covered for it.

Another reason to work with them is that they will deliver the product to your door in a hassle free manner – and their sales reps are available to assist if any problems do arise.  The various reviews on Aeroflow’s website are overwhelmingly positive with stories of how the company went the extra mile to make sure a customer had everything they needed and that they knew how to use it.  So you can get your blood pressure monitor without raising your blood pressure in the process.  And you’ll have taken the a great step towards in taking control of your blood pressure, your body, and your health.

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Do you have high blood pressure?  How are you treating it?  

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