Thanks all of these posts are interesting. I'm going to have to check out that book Janet. I read some interesting reviews of it. Of course the rub is that doctors want it low when a person has diabetes which I do understand. Many say not to treat mild hypertension UNLESS there is diabetes. This does add a risk factor. However my blood sugars have been in the normal range now since about January. I know that could change and they could elevate but what if they remain in the normal range -- would I not be in the diabetic group until they are raised and are consistently in the diabetic range? Probably most doctors will say to take drugs just to be on the safe side but I'm going to continue on with natural methods as long as I can. I will say on occassion (pre-surgery, dentist) my BP can elevate pretty high but I do believe that is so called "white coat" blood pressure. The point of concern, I suppose, is consistant elevation over time.

Yes, over time is key. Why my DH's doctor said buy a home BP meter, and check first thing every morning and a second time later in day for a month. Come back with the little record card they give (same card and a machine at my Y/drug store too if you don't want to buy one). There was no need for BP meds when looked at the whole month.

Dr Welch gives a good example of Overtreating BP in an older man. Passed out while working from dehydration, sweating in hot summer weather...luckily at that moment not with a chain saw or tractor. It doesn't take much to tip BP too low when on a diuretic too.

One point that Dr Welch makes in his books is that the closer one's value is to "normal" the less the benefits of treatment and the greater the risks. Taking a drug always has risks as well as benefits and those risks need to be considered before deciding to take a drug.

Jean

I was given a blood pressure monitor a while back & discovered I have white coat syndrome. By the time I got into the doctor's office, it was quite high. I now check my bp at home & let them know what my reading was. They always accept mine.

Which makes me wonder how many people end up on bp meds just because they get stressed going to the doctor?

Bonnie, I have severe whit coat syndrome too, and my doctor's office readings are usually sky high. Years back my then doctor had me wear a holter monitor for 24 hours, and said "you're right about the white coat thing. When you where here your pressure was sky high, 20 minutes after you left it was much lower, 40 minutes later it was normal, and then remained normal the next 24 hours" (despite stresses at work, etc). Then it began to rise again next day as I headed back to the doctor, and was sky high at her office again!

I do check it at home fairly often, and do drink a daily cup of hibiscus tea which helps a lot. I just started with a new doctor last week, and that day my BP was 114/78 at 8 am, and at 1:30 pm, just before I left for my appt, it was 170/105!

At the new doctor's office though they used a very large cuff and got a reading of 156/90 which is probably a lifetime low at a doctor's office.

I also highly recommend Dr. Welch's book Overdiagnosed. I was already aware of much that was in it, but also much that was really high opening.

I've always been the sort who avoids doctor's as much as possible unless I really feel weirdly awful (not just "normally" awful like having a dreadful cold), and I've had many people tell me that it's going to kill me. After reading the book I'm not so sure.

I know I also have white coat hypertension for sure. I am especially elevated at the dentist's office. About a week or two ago it was 179/103 at the beginning of the appt. (just a checkup and cleaning) and immediatly after I left the office (in the parking lot after walking to my car and not sitting still) I checked again with the very same wrist meter I had used for the initial reading and it was 128/82. This dentist said its not at all uncommon. Right before my surgury back in april it was 180/103 but these are defintly not the norm. Recently mine has been around 120ish / lower 80s several times a day. last evening it was 111/77. I have been taking some supplements (CoQ10/ fish oil/ and potassium) and maybe thery're helping or maybe not. Maybe I'm just not stressed right now.

The doctor has asked me to get mine checked on occassion at the office but I quit going there. The reason is it was always good when the nurse just came out in the waiting room to take my pressure. She always frowned at me like I was wasting her time and making it up. But it's slightly higher in the room (last time 150/80 sometimes higher) but at the dentist's office it goes way up there.

My blood pressure has been doing better latley but I'm really impressed with the change in wy wife's BP. She started to take a regiment of vitamins an minerals that, in a short time, really dropped her BP dramatically. She has been 180 over 100 (to 104) for a long long time and now 130/ 80 and sometimes lower. This has been very consistant over the past month or two.

She added vitamins E and C, the B vitamins, potassium, magnisium, hawthron berry, CoQ10, omega 3 6 and 9, and a multivitamin.

Great news for your wife. Could be the vitamins, less stress or more exercise in the spring and summer, or what another member here calls Collateral Dieting. There are less carby foods in the house due to your diet change. Subtle changes in her patterns of eating out and groceries bought because of you. Lower carb eating is good medicine for BP. Whatever, it's all good

This is one of the main reasons I try to avoid going to doctors at all possible costs.

But yesterday I finally decided I had to go as after two back-to-back bouts of antibiotics (long story) I developed an apparent yeast infection and nothing I tried at home helped a bit - so finally decided I had to see the GYN yesterday (whom I'm not very crazy about). BP was 119/68 in the morning, but by the time I was due to leave for the doctor it was 186/99! I hated to go and have it read as I knew it would keep going up and up.

Sure enough I got to the doctor and they got a reading of 190/105. She told me "this is too high. I can't let you leave the office with a reading like this. If it doesn't come down I am required to send for an ambulance". Sheesh, that kind of ultimatum only makes it go higher yet. They took it again 10 minutes later and got 200/110! She then examined me and gave me a prescription - and I *thought* I was being allowed to go when five firemen/EMTs all came rushing into the room with lots of equipment, hooking me up to all sorts of monitors - which only made my BP shoot higher yet!

They asked me all sorts of questions: How do you feel? (stressed out by all this but otherwise fine), do you have any chest pain?(no), are you feeling faint or dizzy? (no), do you have a headache? (no). They said "well you certainly look and act and talk like you are perfectly fine" but insisted I had to go to the ER. I told them, "but I want my BP to go back to normal. If I go home that will happen. If I go to the ER it WON'T and I will just get worse and worse". They finally let me go after I signed a waiver that it was against their advice.

BP was still high (180/98) when I got home and it's still a bit higher than normal but more in high normal range rather than usual lower normal - but I have struggled with this white coat hyptertension for over 30 years now and I don't know what the answer is!

My local doctor says it must be down normal at all times. I was pleased when it was 150/80 but he said no -- must be lower.

When I got out of gallbladder surgery in 2011 I was worried about sleep apnea (they wouldn't let me have my machine as it wasn't prescribed). I was really worring too much as I don't think the risk was a big deal but I never had surgery before and I had no idea what to expect. The nurse said "you've got to get that blood pressure down" in a pretty threatening tone. She didnt tell me what it was but she just kept yelling at me and I finally told her that all this yelling won't lower my BP.

The veteran 70 year old surgeon came in and asked me why I was still there -- I told him about the BP and the nurse and he said "So what? This is a high blood pressure place." You want to go home or hang around here?"

My wife's BP is still doing great. Mine's doing good too (actually better than hers) but her's is a dramatic change in a short amount of time. The major variable change was the supplements. She was already eating a semi-low carb diet -- defintally not as low carb as mine but she did lose a few pounds and her BP was a little better but not a dramatic decrease. She gets the same amount of excercise as always. Stress the same. I was pretty amazed at how much the supplemet regime changed her BP readings. They went down 50 or so points in 2 weeks and are consistant. She now reads the lowest in 20 years.

If anyone wants me to post the supplement regime (amounts in mg. etc.) she's doing I'd be glad to. It's not cheap -- probably $30 - $40 a month or more. It might not work for you of course as there are so many underlying reasons for elevated BP but you never know.

I am convinced though that current doctor's recomendations are not realistic in this regard anyway. Thanks Janet for those links -- I really liked the short article. I've also ordered Overdiagnosed (the book) and will read that with interest.

I'd be curious about what she takes as I've tried just about every supplement anyone has ever recommended without it helping my BP when it was starting to go up even at home. I read an article at Chris Kresser's site called something like "10 ways to lower your blood pressure naturally" and was bummed as I was already doing all 10 and none of them had dropped my BP one whit, someone in the comment section said she had had the same experience, but drinking hibiscus tea dropped hers like a rock.

I ordered some hibiscus tea and within a couple weeks my BP had also dropped over 50 points and has remained there - readings like 116/68 are not uncommon - as LONG AS I'M NOT AT THE DOCTOR'S OFFICE. But not a single supplement ever helped.

Hi. Dennis here. I'll post what she takes below. Remember this isn't any med. advice or endorsement or anything. You always have to research and take care what goes in your own body. All I am saying is her BP responded to this pretty dramatically -- it might not work for everyone. Also it is a little expensive. Her only income is a retirement from the Sate of Missouri (as a clerk) which is -- now get ready for this amount and try not to be jealous -- $167.00 a month. But if you're interested here is what she takes for BP

She adapted a regime from the book
Nature’s Medicines by Gabe Maleskey. It actually is best to read the book yourself if interested because you don’t want to go over certain amounts of vitamins and minerals like Potassium, E, and B6

A good Multi vitamin (her’s is from Lifeforce) -- 2x a day

Potassium citrate -- 99mg 2x a day (the author suggests 7000 mg a day but this is controversial and can only be done under a doctor’s care anyway)

Magesium glyconate -- 133 mg 2x a day

Calcium Boron -- 1x a day

Ginkgo Biloba (24%) -- 60 mg 2x a day

Vit. B6 -- 50mg 1x a day (she takes ½ 100mg tablet because the multi has some & a person shouldn’t exceed 100 mg daily)

Vit. B12 -- 500 mg 1x a day

Vit. C 500 -- mg 1x a day

Vit. E -- 200 mg 1x a day (not supposed to exceed 400 mg daily & multi has some)

Bilberry -- 470 mg 2x a day

CoQ -- 10 60 mg 3x a day

Omega 3-6-9 -- 1000 2x a day

Super DHA (like a fish oil)-- 500 mg 1x a day