Well that's good!

[legacy92ej22t]

I have had extremely bad blood pressure ever since I quit smoking. I smoked for 15 years and used to smoke 3 packs a day! I quit back in '01. Anyways, when I quit I gained about 35-40 pounds and my blood pressure went through the roof. About 2 years ago at the doctors they took my BP and it was high, real high. It was 197/134! My doctor wanted to start me on BP meds that I would have been on for life if it didn't come down within 3 weeks. I never went back to my doctor since. I didn't want to start the meds. I took my BP a few times at drug stores and stuff and it was still really high. I hadn't taken my BP in about a year now until today. It was 141/88! Wooohoooo. I know that's still a bit high but damn! It's a hell of a lot better then it was. I took it twice to be sure and it was the same both times. Me's happy.

[evolutionmovement]

What's it supposed to be at our age? I have genetically low BP which has its annoyances, but I suppose I shouldn't complain as it isn't dangerous unless the dizzy spells cause a fall. Glad to see you're BP come down. Just think, that's with stress factored in so that's not bad!

Steve

[tris91ricer]

Hey Man, be careful.. You've got that family counting on you.. and Subarina! Think of poor, lonely Subarina!
Glad to hear you're in better health. Have you been eating healthy too?
A good diet will always contribute to overall better health and wellness. I'm assuming you already do the workout thing when you get the time.. right?

[entirelyturbo]

Cool.

My grandfather has lived with high-blood pressure for a very long time. I dunno for sure, but I think it's his diet, while he claims it's job-related.

He has a bad family history of strokes, so I'm very concerned something will happen in the next couple years. My dad had a stroke not 6 months before he died, it's gonna be tough if I lose my grandfather the same way.

[BAC5.2]

Well that IS good Matt! Glad to hear your in good health! Perhaps you should go to a doctor so you can prove him wrong!

[Tleg93]

I'm glad to hear you're blood pressure came down a bit. You're still a little high but an improvement is an improvement. 120/80 is a good target for blood pressure. I recently had a physical and the doc said my pressure was right in the target range. I was glad to hear it because I measured a little high too about a year ago. Losing 35 pounds no doubt improved my blood pressure. Take care and I'll talk to you sometime.

[91White-T]

Good to hear!

[evolutionmovement]

Wow, my mother's 52, doesn't eat terribly well, and her BP was 114/64! I have family cancer, though, so no gloating here.

Steve

[LedJetta]

so instead of taking a doctors advice you just decided to ignore it and sweep it under the rug? hahahahahahahahahaha, ridiculous man. people are completely unable to help themselves by making a reasonable decision. good luck.

[Tleg93]

I do agree that taking advice from a physician CAN be a good thing but it can also have negative consequences too. These days most doctors are nothing more than drug peddlers for large pharmaceutical companies. These drugs, while inhibiting symptoms, also have nasty side effects. Some people have been helped by BP drugs others still have heart attacks anyway. I don't think that ridicule accomplishes much but if that's what you're about... I think a homeopathic approach with diet and excercise would work better. The thing about packing on extra pounds is that it makes your heart work much harder to pump blood through the system but you can be thin and fit and still have high cholesterol with an elevated BP.

[LedJetta]

well if the physician is good, then hes making a decision based on what will truly help the patient the most. to say MOST doctors are only worried about money is a gross generalization, but not a new one.

i have a phyisician in my family who works incredibly hard for the true bottom line, patient care, and i hear plenty of stories of people who "dont trust no doctors" and end up being a lot worse off than when they started because of their ignorance.

if you dont get the diagnosis you want, i would say most times its not becuase the doctor is lying.

and in this case i do think ridicule is very helpful. to me.

[vrg3]

That's great that your blood pressure is getting better, Matt. Do you know what you have done that caused the improvement? You gotta do more of that!

LedJetta - Doctors are people too, and they don't always make the right decisions. You can watch people going through med school and tell that not all of them are about helping people. And the whole medical industry in our country is kind of biased towards the desires of the drug companies, since they play such a big role in the education and performance of the doctors. You end up with an unconscious focus on expensive drugs that provide symptom relief. Like most "conspiracies," it's not as orchestrated, pervasive, or malicious as some would claim, but it's something that every one of us should keep in mind.

Now, Matt didn't say whether or not he went to another doctor for another opinion. If he didn't, maybe he should have. But let's note that he was able to improve his condition without medication and all the certain and potential drawbacks to a treatment based on medicating.

Nice, Matt.

[Tleg93]

I'll agree that it pays to listen to the advice of your doctor. Every time I have it's helped me but I also know people that have doctors who throw drugs at them every time they have an ailment. My old boss was having problems in his marriage so his doctor had him start taking one of those new anti-depressant drugs. He had a violent reaction to it and became very ill. I had another friend who was suffering from a bout of depression after the death of her dog. She went to see a doctor and after noticing her state he also put her on anti-depressants. He didn't bother to ask what other medications she was taking and the result was a near psychotic break with reality. The ambulance needed to be called. I think that any doctor that prescribes anti-depressants for mourning ought to have their own head checked. If that doesn't illustrate drug pushing I don't know what does.

Led, I'm not sure if you were directing your ire at me because I think that sometimes homeopathic remedies and common sense can help or if you were just lashing out at me because I said that your ridicule of my friend, Matt, was uncalled for. A good point can be made with out smart ass comments like hahahahaha good luck dude. If you want to play that way then fine but you shouldn't expect anything positive to follow.

[legacy92ej22t]

Thanks guys!

LedJetta- I know what you're saying ( I don't like the way you're saying it though) and you have a point. BUT, I was able to bring down my BP WITHOUT going on meds that I would have had to take FOR LIFE. WHat happens if I lose my insurance, then I'm stuck paying out of pocket for an expensive medication for the rest of my life that if I try and go off of could have serious side effects. I think it's more ridiculous to just take a doctors word as gospel and go along with whatever they say. My doctor is a good one and I trust HER judgement but in this case I wasn't prepared to go onto a medication for life that I wasn't sure I needed. Through diet I have been able to greatly reduce my numbers and hope to get it even further down in the future.

So, if I would have just followed her instruction I would now be on a medication for the rest of my life that I obviously didn't need. I think I did the right thing...

V-I mainly cut down on my sodium intake and quit taking as much asprin for my arthritis.

I'm hoping to start a strict excercise schedule soon too. That should help me bring down the pounds a bit as well as my BP.

Thanks for the support guys.

[evolutionmovement]

Isn't olive oil supposed to be really good, too? If you cook with butter, maybe you could substitute the oil instead sometimes. If you get the good stuff, you can use it alone as a dressing for pasta. I like the Kalamata olives best. For some reason green tea's supposed to be good, but I forget why. I know it's good to reduce hearing loss after loud events, but I don't remember the heart proerties. Anyway, good call on trying to fix it yourself before giving into The Machine.

Steve

[LedJetta]

LedJetta - Doctors are people too, and they don't always make the right decisions. You can watch people going through med school and tell that not all of them are about helping people. And the whole medical industry in our country is kind of biased towards the desires of the drug companies, since they play such a big role in the education and performance of the doctors. You end up with an unconscious focus on expensive drugs that provide symptom relief. Like most "conspiracies," it's not as orchestrated, pervasive, or malicious as some would claim, but it's something that every one of us should keep in mind.

no shit they are people, it is a known fact that 100% of all doctors are NOT robots. i am not saying their are immune to error, but i kinda think you gotta trust them at the start or theres no point in going to one.

why go if you think you already know what the problem is and what you need? he got LUCKY, which happens sometimes. just becuase it worked out well for him this time does not mean he "beat" the doctor. i repeat, HE WAS LUCKY. thats not a bad thing that it worked for him, but i wouldnt roll the dice like that on a regular basis.

[LedJetta]

I'll agree that it pays to listen to the advice of your doctor. Every time I have it's helped me but I also know people that have doctors who throw drugs at them every time they have an ailment. My old boss was having problems in his marriage so his doctor had him start taking one of those new anti-depressant drugs. He had a violent reaction to it and became very ill. I had another friend who was suffering from a bout of depression after the death of her dog. She went to see a doctor and after noticing her state he also put her on anti-depressants. He didn't bother to ask what other medications she was taking and the result was a near psychotic break with reality. The ambulance needed to be called. I think that any doctor that prescribes anti-depressants for mourning ought to have their own head checked. If that doesn't illustrate drug pushing I don't know what does.

everybody has some second hand story about how some malevolent doctor screwed someone they know over etc, etc, etc. of course we are all going to remember those, they make a great story. things like that DO happen, but considering how many people get sick and how many doctors there are, its not really a surprise.

but its not some great factual evidence that doctors are just out there to make money and do not care about patients. wheres the stories about great things they have done? going out their way, above and beyond the call of duty? oh wait, they were just doing their jobs.

why the fuck am i even defending this point, jesus.

[LedJetta]

My doctor is a good one and I trust HER judgement but in this case I wasn't prepared to go onto a medication for life that I wasn't sure I needed.

on what did you base the judgement that you may have not needed the meds? i understand medicine is expensive, and i dont blame you for not wanting to be on meds forever, BUT doctors do not set the prices. many are just as upset as you that they are so expensive. a lot of that has to do with our wonderful commander and chief. thats another debate though...

So, if I would have just followed her instruction I would now be on a medication for the rest of my life that I obviously didn't need. I think I did the right thing...

what you gotta understand is your physician has to cover all her bases VERY thoroughly because of the ridiculous amount of malpractice lawsuits. as a doctor, she must err on the side of caution.

say she says, "eh you can probably get your BP down with a better diet." well a lot of people will not follow through and then say, "dr. so and so really screwed me, im still unhealthy."

or you try the diet thing and it doesnt work, its still the doctors fault. you went against your doctors advice and got lucky, nothing more, nothing less.

[vrg3]

My point wasn't that you shouldn't take doctors' advice. And in general you do want to trust doctors. But in no way should you take any one particular doctor's advice as gospel. I wouldn't say Matt got lucky; he was consciously following some other treatment options -- well-proven ones -- and they worked for him. This is one part of medicine that isn't completely opaque to the average person. While I wouldn't suggest someone try to treat a severed foot themselves, I think trying to treat your own high blood pressure is reasonable. It wasn't just luck. Luck would have been if he managed to bring his numbers down without taking any measures.

I understand your point, LedJetta, that a doctor's best guess should be the most trustworthy opinion on the planet. I just don't agree that not following one's advice is "sweeping it under the rug," and I don't agree that it's grounds for ridicule.