I’m 40, Have High Blood Pressure and Feel Helpless
You’re somewhere between 30 and 60 and you feel you shouldn’t have high blood pressure… but you do. You may even be relatively healthy, and are wondering why your blood pressure is up. I can relate. I am fit, have worked out most of my adult life, eat relatively well (not much salt or red meat) and still ended up with “elevated” blood pressure when I was 64. It made me feel slightly depressed as I thought about getting older and all the things that come with that. In my case, I was able to bring my blood pressure down to near normal (125/78) without medication by reducing some stressors in my life, stretching/meditating, and increasing my cardiovascular routines. I want to stress that I am not a physician and also acknowledge that what worked for me, may or may not work for you. My intent here is to give you some hope.
Understanding High Blood Pressure
There is a ton of great information on high blood pressure and you can follow the links below. What I’d like to stress here is that you’ll likely fall into one of two groups. The first is that you are definitely living an unhealthy lifestyle. This would include being overweight, eating poorly and not exercising. These can definitely elevate your blood pressure. The second category is a bit frustrating as you may “just have” high blood pressure and you’re not sure about the root cause.
Group 1: Unhealthy Lifestyle
If you fall into this category (c’mon – you know who you are), the answer is simple. You need to follow the advice of your health care provider and then change your lifestyle. I know this is easier said than done, but, you have a path forward and you just need to take it! I don’t know if your blood pressure will come down, but I do know that if you lose weight, eat healthy and start an exercise program that it will improve your overall fitness. I also know that you are definitely carving years off of your life if you don’t change and want to emphasize something else here. High Blood Pressure can lead to a LOT of problems as you get older. You may not be just taking years off your life, but also reducing the quality of YOUR life. As an example, high blood pressure can lead to eye damage or strokes and potentially cause the loss of eyesight or brain function. This is not a matter to take lightly. If you are stuck…. feel free to contact me.
Group 2: I “just have” High Blood Pressure
If you fall into this group, you are relatively healthy and your blood pressure is creeping upwards as you get older. I want to encourage you to continue (or improve) your fitness lifestyle and offer you some additional thoughts which you may find helpful. Again – I want to emphasize that I am not a health care provider and that you should follow their advice first! In my case I was lucky enough to just have elevated blood pressure (130/90) and discovered it early. There are two things that helped me reduce my blood pressure. The first was to reduce stress and the second was stretching/meditation. I was fortunate enough to take a one month sabbatical earlier this year, and that really helped to bring my blood pressure down. Sitting at a computer 12 hours a day and managing large complex (stressful) projects can take its toll. This is not something you should take lightly. I understand the complexities of a career and money, but, is it worth your health? This is only something you can answer.
Acceptance
My last thought is one of acceptance. Many people live with high blood pressure and are able to control it with medication or changes in lifestyle. You are not helpless. There are things that you can do to control your blood pressure and ensure you have a good quality of life. Please just don’t be one of “those” who don’t address their high blood pressure immediately and find themselves living a life less than desired as they get older.
Remember, You are Built For More,
JT