Since hypertension (or high blood pressure) doesn’t have noticeable symptoms, Things to Keep in Mind if You Have Hypertension leaving it as it is could increase the risks of severe health problems. Moreover, since there’s no cure, educating yourself on hypertension and keeping track of your blood pressure could help monitor such a disease.
You could also start by changing your lifestyle (whether it be exercising, Things to Keep in Mind if You Have Hypertension limiting alcohol intake, or even sleeping for eight hours) to lower your blood pressure. So if you have hypertension and are in dire need of a lifestyle change, here are five things to keep in mind if you have hypertension:
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Don’t Forget to Take Your Medication
Maintaining your blood pressure at a healthy level will always be possible with the help of medication. With this, it’s important to remember to keep taking your medicine regularly. Likewise, taking the more vital medication without talking to your healthcare provider first is unwise. So before you change the amount of medication or switch to a new one, be sure to talk about it with your doctor.
Not only does your medication keep your blood pressure levels healthy, but it also reduces any risk of health issues such as heart attacks or stroke. Likewise, you could ask your doctor whenever you have any questions regarding your medication – the different types, over-the-counter ones, or even medication discounts.
Since hypertension is a chronic disease, medicine can be costly – so it could never hurt to ask your doctor for financial tips since they always have your health and best interest in mind. Another option is to look up on prescription discount savings sites to help you minimize your costs.
Limit Your Alcohol Intake
Since alcohol is high in calories, regular alcohol consumption can increase your blood pressure. Additionally, drinking can also lessen the effectiveness of the medication you’re taking – which is ultimately a lose-lose situation.
However, this doesn’t mean you’d have to skip alcohol entirely. On the contrary, limiting your alcohol consumption is the best way to go if you want to drink. Likewise, it’s also best to ask your doctor for advice before drinking to your heart’s content. It’s never wrong to ask the opinion of a medical professional.
Engage in Regular Physical Activity
If there’s one thing regular exercise can do, it helps you maintain a healthy heart. Regular exercise is one way to lower your blood pressure drug-free. With this, you can expect physical activity to keep your blood pressure safe. You can even expect to lose weight if you do it regularly.
You could always try moderate or vigorous aerobic activities, ranging from dancing, jogging, bicycling, or even active sports such as basketball or tennis. However, if you’re entirely new to exercising, you should gradually build up the intensity of your exercises by starting slowly with three 10-minute sessions of these activities. You could even start just by jogging if you want.
Additionally, it’s essential to warm up before you start exercising and cool down after you do. It’s also crucial for you to check your heart rate during your exercises. This will reduce any risk of injury while you do such physical activities.
Minimize Your Stressors
Emotional discomfort like stress can even affect your blood pressure. In a stressful situation, the body tends to release stress hormones into the blood, preparing the body for the flight or fight response and pushing the heart to beat faster. Because of this, there is an increase in your heart rate and, ultimately, an increase in blood pressure.
Although some stressors are temporary, some stressors go on for days or weeks at a time. With this, learning how to minimize stress and keep your blood pressure safe is essential. If you have stressors at home, it’s best to discuss them with your family. Likewise, it’s also best to handle stress effectively through meditation techniques or breathing exercises.
Get A Good Night’s Rest For Hypertension
Sufficient sleep isn’t just essential to keep you energized throughout the day and ensures you have a healthy heart. Since your blood pressure goes down when you get adequate sleep, getting less than seven hours of sleep means your blood pressure stays higher than usual. As a result, less sleep could raise the risk of health problems such as heart attack and stroke.
If you’re not getting enough sleep, it’s essential to identify the obstacles that keep you from getting such. You could always create your sleeping space more relaxed and quiet. You could even try to do relaxing activities an hour before bed. If you can’t sleep because you take naps during the middle of the day, you could try reducing your nap time to help you.
Work With Your Doctor
The last factor to remember is always to keep in touch with your doctor. Since you’re changing your lifestyle for your health, it’s best to keep your doctor updated with everything you do – whether drinking alcohol, intensifying your exercises, or even asking for new medication. Regarding your health, no one knows you better than your doctor.
Final Thoughts
Your health always needs to be your number one priority. With this, it’s only necessary to remember these six points to keep your blood pressure levels stable and your hypertension at bay. Likewise, it’s essential to be aware of any changes in your blood pressure, so don’t forget to track your results and take note of the changes you’ve made while working on your new lifestyle.
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