Blood Pressure Levels | Being A Healthy Human

Your Questions About Blood Pressure Log

Jul 29th, 2011 by health

James asks…

Link to printable Blood Pressure Diary/Log?

I need a printable blood pressure Diary/Log. If you have a link to one I would love for you to share it with me because I have someone who needs it to keep track of her blood pressure! Thank you =]

health answers:

This one is located on the American Heart Association website and you’ll need a program to open pdf files (such as Adobe Acrobat).
http://www.heart.org/idc/groups/heart-public/@wcm/@hcm/documents/downloadable/ucm_305157.pdf. If this link gives you problems go to http://www.heart.org/ and do a search for blood pressure logs…

And here is another one you can look at:
http://www.bloodpressureformula.com/print-chart.php

John asks…

Do you know of a website where you can log your daily results for blood sugar, blood pressure, etc?

health answers:

Why a web site ? What about a log book ?

Or you can just add this info to a daily blog.

Ruth asks…

Blood Pressure listings?

My doctor has asked me to keep a log on my blood pressure readings at home. I can take it at different time intervals on the same day minutes apart and I get different readings, sometimes very different. My question is which reading do I actually write down?

health answers:

You should take you blood pressure after sitting still for at least five minutes with your legs uncrossed. Wait five minutes between readings.

After the first couple of days, you should have a pretty good idea of what your average blood pressure is and what kind of swings you are having. All this info will be useful for your doctor.

Lizzie asks…

My blood pressure is normal when laying down, but high (148/104) when sitting up, what might cause this?

My blood pressure has been slowly creeping into the high zone all year. I don’t want to take medicine (too many scary side effects) I’d rather find out what is causing it and treat that. I bought a monitor so I can keep a log, then noticed something interesting. If I am laying down my bp is normal (or only slightly elevated) but sitting my bp is very elevated.

health answers:

It is natural for your blood pressure to increase when you’re sitting or standing up compared to when you’re lying down. The main reason I see here is gravity. When you lay down, your blood doesn’t have to go against gravity during blood transport. Whereas when you stand or sit up, the blood pressure has to increase in order for blood to reach your brain, and other organs above your heart. It also has to increase for blood to return from both upper and lower extremities to your heart. It has to increase so it can go against gravity.

If you feel uneasy and unsure about heart meds, it would be good to talk to your doctor about your concerns so they can recommend you something that will suit you. You can also discuss with him the log that you keep (and I commend you for being so proactive with your health 🙂 ). Daily exercise and losing weight (if you are overweight) are typical components of improving blood pressure.

148/104 is too high and I am concerned of the other consequences of a very high blood pressure. You do want to start making changes in your lifestyle…

Daniel asks…

Can anyone answer my question about Blood Pressure?

First, let me say I just started seeing a cardiologist and I am scheduled for more testing next week. I have been having chest pains and I had a small heart beat irregularity. The Cardiologist thinks it is benign, but I am having a stress test and an echo on Wednesday. He just wants to rule out a blockage, because I have never had an irregular heart beat or pain in the past. But in the meantime the doctor asked me to log my blood pressure. And what I am seeing is scaring me a little.

My BP is normally around 117/70 but my pulse has been on the high side around 85.

But last night there was a good bit of drama at home and my Blood Pressure shot up to 150/100 and my pulse was 108. It stayed at that level for a while even after I relaxed so, I took Nitro prescribed by my Dr. It went down to normal within 20 mins.

Then today, I did my wii fit for less than 10 minutes and my BP went up to 144/82 with a pulse of 89. This time It did go back down as soon as I sat down and relaxed so I did not take any nitro.

SO the question is IS THIS NORMAL. I mean it may well be. I have never tracked my BP before. I know 150/100 is stage 2 high blood pressure by the charts. And a resting pulse should not be more than 100, and when I had the 150 I was not exercising (just stressed out) SO I am pretty sure that this is not a good sign. I am taking the record to my Cardiologist on Wednesday. But I am there for tests, so I do not even know if I will be able to talk to him.

Should I be worried, or am I just blowing things out of proportion?

As for external causes, doctor already ruled these out and that is why he is running the tests… Don’t drink, smoke, do drugs, no caffeine.

health answers:

You might consider increasing your water intake -dehydration can cause an increase in blood pressure.

When you don’t drink enough water, the cells become dehydrated and the body will often borrow the water it needs to inject into the cells using a process called osmosis. Drawing the water from the blood causes the arteries to constrict and the blood to thicken due to the loss of volume. This requires additional pressure to move the blood through the cardiovascular system.

But increasing the water intake will refresh the cells and will signal the body to quit borrowing water from the blood. This will bring the blood pressure back to normal.

As for your concerns of the moment – much of that will be addressed after the results of your tests are known. In the meantime, try to relax… there are meditations, relaxation exercises, stretching exercises and much more that can help you with your blood pressure.

Answers provided are not medical advice – you should always consult your doctor. Powered by Yahoo! Answers