Blood Pressure

[Clay M]

Is called the silent killer.

I had problems getting my blood pressure under control.
My choices were to get on medication, or change my lifestyle and diet.


I stopped drinking all alcohol, and lost fifteen pounds.

Now my blood pressure runs normal to low.

I am very happy with the results ,and I need no medication now.

How many of you keep up with your blood pressure, and control it?

[runfiverun]

I keep up with mine, it's been a bit high since i was in high school.
when I joined the service and was in top shape from the PJ training I had blood pressure about 10 points over normal.
the doctors sweated me over it some but it never stopped them from sending me where they wanted me.

[Ole Joe Clarke]

I take a minimum dosage pill (5mg) in the morning. I usually check it a log it every Sunday morning. Last Sunday it was 121/75, not bad for an ole coot like me.

I am blessed though, I only started the pill last year after a prostrate problem. Spent my first night ever in a hospital the night before Easter, 2015.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

[wddodge]

Most of my adult life I had bp in the neighborhood of 150/90. I hardly ever went to the dr so I didn't get yelled at. When I turned 50 I went for a physical and got yelled at. I lost about 30 lbs and cut most all added sodium out of my diet. I cut way back on red meat and ate mostly chicken-fish-veggies. The pressure fell but not enough. I'm now on 10 mg of something in a bottle.

The main thing is that I now sleep much better and I don't quiver near as much. I always felt like rubber bands that were stretched tight, now I don't.

Denny

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Mine is bordline high, I check it everyday...140ish/90ish
Friday's DR appt, the nurse said it was 138/89

I take 3 different BP meds. I am pre-diabetic and overweight which has been a constant struggle for 30+ years.
I started a new diet focus in the last couple weeks, even in that time, I have cheated...but am back on track today...wish me luck for tomorrow.

[44man]

Doc gave me Amlodopine, 5 MG. Got dizzy when I sat up or stood up. I sleep on my left side most and if I turned in the morning, my head went nuts and if I had my eyes open the ceiling fan looked like an old TV with the vertical rolling.
It was so bad I was trying to get the cover off my door alarm to check the battery and wound up on the floor. I don't remember a thing. Stuff is poison. Took 2 weeks to clear.
My BP can run from 106 to 174 and a low down to 42. I have a very slow beat from the EKG and a pulse from 44 to 60, ave about 50.

[farmerjim]

I was on one pill and doing fine for years. Then heart (SVT) problems made them change the meds to keep my heart rate down. Now with so much back and knee pain after quitting oxycodone that it was driving my BP sky high they had to add a patch to the 3 pills. It is a good 110 over 70 now.

[Clay M]

I had SVT really bad. I had an ablation in 2012 ,and that cured the problem.

As long as I stay away from alcohol, I am doing great with my blood pressure.
If I have two glasses of wine, or three beers ,it will be 150 over 90 this time tomorrow.

[Harter66]

I have been on a pill since 2004 .
Before that I cut off the caffeine and salt ,read labels ,changed my diet etc, started the meds and immediately gained 10# . The BP now hangs around 127/ 80 with an extra asprin on test days I can drop it 5 more and if I hit it for a week I can get into the high 1 teens and 70s . The more effort I put into loosing some weight the more ground I seem to lose .

For now it's under control . Healthy as a horse with no visable reason for high BP.

[bangerjim]

I monitor mine 2x a day.

Normally 105-125/60-80 range. Resting pulse rate 60-70.

I take metoprolol 1x a day.

I have boughts of PVC's every so often........mostly related to what I eat and drink.

[W.R.Buchanan]

My Blood Pressure was fine up til today when the FBI let Hildegard off Scot Free.. The fix was in and they are getting away with another Coup!

Sad state we are in.

Randy

[dtknowles]

Is called the silent killer.

I had problems getting my blood pressure under control.
My choices were to get on medication, or change my lifestyle and diet.


I stopped drinking all alcohol, and lost fifteen pounds.

Now my blood pressure runs normal to low.

I am very happy with the results ,and I need no medication now.

How many of you keep up with your blood pressure, and control it?

What do you consider normal - under 120 over 80? What is your typical reading?

Tim

[sparky45]

I new normal is probably higher than you'd think.

[EMC45]

I normally run 115-117 over 70.

[Clay M]

What do you consider normal - under 120 over 80? What is your typical reading?

Tim

120/80 would be normal. Sometimes my blood pressure runs lower now that I cut out all alcohol. My blood pressure can still go up from an adrenalin rush if I am playing guitar and really get into the music, but I consider that normal.

I had a drummer friend that had SVT same as me.
He had to quit playing because it set off his condition.
I got mine fixed in 2012.
He had no insurance so they sent him home and he died.
I think that was back in 05 or 06.

[farmerjim]

They tried an ablation for my SVT twice and did not get it. The place they need to burn is too close to the node that gives my heart the normal contraction. They calmed it down with some burning and with the pills it will only go to 120 every now and then. If it gets bad again they will have to burn it out and give me a pacemaker.

[Clay M]

They tried an ablation for my SVT twice and did not get it. The place they need to burn is too close to the node that gives my heart the normal contraction. They calmed it down with some burning and with the pills it will only go to 120 every now and then. If it gets bad again they will have to burn it out and give me a pacemaker.

I am very sorry to hear that. My daughter had to have three ablations and my wife had to have two.
They got mine on the first try.
My heart would go to 240 beats per minute at random times, so I know how much you can suffer with the condition.

My son has no SVT so far, and I pray he never does.

[dtknowles]

How old are you SVT guys. I am 58 and have probably had moderate high blood pressure for a couple decades but did not go to the doctor so never thought I needed treatment. It was always below 140 over 90 but I decided to go get a checkup and they put me on Cholesterol and blood pressure meds. There is hardly any improvement in either my Cholesterol or my blood pressure, maybe a small improvement now I am in the 120 to 130 over 80 to 90 so not normal but not really bad. If the meds had side effects or were expensive I would stop taking them and see what my blood pressure did.

Tim

[dtknowles]

I found this "Heavy drinkers who cut back to moderate drinking can lower their systolic blood pressure (the top number in a blood pressure reading) by 2 to 4 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) and their diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number in a blood pressure reading) by 1 to 2 mm Hg."

Are these small changes significant? I can't get a reading to repeat with that kind of precision.

Tim

[Clay M]

I found this "Heavy drinkers who cut back to moderate drinking can lower their systolic blood pressure (the top number in a blood pressure reading) by 2 to 4 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) and their diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number in a blood pressure reading) by 1 to 2 mm Hg."

Are these small changes significant? I can't get a reading to repeat with that kind of precision.

Tim

Alcohol doesn't affect everyone the same way.
It definitely made mine run high, so it was time for me to quit.

[Blackwater]

Blood pressure is a funny thing. My best life-long friend still holds the mile and 2-mile track records at our old Alma Mater, and he's run many marathons, and I always envied him, because my asthma totally kept me from doing anything like that. But he was diagnosed very young with HPB, and began losing his hair in the 10th grade. But he's always been very active. He had to quit running, but started taking Karate classes, and his sensai is always using him as an example to shame his young students into trying harder. Ray never quits, and is always near the leading runners who are 40+ years younger than him. He works at Daniel Defense and is 67, but tires out most of the younger ones he works with. He's on their tactical response team in case anyone ever tried to come in and take the place out for any reason, and he's one of their better shots in that field too. He has been extremely active, and some 15 years or more ago, he was in for a physical and his doc asked him "When did you have a heart attack?" He said, "But I haven't had one!" The doc called him over and showed him clearly where one of his major arteries was blocked 100%! This humbled him, and the doc started looking around, and discovered all the smaller arteries around it were so much larger than average, that he'd essentially built up his own "natural bypass" from all his activity! I think when he reaches 100, they're probably going to have to shoot him to keep him from being the next Eveready Bunny! He had an awful time finding a pill he could take for his HBP. Most made him sick. But he's been going strong for over 40 years since then, and doesn't seem to be slowing down much. He IS starting to exercise better judgment, but for a guy like him, it's about time! I take one pill a day for mild HBP, and it really ought to be higher probably than it is. One tries what we can. I HATE having to exercise good judgment! I liked the "old me" so much better! [smilie=l:

[abunaitoo]

I stopped drinking and now I have gout and borderline high blood pressure.
With the gout, I can't go back to drinking even a little.
I also gained weight after I stopped.
My pressure goes from borderline to low normal.
Funny how that works.

[DLCTEX]

My blood pressure problem is inherited. Not related to weight, diet, alcohol, or such. Had an ablation done and no more problem, but I think the cause was very deficient in magnesium and potassium. Taking plenty of supplements now. Currently taking hydroplane 3x daily and normal for me is 155 over 83. Doc said they are finding older folks have harder arteries and run higher without bad effects. He retired and new you doc believes in medication even with side effects. We agree to disagree..

Darn auto correct. Hydrolozine

[Greg S]

Same deal, 90/140. On two pills which are beta blocks and actually reduce my heart rate during SVT episodes and has cut them down in frequency and duration. Haven't had an episode go over 10-15 minutes in the past ten years. Before, 20-50 minute episodes were common. Maybe one day I'll get the proceedure. When it was first offerred it was still experimental in an Army hospital so I didn't volunteer as a guinna pig.

[Clay M]

Same deal, 90/140. On two pills which are beta blocks and actually reduce my heart rate during SVT episodes and has cut them down in frequency and duration. Haven't had an episode go over 10-15 minutes in the past ten years. Before, 20-50 minute episodes were common. Maybe one day I'll get the proceedure. When it was first offerred it was still experimental in an Army hospital so I didn't volunteer as a guinna pig.

Some of the Beta blockers make me very depressed, since they block Beta Epinephrine.

I would encourage you to get the ablation, but find a very good Doctor to do it.

[dverna]

Mine dropped 25 points when I retired. Off the meds for 3 years.

[farmerjim]

Some meds work for some people some do not. Find one (or 2 ) that work for you. High blood pressure will kill your kidneys and heart. Not today, but over time it will for sure.

[Clay M]

Some meds work for some people some do not. Find one (or 2 ) that work for you. High blood pressure will kill your kidneys and heart. Not today, but over time it will for sure.

Yes, if left unchecked, it can lead to a heart attack or a stroke.

Just because you have a stroke doesn't mean you will be paralyzed.

My father had strokes as a result of high blood pressure. He died of Alzheimer's.

As we get older, I believe it is wise to buy a monitor and keep a check on blood pressure.

[mold maker]

IMHO The medical community will put you on cholesterol and BP meds when you pass 50 even if your records show no immediate need. It's just a "Maintenance Dose" to ensure it doesn't happen.
My BP has never been high and my celastrol level is low, but they still insist on adding meds.
They get paid for repeated office calls which have to be justified, so they prescribe prescribe and prescribe.
I'm diabetic so I understand checking sugars, but as long as their controlled, there's no reason for regular visits except for prescriptions.

[Clay M]

IMHO The medical community will put you on cholesterol and BP meds when you pass 50 even if your records show no immediate need. It's just a "Maintenance Dose" to ensure it doesn't happen.
My BP has never been high and my celastrol level is low, but they still insist on adding meds.
They get paid for repeated office calls which have to be justified, so they prescribe prescribe and prescribe.
I'm diabetic so I understand checking sugars, but as long as their controlled, there's no reason for regular visits except for prescriptions.

I agree. The less medication you have to take the better. All medication has side effects.

That is why I did all I could to make changes of my own ,so I would not have to go on medication.

[farmerjim]

Most diabetics are put on an ace inhibitor(BP med) to protect their kidneys even if their BP is perfect.

[Clay M]

I just had a full blood panel done, and my numbers all came back great.

I am fortunate.

The things I have to worry about are prostate cancer, colon cancer,and Alzheimer's disease.


Those three I know I have a genetic predisposition for.

[sparky45]

How old are you SVT guys. I am 58 and have probably had moderate high blood pressure for a couple decades but did not go to the doctor so never thought I needed treatment. It was always below 140 over 90 but I decided to go get a checkup and they put me on Cholesterol and blood pressure meds. There is hardly any improvement in either my Cholesterol or my blood pressure, maybe a small improvement now I am in the 120 to 130 over 80 to 90 so not normal but not really bad. If the meds had side effects or were expensive I would stop taking them and see what my blood pressure did.

Tim
Zero to minimal benefit in using Cholesterol lowering Statin drugs in folks 60 +. Read it in a medical journal last month. Of course EVERYONE can cite a study, article, ect that is either pro or con the Statins.. I have been steadfast in my refusal to use the Statin's totally against my Dr's advice. Each to their own.

[44man]

Zero to minimal benefit in using Cholesterol lowering Statin drugs in folks 60 +. Read it in a medical journal last month. Of course EVERYONE can cite a study, article, ect that is either pro or con the Statins.. I have been steadfast in my refusal to use the Statin's totally against my Dr's advice. Each to their own.

More poison they tried to give me. My good stuff is very high but they go by total. I will be around when the doc's are dead.
They are set back when they ask my drugs and I say "NOTHING" and I am 78.
Booze, meat, fat, cheese, bacon, sour cream and whipped cream, ice cream and candy, donuts, ANYTHING, don't stuff poisons in me. A huge rack of smoked ribs. Blackened steak.
I take table spoons of sour cream out, love the stuff.
They say flame on meat is bad, what will you do? Boil it? I will eat it every which way if taste is there.
I think doctors can cause more problems for you then anything. They make me take something to take a test, then I toss it soon. Needed a physical for eye surgery. Soon as I got approved, STUFF IT!
Too many drugs killed many I knew. My brother in law must have took 100 pills a day. Died way too early. His wife went the same.
Many are prone to genetics and history. Do what you need but question everything.

[Beagle333]

I did have high BP and kept it normal (even with being 260# and a beerhound) with Lisinopryl. Great stuff.

But since giving up the beer and hitting the gym, I don't take anything now and keep an average of 118/72.
I do have PVC though. 'Drives me nuts sometimes. 'Feels like a fish flopping in my chest, but the 4 docs I have seen all told me that as long as the contractions don't touch each other on the EKG, it isn't a problem. It always makes the rate monitors show up really low counts though, because every 5th-7th beat is a PVC.

[parson48]

I got serious about my BP after a stroke in 2005. Thank the Lord, there are no lasting results from it. I took off 30+ pounds, exercise regularly, and no longer take meds for it. It truly is a "silent killer".

[Blackwater]

I'm with sparky and 44man, generally, but when the BP goes up, as mine did, and tends to stay there, I consented to take the BP meds, but only one a day. Now, it stays pretty much in the high normal range, but I feel better.

Not the same as when the doc gave me cholesterol meds! That stuff made me feel like death warmed over. Serious muscle aches, general malaise - the "cure" was worse than the problem! A while back, a study was published involving thousands over a very long period of time, that revealed ZERO difference in the death rate between those who took the cholesterol meds and those who didn't. This kind'a vindicated me, I think, in having stopped taking the meds PDQ after the side effect symptoms arose. He tried to give me some last OV with him, and I refused again. He didn't like it, but I was more concerned with my own well being than his "likes and dislikes." For me, the side effects outweigh the supposed "benefits," and even those benefits are definitely unclear and very much debatable. I know I'm responsible if I don't decide to go with my doc's recommendations, but who is the better judge of what's best for ME? We're all gonna' pass one day, no matter what we do, and that may or may not be enhanced and our lives or well being lenghtened and heightened by SOME meds, but looking at it overall, I think docs prescribe WAY too many pills, and patients depend on them WAY too much, rather than simply staying active and eating reasonably. That eating thing is now one of my biggest problems. For most of my life, I ate like a horse, but burned it all off. Home was a place to come eat, hang my hat, and sleep. When my son got old enough to hit the woods and waters, we were out all the time seeing what we could get into. After my back injury, that activity level tapered off, but I kept the appetite. "Athlete's disease" it's been called. And it CAN be a killer. I'd been so healthy for so long and had so few problems, that I figured it'd always be that way. Boy! Was I ever WRONG! But, that's the most common mistake so many of us make, isn't it?

At least my doc listens, and seems to really have my best interests at heart. I like that. He's challenged himself, with some sort of thing that affects his balance, and was in a wheel chair on my last OV. Very bright and dedicated young man (now middle aged). I'm glad he's my doc, but he's trained to do what he's trained to do, and I have to do what I think best. It's a gamble on both ends, but it's a gamble that's unavoidable on each end. And we both have to do the best we can, and like in any poker game, see who wins the pot. It's a bit intimidating to go against the doc's orders, but it's part of the game, these day, I believe. I just hope I've chosen well.

[MT Gianni]

IMHO The medical community will put you on cholesterol and BP meds when you pass 50 even if your records show no immediate need. It's just a "Maintenance Dose" to ensure it doesn't happen.
My BP has never been high and my celastrol level is low, but they still insist on adding meds.
They get paid for repeated office calls which have to be justified, so they prescribe prescribe and prescribe.
I'm diabetic so I understand checking sugars, but as long as their controlled, there's no reason for regular visits except for prescriptions.
You need to find different doctors. My cholesterol and BP run on the edge of being called without hitting the high numbers. Dr's tell me to watch my self.

[Clay M]

I have an Asian doctor that sits at the computer and goes through all the numbers on the lab report.
If he finds anything bad, then he sends me to another specialist.

The doctors in my hometown are all prescription writers.

I don't need a prescription writer. I need someone to monitor my health and make sure that nothing slips up on me.

[jcwit]

To all those who know more than their Drs., keep an eye on your Kidney function!

Last November I was at 42%.
Last Feb. at 26%.
Two weeks ago I'm at 23%

At 15% I go on the list for a transplant!

At 10% I start dialysis.

Ever notice if your pee foams? Get to the Dr.

[Artful]

108/71 tonight - I take a handful of high blood pressure med's/vitamins/suppliments these days
- just bought my first bottle of saw palmetto extract for prostrate test that showing high over last 3 quarters. Ugh, this getting old isn't as fun as it was made out to be.

[6bg6ga]

Been on meds now since 2000. Had a massive heart attack and one third of my heart is scar tissue. Took colesterol meds (sp) and they dropped it 20 points and the cost of $120 a month for them wasn't worth it in my mind and I haven't taken them now for 4 years. The blood pressure meds are amLodepine and atenolol and my new female doc cut my amlodepine to 1/2 a tablet and my blood pressure went to 180+ over 90+ and I called the office and went to one 5mg morning and one 5mg in the evening and my legs started to retain water. Her reasoning for cutting my meds.... was told that being older it was ok to have higher blood pressure. Kinda told the nurse the Dr, was a idiot I still work and cannot function will blood pressure this high. Was told to double my atenolol and had to tell them my heart rate was at 50 so I couldn't do that. Have to see her again the 15th of the month and she is either going to listen to me or she is going to be cut loose and I will retain a different Dr.

[mold maker]

Swapping Dr. isn't as easy as gas stations. Each new Dr. wants a complete physical and work-up of labs. Ins only pays for one a year.
All new Drs. are educated on PCs and doing the #s from the lab is how they're taught. While I agree, I want them to be taught all the latest advances, we're not diagnosing a transmission, and all symptoms in the human body are different for each of us.
Just like walking a mile in my shoes, what I feel and see are just as important as the numbers.

[Clay M]

I go to my doctor twice a year for labs. That is the only time I go unless something is wrong.
I get a colonoscopy every five years because they found polyps about eight years ago.

My dad and granddad had prostate cancer so I see a urologist twice a year.

He says I am in the normal range with a free and total PSA.

I have friends that go to a Urologist in my old hometown and he does prostate biopsy's every chance he gets .

I stay away from him.

[44man]

We could chew boolits and live longer then from the poison prescribed. Watch TV with drugs and listen to the effects up to DEATH!
I remember as a kid getting some mercury. We rubbed on coins to make them shiny with our fingers.
Spilled some on the floor to see it go in the cracks. All paint had lead in it and so did gas but we did not eat paint but we sure breathed fumes and from steel plants.
I smoked 2 packs of Camels a day when in school. Quit when I went with Carol. None of that stuff hurt me. I also bought menthol cigs to keep guys from begging. When kids we stole from dad to smoke and even smoked leaves or the pods from a tree I forget. Lady cigars or something.
Yes some of you inherit things and I pray for you.
I wonder if us old creeps are immune from so much abuse?

[dtknowles]

We could chew boolits and live longer then from the poison prescribed. Watch TV with drugs and listen to the effects up to DEATH!
I remember as a kid getting some mercury. We rubbed on coins to make them shiny with our fingers.
Spilled some on the floor to see it go in the cracks. All paint had lead in it and so did gas but we did not eat paint but we sure breathed fumes and from steel plants.
I smoked 2 packs of Camels a day when in school. Quit when I went with Carol. None of that stuff hurt me. I also bought menthol cigs to keep guys from begging. When kids we stole from dad to smoke and even smoked leaves or the pods from a tree I forget. Lady cigars or something.
Yes some of you inherit things and I pray for you.
I wonder if us old creeps are immune from so much abuse?

Some people get lucky and some people need to take meds. I had a wife who was type 1 diabetic, would not have lived to see her 9th birthday without Insulin. Live long and prosper but everyone can't count on your old creep immunity.

Tim

[jcwit]

We could chew boolits and live longer then from the poison prescribed. Watch TV with drugs and listen to the effects up to DEATH!
I remember as a kid getting some mercury. We rubbed on coins to make them shiny with our fingers.
Spilled some on the floor to see it go in the cracks. All paint had lead in it and so did gas but we did not eat paint but we sure breathed fumes and from steel plants.
I smoked 2 packs of Camels a day when in school. Quit when I went with Carol. None of that stuff hurt me. I also bought menthol cigs to keep guys from begging. When kids we stole from dad to smoke and even smoked leaves or the pods from a tree I forget. Lady cigars or something.
Yes some of you inherit things and I pray for you.
I wonder if us old creeps are immune from so much abuse?

So tell me why I got polio back in 1956?
Why did I get cancer in 2001? Wasn't related to smoking!
Why did I get high blood pressure?
Why am I diabetic?
Why am I going thru renal failure?

You seem to be blessed, at least at this point!

Good luck in the future!

BTW, how old are you!

[Clay M]

Good genetics will carry you far.
There was an old black lady that live on my grandparents place. She lived to be over 100 .
I use to carry her Railroad rose scented snuff as a present. She dipped it every day.
She ate food cooked in lard, and any wild game I carried her.

As far as I know she was never sick,and had very little if any health care.

Great genetics..

[sparky45]

Been on meds now since 2000. Had a massive heart attack and one third of my heart is scar tissue. Took colesterol meds (sp) and they dropped it 20 points and the cost of $120 a month for them wasn't worth it in my mind and I haven't taken them now for 4 years. The blood pressure meds are amLodepine and atenolol and my new female doc cut my amlodepine to 1/2 a tablet and my blood pressure went to 180+ over 90+ and I called the office and went to one 5mg morning and one 5mg in the evening and my legs started to retain water. Her reasoning for cutting my meds.... was told that being older it was ok to have higher blood pressure. Kinda told the nurse the Dr, was a idiot I still work and cannot function will blood pressure this high. Was told to double my atenolol and had to tell them my heart rate was at 50 so I couldn't do that. Have to see her again the 15th of the month and she is either going to listen to me or she is going to be cut loose and I will retain a different Dr.
I was on Amlodepine (sp) for a month, couldn't stand it. I retained fluids and my legs and feet were swollen. Went on an old med called Metoprolol Succ. and the swelling went away and it being a beta blocker, helps control the pulse.

[44man]

So tell me why I got polio back in 1956?
Why did I get cancer in 2001? Wasn't related to smoking!
Why did I get high blood pressure?
Why am I diabetic?
Why am I going thru renal failure?

You seem to be blessed, at least at this point!

Good luck in the future!

BTW, how old are you!
I am 78 but sadly we are not all the same. There is more to what you inherit. But I still fear what a doc says I need.
Darn, some children are born with cancer. Just how devastating can that be?
All of you get prayers.

[Clay M]

I believe more people are killed by doctors who miss diagnose diseases than with the medication itself.
A doctor in my hometown treated a guy that had lung cancer with ******.

He had the x-rays there he was just to sorry to read them.

There are far more bad doctors than good ones.

Just because they passed the boards doesn't mean they are any good.

[jcwit]

I am 78 but sadly we are not all the same. There is more to what you inherit. But I still fear what a doc says I need.
Darn, some children are born with cancer. Just how devastating can that be?
All of you get prayers.

Good for you, and I don't mean that how it sounds, I mean it from my heart!

I really hope I am able to get a transplant before the age of 78!

[MrWolf]

Blood pressure can also be impacted by pain. My first number can be high depending on how much pain I am in. Doc knows it and just has me lay down for a few minutes and it drops some. Can't take statins due to side effects for what they tell me is high cholesterol - about 250+. I have always had high cholesterol and even when I was in great shape it was higher than "normal". Can't apply a baseline to everyone and sometimes the medications are worse than what they are trying to fix.

[6bg6ga]

You hit the nail on the head. High cholesterol meds didn't do enough good for me to keep taking them. The Dr's however disagreed and it took some stern words before I backed them off completely. I was blunt and to the point telling them the meds only lowered my readings 20 points and they weren't worth the wear and tear on my body. I also sited the free lunches provided by the drug company reps that I have seen day after day while working in the clinic and hospitals. They finally let me alone now when it comes to cholesterol.

[DLCTEX]

I came to the point of telling my cardiologist that I was never taking another station drug period! Too many painful side effects. They wanted to add drugs for the side effects.

[Clay M]

Lipitor made me ache so bad there was no way I could take it.

I have been on Lovastatin for about twelve years with no side effects.


Every time I have had a nuclear stress test I always come out good, so I won't change anything at this point.


Yes the drug companies Wine and Dine some of the doctors in order to get them to push certain medications.

[mold maker]

Yep ! They prescribe drugs for the side effects of the previous drugs, which in turn creates more side effects. Often the side effects are much worse than what they are supposed to prevent or treat.
The Drs. have me and the wife on so many pills that it becomes a hassle to swallow them all.
I had 5 close family members live past a century and one made it to 104 and 11 months. My parents made 87 and 92. At 74 I can expect to live another 20 or so years. Except for Type 2 diabetes, I'm in good health.
BTW Mom had diabetes and MS for over 40 years and died of undiagnosed lung cancer at 92. At 77 they stopped all her MS drugs for fear they would do her more harm than good.
Just remember ALL DRS. are just practicing and only part of the time they get it right. Only some have a better success rate. Choose wisely.
Don't get the idea I'm down on Drs. They are practicing a very inexact science. There are no guarantees because each of us is different. When you get lab work done it's just a snapshot of your condition at that particular time. Minutes later they could be different.
I can cause my BP to drop by calmly willing it. I can also increase it with what I concentrate on. Learning what to spend brain time worrying about can be a great help. Don't concern yourself with things you can't change. Give those questions to the Big Guy and forget it. After all, he's the one in charge.

[Clay M]

I worry more about the plaques in micro capillaries of the brain than heart disease.

Both my parents died of Alzheimer's. My mother died at 70 and my father at 74.

The doctors don't know all the specific causes of Alzheimer's, but I do know my parents ate a high fat diet, had high blood pressure, and mini strokes..

I may get it, but I won't follow their lifestyle getting there.

[44man]

HA, pikers! MY cholesterol was like 340 but I made him tell me what was the good to bad. My good was very, very high. it is not the total reading. He made me take statins and my legs started that junk, in the garbage they went.
They want to compound one drug with others. Soon you take 20 and each is trying to kill you.
Taking 5 MG of Amlodopine had me black out, could I drive my 4 Runner? There might be someones child on the road.
No wonder they want you to pay for Life Alert!
Even stuff supposed to be safe is bad. Zinc pills are one. My dad had to take them and I took one once. I wound up on the floor with my head and body a billion bees. It passed and I had to run like crazy to the John. Goose can't compare! :bigsmyl2: Pure poison! No wonder Dad only lived to 91!

[MrWolf]

Clay, my mom had early onset of Altzheimers at 55 and passed at 71. Been told I have a 70% chance of getting it. I started taking DHA (over the counter supplement) after watching a medical show by a neurologist about six or seven years ago. Made a big difference to me. Good luck.

[Beagle333]

Does your doc get money from pharm reps? Put his/her name in here to see.

https://projects.propublica.org/docdollars/

Taken from this article:
http://www.nbcwashington.com/investigations/Does-Your-Doctor-Cash-in-on-Drug-Company-Money-197059261.html


My doc has only gotten/reported $214 and he's an old guy. So I guess he's not getting paid to dope me up. :mrgreen:

[44man]

Amazing, my doc got $5,798 but my eye doc only got $199. Just eye drops I guess.

[Blackwater]

None of my main doc got much more than $200. Not much in a medical practice. I'm actually relieved. Thanks for the link! But I'm still not taking the cholesterol stuff. It's really been debilitating for a good friend whose family has a heavy history of artery disease. He'll do whatever his docs tell him to, and take everything they give him to take. He's not ready to leave this world yet at 74, and doesn't have the knowledge to judge what to do or not do, so he trusts his docs implicitly. All he really can do, of course, but I have been trying to learn as much as I can, and make my best decisions, based on what I CAN find. I think this is prudent, but make no pretensions to being prophetic or a know-it-all. It's just the best I can do, I think.

Some big corporations, including the pharmaceuticals, CAN and sometimes DO promote stuff these days, and try to hide the side effects. Selling stuff as a panacea seems to my delicate sensibilities to be rather less than scrupulous, but the world has never been a trustworthy place. There've always been snake oil salesmen out there, not unlike the carpetbagger in "The Outlaw Josey Wales." I've dropped two docs like hot potatoes when I got wind they were being a little too PC for my taste. PC just isn't trustworthy, and I take it as a sign they're more into doing what's PC than caring about my health. That's the kiss of death for me. No, make that three I've dropped for that reason alone.

But I've also had some truly great ones. Dr. Wirth, the neurologist who did my back surgery twice now, and probably saved my father's life back in the early 80's, just announced his retirement. That man and my kidney doc, James Jackson, are two of the greatest docs I've ever known. I love these guys, and appreciate them SO much for what they've done for me. I'm now in good enough shape that Jackson let me be attended by his dimunitive female partner now, but she's cut from the same cloth Dr. Jackson is. I'm truly grateful to have the good docs I do now. I'd be at a real loss without them.

I hope Dr. Wirth's retirement is truly enjoyable. Heaven knows, he's EARNED it!