sudden blood pressure spikes

sick&tired · Post by **sick&tired** » Mon Jun 11, 2007 7:30 pm

Okay...does anyone else get sudden spikes in their blood pressure? I am trying to figure out if I am having anxiety because my BP is splking suddenly or if my BP is spiking because of anxiety. It will go up to as high as 170/100 but usually within 5 min..maybe 15 at the longest it goes back down..usually a little lower than normal at first & then normal. I'm so worried about it that everytime I feel a little wierd I have to run get the BP monitor. I'm worried Im going to have a stroke or something. I am 38 and overweight. I went & had a echo done, a holter..both normal. I am having a stress test Thurs. I am on toprol xl already because when I went to see the doc about it my bp was up ( which by the way was back to normal by the time I got home) I think I have that white coat syndrome. Anyway..it runs normal most of the time except for these "spikes" Anyone that has similar experience please respond so I can stop freaking out!!

sick&tired · Post by **sick&tired** » Thu Jun 14, 2007 5:37 am

okay..so noone has this?? I keep checking to see if anyone responded but now I'm wondering if this is just another problem all in itself. Has anyone checked BP while having a panic attack???? Or noticed BP spikes after getting anxiety?

Calm Body · Post by **Calm Body** » Thu Jun 14, 2007 5:18 pm

I normally have low blood pressure but had a period of time where my blood pressure went up to 175 over 112. I couldn't get it to come down and that made me get stressed out even more. I had had abdominal surgery two months earlier and just was having a lot of stressful things happening in my personal life. I went to the Dr. and he wanted to put me on high blood pressure medication. I didn't like that at all and told him I didn't want to be on blood pressure medication. I told him that I had this feeling like a brick wall was laying on my chest and I was trapped and couldn't remove it.
I couldn't sleep because when my head layed on my pillow I could hear the blood pulsating in my ears. He sent me home with Zoloft and Xanax and something else to help me sleep ( can't remember the name). He told me if it wasn't down in three weeks he was putting me on blood pressure medication. I took the xanax around the clock and just pulled in for a few weeks.
I used the medication for sleeping just a few times. It took a few weeks for the zoloft to kick in. I did some reading and felt maybe I was doing too much chest breathing and not breathing deep into my belly. I used a device called a Resprate. Anyway what it does is moniters your breath rate. You wear a set of head phones and it plays music at the rate your breath is and then it gradually slows the music down to slow down your breathing. I found it helpful. I really started watching my breathing
making sure I was taking deep calming breaths and did a lot of relaxation tapes. After a few weeks I started weaning myself off the xanax ( it's addictive, so it has to be used with caution).
I don't know if any of this is helpful...but I would work on taking long slow belly breaths. Take care.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Thu Jun 14, 2007 6:37 pm

hey there girls, yes i had it.was on bp meds. anxiety caused mine. i was put on anti-deps and xanax 15 yrs ago. i haven't had high blood pressure since i took my 1st xanax. peace, kp

sick&tired · Post by **sick&tired** » Fri Jun 15, 2007 8:57 am

thanks for the replys. I am taking xanax already. It doesn't stop my panic attacks or sudden little bouts of almost panic that happen a million times a day. I've been on it for a long time so it may be that my dose is lower than I need. It does seem to help bring it down some though. When I notice I feel anxious I'll take my BP & if it's elevated after the xanax it usually does go down. I have been doing the relaxation tape at night. I need to make myself do it in the middle of the day too I'm sure. I went to the cardiologist for an echo stress test yesterday. My test was normal except my BP did raise quit a bit 180/80 with exercise...but returned to normal afterwards. He said if my body became more accustomed to the excercise then maybe I wouldn't have that big of response to it. I've been too scared to exercise because I thought something would happen to me if I did. Like my blood pressure spike up suddently as I"m exercising & it already be way up from the exercise itself & have stroke or something! I'm a basket case! I know the anxiety is making it all worse. I just can't seem to pull myself together. Anytime I'm just walking around I feel like I'm on constant guard of.."oh my gosh..is is going up" and any little flop I feel in my chest sends a wave of anxiety over me before I even have time to think. Uggghh....I don't see how anyone could be worse than me. I feel so stupid.

Stella02 · Post by **Stella02** » Fri Jun 15, 2007 4:17 pm

We all have our issues or we wouldn't be here. I've had spikes in my blood pressure too, especially when I'm stressed. I'm glad you brought it up, I think the health issues that come with this problem are what worry me the most.

redondobel · Post by **redondobel** » Fri May 09, 2008 6:28 am

I have had these spikes beginning this past December 2007. 215 over 115, pulse 103, 105. Generally they reach around 195 over 95 on average, I am averaging one severe spike per month and it is accompanied by severe body shaking as if I have a cold fever or something. They last about 30 to 45 minutes on average very intense, and I have to take some Nicardipine immediately to help get the BP lower where it will reach 160 over 78 in about 2 hours. I would be awakened in the middle of the night or hit in the day by my own heart beats which sound like reverberating drum beats, "boum"boum"boum, right in the middle of my ears during these spikes. My heart would race, my face flush, a sense of panic grips my chest and I am instantly afraid that something is going to explode in my body or I get a stroke or something real bad like that. I have already a stent in my right coronary artery and I have had my right carotid "cleaned out" already, and I have been on high BP since 2000.
I take DAILY Diovan 2x160 mg/12.5HCT, 100mg Toprol XL, 100 mg of Nicardipine, 8 mg Perindopril, 2x250 mg magnesium and 325 mg Aspirin. One would think that this much medication would really stabilize the BP, but unfortunately it has not lately. I have only 6lbs to shed so I am not overweight, the big difference in my life is that I no longer exercise,I used to go to the Y at least 3 times a week for a great workout, and I have been through a tremendous amount of stress this past year, in a foreign country yet, in Africa, out of all continents!
All the cardilogists I have seen here say the same thing "too much stress and go back to exercise". Only one has suggested that there might be a really really far off chance that maybe there could be something not right with my adrenalin gland, but he said the best thing to do during these spikes is to self inject with a diuretic, and I don't know how to self inject. So i am just taking extra medication when they happen.
I don't like it because I don't know why besides the explanation given above, I know I am going to have to back to exercise and see what happens, I identify with you when you say you are scared to exercise.
If there is anyone out there that can help shedding a better light or something more specific, please write.

jimmy aloha · Post by **jimmy aloha** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 3:19 am

i have been having sudden blood pressure spikes around 3am in the morning ..as high at 203/115 upon waking ...usually for a bathroom break
i have 2 stents in my left renal artery and 1 in the right... having suffered from very high blood pressure for a long time before it was discovered i had blockage to my kidneys
the stenting proceedure occured in 2006 at mayo clinic .. where the problem was finally discovered as the CT scans in Hawaii ..at the time did not have enough resolution to actually SEE clearly the blockage i had
i was up many a night with anxiety attacks ..brought on by high BP and other symptoms such as flushing, shortness of breath, diarrhea , and so forth. Here we are in June of 2008 and i am again having huge spikes in the middle of the night and my latest test results show there is a 65% blockage to my left kidney ..possibly a stent problem etc..
do any of you have kidney problems? does anyone know if the kidneys work harder at night?

JimNC · Post by **JimNC** » Sat Jul 05, 2008 7:15 am

After reading some of your stories, I am comforted to know that I am not the only one who experiences this. I am on Klonopan twice a day, Xanax for emergencies, and Lisinopril twice a day; for anxiety and BP respectively. I am a smoker. I do get some exercise; but, I'm sure not enough. I am about 100lbs overweight - I've always been a bigger guy but not always as overweight. I am working on it, as it has been a lifelong struggle.
I can be sitting here working on the computer or whatever, and BOOM - i feel a rush of blood to my brain, my BP goes up at least 15 points dystolic and I get very anxious. It's the scariest thing I've ever experienced. It has only happened at home. I am single. I definitely think it's stress and anxiety related. But, I also think there's got to be a physiological reason for me to become suddenly so anxious or stressed that by BP goes up. Some organ in my body is putting out it's signals or hormones or something at the wrong/inappropriate time. It's so frustrating. I've had all the heart and cholestoral tests too and all are good. it's so frustrating not knowing exactly what the problem is - they just keep throwing drugs at it. I wish they could find the "real" reason it happens and fix that.

hapakgyrl · Post by **hapakgyrl** » Mon Aug 25, 2008 11:12 am

I am 29, going on 30 in about a week or so, and just had a baby 2 months ago. My past two pregnancies I immediately got bp of 155/90. My husband and I switched insurance this past pregnancy to Kaiser. The past year, my blood pressure readings AT KAISER are insane. I ended up getting induced even though they found no internal damage to me or my baby at 35 1/2 weeks. They were so worried about any damage. My blood pressure was getting up to 188/105 or so. I have NEVER had this problem before. I have had blood pressure problems in the past due to bad eating/no exercise, then from stress, and then from pregnancy's. BUT NEVER THIS HIGH readings until we used KAISER. Now, even after my baby was born, my anxiety is so bad that my bp is around 180/115, then a few minutes later after they tell me to relax (which is kinda hard) it goes down to 160/105. I get home and it goes back down to a NON high blood pressure of between 115/120 over 75-80.

And yes I too am freaked out over strokes.