Blood pressure

[CounsellorTroi]

Booked a health check at my local pharmacy. My blood pressure reading was 136/82. I was alarmed about this as my BP has always been on the low side of normal. So I ordered a blood pressure monitor off Amazon which arrived today. Did my blood pressure, got 114/72. So was it white coat syndrome (the pharmacist was wearing a white coat!) or did she just do it wrong or something?

Nothing wrong

Bloody pressure can vary hugely and a one off higher than usual BP is nothing to be alarmed about. It can be affected by caffiene, alcohol, smoking, exercise, stress etc etc so as long as it's not consistently raised, I wouldn't be too worried. I had a recent health check before my smear and my BP was 150/90 and I was always to check it at home for a week, and it was never above 115/80, so definitely was white coat hypertension! Didn't feel stressed at all, and I am a nurse 🙈 it's bizarre!

Can I ask any medical people on here, what blood pressure would be within the normal range please?

Less than 140/90 on average is considered normal.Blood pressure varies a lot depending on activity and stress and it's variability is normal so a one off blood pressure is not a very useful measurement. Check your blood pressure a few times at rest to get an idea of what it is like as a baseline. This is a basic explanation and other factors come into play so discuss your worries with the practice nurse if you get the chance.

Depends on age, weight, how active you are, if you are on medication. Between 90/60 and 120/80 are normal in a fit person.

Thank you!