DH high blood pressure at 32!

[Foxtrotoscarfox]

I’m very worried for my DH (he’s also worried too). He has high blood pressure which I believe is classed at stage 2. This was initially detected in his pre op for orthopaedic surgery a few months ago and the GP followed it up last week. The next steps were to use a blood pressure monitor at home both AM and PM.

This mornings reading was 160/96.

He has had to give up the sport he played around 18 months ago due to requiring surgery and can’t do anything high impact so he’s limited to walking, the bike etc for now.

His diet is in my opinion a disgrace and is high I. UPFs and salt. I’ve tried to have conversations about it before but he didn’t want to hear it. I think it’s safe to say he’s now shitting himself and this has been a reality check for him.

He doesn’t drink or smoke but is overweight by 2 stone or so.

We have a 1 year old and the idea of him having a stroke, heart attack or worse terrifies me.

I don’t know the point of my post if I’m honest. If he makes changes to his diet and lifestyle plus takes medication (which I reckon will be prescribed following his week of readings) could this reverse it?

Yes. If he takes this seriously and makes significant changes to his lifestyle, as well as taking the medication religiously, he can reverse it. He's fortunate to have been identified now rather than have a heart attack in his 40s. Best of luck (& hard work) to him. xx

It could be reversed, yes, but it's likely the changes he makes will need to be permanent ones, which isn't easy. I have a DH who was diagnosed as Type 2 diabetic recently and he has really, really struggled to make changes to his diet. It's not easy.

I take it they've done various different blood tests that have come back clear?

I randomly developed high BP a few years ago and it turned out I had hypothyroidism.

It went back down to healthy after I was prescribed thyroxin.

Yes, cutting out salt and having a healthier diet along with regular exercise will definitely help.

It does sound like diet changes would be helpful, but having dealt with a scared husband and potential long term health condition - I'd say plan for the war rather than the battle.

If it's lifestyle - this is within your husband's sphere of control rather your responsibility, you know him best but I found that confronting head on just led to a defensive response back, sometimes with a bit of shame thrown in.

For now, just listen to him, when things are relatively calm and kids are in bed, reassure him you love him, you're proud of him for going to the doctors and listening when so many bury their head in the sand, you want to be there for the medical appointments and you'll manage - this is the stuff of life and marriage.

I'd also say, get your own support system in place, lean on good friends and relatives, talk to your husband about your worries too. You can take some actions for yourself, do a life admin run through, get wills in place if you haven't already, find the insurance documents and check through private health policies if you have them.

The lifestyle changes, to actually stick, need to come from him as his idea - so try to make any approaches with this in mind.

He should try the DASH diet, it has a strong evidence base with consistent replication across various populations and studies. It worked for me too.

www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/heart-matters-magazine/nutrition/foods-that-lower-blood-pressure/dash-diet