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Original poster

To not go to work with a 24 hour ambulatory blood pressure monitor?

190 replies

Hyacintharehighersincelasttime · 19/03/2019 06:54

ie.
i cant drive so will need to go on the bus.
i wont be able to use phone - that's ok, i can get away with that
but the noise, everyone will know, and i dont want them to

OP posts:
coolcrispsnow · 19/03/2019 10:27

As for the accuracy of a monitor bought at a chemist

They are really not that bad. I had mine checked over by a HCP. Your post suggests to me you are uncomfortable with patient choice and autonomy full stop, sashh. The information is out there regarding blood pressure and it is easy for the op to make an informed choice herself. Even though there may be risks present just saying yes to whatever any HCP asks of you is not without risk either. Especially if that is a major cause of stress. Stress has shown to be a major cause of disease.

The person who knows the most about OP's well-being is her herself. Only she knows how she feels.

Megan2018 · 19/03/2019 10:28

I'm having this soon as they need to work out if it is just white coat (which I do have) or if I have now developed genuine hypertension (am pregnant so it matters now).

I'll be driving (1hr commute) and doing a full day of work as per usual as that is the whole point of it.

Who cares if anyone laughs? What a strange thing to worry about. I'll be making light of it with people myself.

coolcrispsnow · 19/03/2019 10:30

So glad I decided not to go, my unwashed hair is a total mess

That is fine, op. You don't need an excuse. If your blood pressure was great at the docs because you found it was the most relaxing, lovely, pampering, nurturing, place, ever, they would not be asking you to wear a monitor. Even if you felt stressed at work...

coolcrispsnow · 19/03/2019 10:31

Who cares if anyone laughs? What a strange thing to worry about. I'll be making light of it with people myself.

It's a great attitude but people worry about things that will seem strange to those people who don't worry about such things...

itsabongthing · 19/03/2019 10:33

Of you don’t have to work what’s the point of your thread?Hmm

NuffSaidSam · 19/03/2019 10:35

I would take a copy of this thread with you to the doctor's OP. Maybe you can marry up the BP results with the posts and tell us which poster causes the biggest BP increase/decrease?

April241 · 19/03/2019 10:36

cool you are far too invested in this thread

dublinmammy1982 · 19/03/2019 10:37

@sashh HPC's and the British Heart Foundation recommend home testing with a monitor you can buy at the pharmacy, if there is a reason to keep an eye on your BP. That sense of control and autonomy is really important for the individual. That doesn't mean this should be done instead of a 24hr monitor though.

coolcrispsnow · 19/03/2019 10:41

cool you are far too invested in this thread

Why? Just because I'm here and posting something you don't agree with? Good job really. Otherwise this thread would just be an echo chamber for one type of view...

Original poster
Hyacintharehighersincelasttime · 19/03/2019 10:59

And another thing, I am replicating my Mondays, when I don't go out to work

OP posts:
coolcrispsnow · 19/03/2019 11:07

Tbh I don't think your doctor would bat an eyelid with that op. You are actually following the advice you were given. There is no way they could criticise you for it.

coolcrispsnow · 19/03/2019 11:12

With regards to blood pressure I found weight loss really makes a difference. With the weight, diet and exercise together makes a difference. Diet wise I found cutting simple carbs dramatically good. Breathing techniques and visualisation also works for me, to some degree, during tests. Exercise wise I run. What I've also found good regarding circulation and inflammation is taking cold baths. You might want to look that up. Wim Hof is an advocate and is very inspiring if a little bonkers in a very empowering way! GrinYou can find interviews with him on YouTube.

Ispywithmycynicaleye · 19/03/2019 11:15

I presume the doctor explained what sort of things this style of monitoring was aimed at detecting, in your case, though.

Sorry I meant to say it led to my diagnosis of a genetic disorder, not part of it.
But yes, the doctor explained. During a routine check a nurse recorded my bp as being rather high. When looking back through my notes my bp had always been recorded as high. She assumed doctors too no notice, as I was fit and not overweight so probably saw it as white coat hypertension. Before being refered to cardiology the doctor wanted to get a clear picture of what my bp reading were throughout the day. To rule out white coat and to see if it was consistently high, if it were certain situations etc so explained I had to keep to my normal routine to build an accurate picture.
But that wasn't my point. My point was that your comment of not having to worry or needing medication because the 'levels are not dangerous so just make life changing choices' is rubbish. For some people, yes, but you can't make a blanket statement like that. I had to go on medication, but my bp never reached critical levels. My genetic disorder means no amount of lifestyle changes will stop me having high bp. My DS has the disorder too, unfortunately it affects men worse so I've had to prepare him he could have a huge cardiac event or stroke in his mid 30s which is the common pattern in our family history.

Like me and many others, there might be an undeying reason why the OP has high bp which is why using the monitor as directed by the doctor is important and not having a blase attitude of 'oh just go for a walk and make lifestyle changes'.

coolcrispsnow · 19/03/2019 11:25

Ispy, but it was a culmination of factors that led to your diagnosis in this way. And your doctor explained what role this test explained to you. I am not advising the op to ignore her doctor's advice, at all. I have said she should discuss her concerns with her doctor. Added to this the op is using the monitor as advised. The thing is if a doctor neglected to to explain risk factors of a genetic heart disorder this would be picked up when she voiced her concerns with regards to the monitoring. But even saying all this, what I said was true. If there were a critical, by this I mean, urgent time sensitive need then steps would be taken very quickly by medical professionals and the importance of any procedures explained.

Ispywithmycynicaleye · 19/03/2019 12:16

Apologies cool, you just come across in your posts that a healthy lifestyle fixes high bp and avoids the need for medication. I was merely pointing out sometimes there are other things going on.
I was never suspected of having a genetic heart disorder, and I don't. It's something completely different but has led to me living with essential hypertension as a consequence.

mrsjoyfulprizeforraffiawork · 19/03/2019 12:43

In the private sector 24-hour BP monitoring costs a patient £385 at go. It is an utter waste of NHS funds for someone to agree to wear a monitor and decide not to do a normal day (including things that might well be responsible for the high blood pressure - i.e. stress at work, commuting etc) for strange reasons of their own. I work in these fields and I am (fortunately, only occasionally) flabbergasted about why people consult doctors and go ahead with tests when they don't intend to do them properly. It is like people who are given a medication that they need to take regularly in certain amounts and when you see them again they tell you they have decided to halve the dose or they don't bother to take it regularly or, as has happened in my experience several times, their blood pressure returned to normal so they stopped the medication forthwith. AAARGH! Just treat yourself then.

Bunnyfuller · 19/03/2019 12:49

True hypertension will show itself very obviously, over 24 hrs or 7 days of 2 readings a day. A bit of stress about the machine as you drive to work will be discounted if it is an ‘outlying’ reading. Your general, everyday, normal for you pressures are what is looked for.

I doubt anyone will be interested enough to be a problem with the noise. Certainly not worth using a valuable flexi day for! Or ask your doc for a 7 day read - you do it morning and evening for a week.

coolcrispsnow · 19/03/2019 12:52

It's something completely different but has led to me living with essential hypertension as a consequence.

Ah, right. I would be interested to know what sort of disorder it is. I accept that medication is sometimes needed as our body is an incredibly complex entity and finding the correct lifestyle change is like finding a needle in a haystack sometimes. Some symptoms have an urgency which requires medication or medical procedures to deal with them swiftly. However because the body is so complex I believe there often will be an answer which is connected to lifestyle. Even genetically inherited characteristics are less predictable than first thought because environment has been shown to affect gene expression through epigenetics. What I would say to anyone is don't give up hope. (I say that as someone who has had stage 3 cancer).

coolcrispsnow · 19/03/2019 13:00

I work in these fields and I am (fortunately, only occasionally) flabbergasted about why people consult doctors and go ahead with tests when they don't intend to do them properly

I say this as someone who has been seriously ill. Illness does not affect a person's real need for autonomy or how the stress of tests and undergoing ongoing treatments can have a catastrophic effect on their well being.

What I was amazed at during my own treatment was the cavalier attitude from medical professionals resulting in being encouraging regarding participating in trials, even though there was a high chance that you might be given the placebo, in contrast to attitudes regarding refusing certain regular highly invasive treatments in the absence of a medical trial being available.

Original poster
Hyacintharehighersincelasttime · 19/03/2019 13:04

as explained @mrsjoy, I was told not to drive, but be flabbergasted all you like.
i am not sure people understand a 24 hour monitor, it isnt actually 24 hours constant monitoring, it is every 20 or 30 minutes, at which point i need to sit with my arm down, calmly, without laughing, it would not have been appropriate, easy, or comfortable for me to work, i have had confirmation this is ok.

OP posts:
HaudYerWheeshtYaWeeBellend · 19/03/2019 13:07

So you started this thread with no intention of going to work Hmm the point of the thread was exactly Confused

coolcrispsnow · 19/03/2019 13:08

It is an utter waste of NHS funds for someone to agree to wear a monitor and decide not to do a normal day (including things that might well be responsible for the high blood pressure - i.e. stress at work, commuting etc) for strange reasons of their own.

It is also a waste of NHS money to be testing a potentially stress related condition in such a way that, in itself, causes a significant degree of stress...

dublinmammy1982 · 19/03/2019 13:09

@mrsjoyfulprizeforraffiawork when I had mine I was advised not to go to work, as I needed to ensure that I was had my arm in a comfortable when I went off, just not possible in my job. Before this, I thought of course I'd need to go to work as my job is stressful soo suspect my BP would go up during my working day

The OP was told it was fine not to go to work. She's not going against medical advice.

coolcrispsnow · 19/03/2019 13:10

So you started this thread with no intention of going to work  the point of the thread was exactly 

Mumsnet is a sounding board. The responses may confirm your own views or strengthen your resolve. Sounding boards do not always tell you that you are wrong. Even when you are disagreed with.

pigsDOfly · 19/03/2019 13:16

I wasn't told to relax my arm when it went off.

I also drove, and went to an appointment that I happened to have that day.

I was told to just get on with my day and try to ignore it as much as possible.

If you're going to keep watching for it going off and reacting to it surely you're not going to get a true reading of your BP during a normal day.

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