How to take home blood pressure readings

[LadyCastellioni]

I’ve got a health check coming up at gp practice and I’m going to do my own blood pressure readings at home and take them in because I have white coat syndrome and my readings are always sky high in a medical setting. I am also very stressed with various stuff in my life currently so that is also a factor.

I was going to do 3 readings and take the average from that (twice a day) but have read that you should just do 3 and take the lowest?

Has anyone done similar? What’s best?

Thank you

Recently had to do mine as BP was high at annual practice nurse visit. She asked me to monitor daily for 2 weeks at home. She advised morning and evening when sitting relaxed/not right after a heavy meal / not while chatting. Said take 2 readings 5 mins apart and record the lower one. Then repeat again in the evening.

I provided her with the readings and she calculated the average over 2 weeks. The average was well with normal range.

I've never heard anything about you taking the average. I think your other suggestion is correct: note the lower 2 out of 3.

The GP surgery should tell you what they want. Usually take 3, 5 mins apart and record the lowest, not the average, but your Surgery might suggest something else

Look up how to sit etc when taking readings as the WAY you use the machine, sit etc impact the readings

Just to let you know that you can get an app for your phone that makes recording the readings easy and with most of them you can send the results to your GP's surgery.

Ensure you are seated, have been seated a few minutes, not talking and are sitting with both feet flat on the floor.

Ensure you have a cuff that fits your size, there are different size cuffs and using one that is too big or (more commonly) too small will affect the reading and give inaccurate results.

Thanks. I will take the lowest reading and do them 5 mins apart. I had been doing them one straight after the other.

This is the form that I was instructed to complete by my doctor...

The document may be appear a bit small, so I have also selected the instructions which hopefully you can read.

Give your arm time to become unsquished. 😊 Also make sure the cuff isn't too tight and that you sit upright.

Also, you may find one arm has a lower reading than the other; my right arm is consistently lower

Thanks
Im scared of going on bp medication and side effects but I think I’m going to have to.

What do you do to help lower your BP

For example :

Exercise (raising heart rate) every day
No alcohol
No smoking
Olive leaf extract
Beetroot
Hawthorn tincture
Hibiscus tea
Meditation

Edit - garlic capsules

Isometric exercise has been found to be helpful for lowering blood pressure. A daily two minute wall sit for example. There is a YouTube video about it which is a summary of a medical study.

I have been on blood pressure medication for a while and don’t have issues with it, but I did have to try three or four different ones to find the best one for me. So if you do have to take them and you get a side effect like swollen ankles or feeling a bit spacey, try a different type.

I had to Google wall sits! Amazing! I do these but I didn't realise that they help my BP. Thanks so much for sharing ❤️

This is the isometric exercise video that I watched. s

I have high BP but also developed a massive trigger around home readings. I can’t get a sensible one.

Currently I have to do 6 each time, ignore the first 2 and record the last 4. But even then I get a reading in the 170’s and yet the GP gets one in the 140’s.

I’m on Ramipril and Propranolol, waiting on a cardiology referral but home readings have taken my existing white coat syndrome and started triggering panic attacks.

I haven’t taken it at all this week and feel much better for it. I’m having a 12hr monitor soon. That will be interesting!

I am under a cardiologist anyway for a valve issue and he knows I have white coat syndrome. I had a 24 hour blood pressure monitor 2 years ago, due to a high reading at my appointment, but my readings were fine.
I am quite an anxious person anyway and have had a very stressful year with a lot to deal with which is definitely not helping my blood pressure. I am worrying about everything that comes along, including this. I need to calm down. Even the thought of meds is making me anxious.

Thank you @BlackAmericanoNoSugar🥰

I am guessing that the 12 hour monitor will be a game changer as you'll get used to it and your BP stress will reduce

I absolutely know that stress about taking my BP at home increases the BP. I take mine once a week and with all the "aids" I've put in place mine is now 115/72. The GP is happy with a home reading (for me) of 135/85

My readings are a bit all over the place but taking the lowest out of each batch (I was doing 4 readings twice a day) gives me an average of 124/87 over 3 days which doesn’t seem too bad. Probably need to take them for longer but my appointment is tomorrow.

That seems ok to me.
I always do my readings at home now before an appointment because my bp is always high in a clinical setting. I just get so worked up but I am finding I am stressing about the home ones too. I always start off high and then 2 or 3 readings later it comes down to a fairly normal figure.
You might need to take readings for a week or two to work things out.
I don’t know how old you are but don’t be afraid to take the medication if needed. Lots of my friends and family are on it with no problems

Respectfully don't do averages. They can iron out peaks which the Doctor will want to know about

The best way to reduce BP is by making lifestyle changes (eg exercising) and trying some of the herbal/vitamin suggestions

When taking readings, I try to distract myself / relax by using a breathing technique. I think it's from yoga.
Breathe in deeply through one nostril. Hold. Breathe out deeply through the other nostril. Hold. Repeat.

Before you take your blood pressure reading:

• Sit down comfortably for 5 minutes.
• Wear loose-fitting clothing.
• Make sure your arm is around the same level as your heart.
• Make sure your arm is relaxed.

When taking your blood pressure:

• Put the cuff on following the instructions which came with your blood pressure monitor.
• Keep still and silent.

Other tips:

• Take at least three readings, each two minutes apart.
• Your first reading may be much higher than the next readings. If this is the case, keep taking readings until they level out and stop falling. Use this as your reading.

Directly from my instructions for doing home BP readings.