So, yesterday my acid reflux issue kicked it up a notch and I had a lot of chest pain as a result. This is nothing new and I’ve even been to the emergency room in the past thinking I was having a heart attack only to find out I had acid issues. To compound my discomfort, my seasonal allergies where giving me a headache and usually Benadryl gets rid of them, so I popped one. Enter the palpitations and racing heart, which has not happened before. *sigh* I’m one of those super sensitives who reacts to some medications with too much fanfare, physically, more often than not. Benadryl has always been one of those that gave me relief and no bad side effects until now.
Then I took my blood pressure, because… hey, I haven’t done that in a long time and maybe I should check it. A few years ago I had become a moderate hypertensive person, and was put on a med to regulate it. Well the first med swelled my lips, had to stop it. The second med gave me Renaud’s-like symptoms and I felt tired all the time, but it got my BP to normal numbers. I lost 20 lbs and exercised a lot and got off the darn pill and for a while, it all held together. Then I gained 15 back and the exercise was sporadic.
So.. that blood pressure check yesterday. 169/104. Yeah…not good. I called my GP to make an appointment for SOON so I could talk about getting back on a med because you gotta do what you gotta do. But.. she didn’t like the combination of symptoms I was having yesterday and said I should go straight to the ER.
*sigh*
I’ve been down that road before and I kinda knew and of course hoped it was not going to be serious, but off we went, the Mr. driving. Long story and two hours later, heart is fine, blood work normal although potassium a little low, acid reflux -what it is – and blood pressure too high with need of medicating. I’m back on a new med, Norvasc, and Lord please don’t let there be side effects, because apparently at my age I can’t be jerking around with this any more. I don’t like to think I have to be on medication, but juggling with your vascular health is not a great idea, so this is one of those things I’m going to have to accept and work with. I’ve already begun losing those 15 lbs and have upped the exercise routine, but this time that might not be enough to get off the meds. Apparently, as you get older, it gets harder to bring those numbers down without meds.
So that’s my struggle with blood pressure issues, a deal that’s hard to accept for me because I have lived a healthy, active lifestyle for the most part and have never smoked or been much of a drinker. As the doctor said, It is what it is.
The husband, sitting next to me in that little ER room said…”oh, blog moment!” and raised his phone to take a picture as I sat on that gurney half dressed with wires, an IV and BP cuff attached. Never ever poke fun at an agitated woman who has direct access to large pointy needles and is not afraid to use them.