Try the deep breathing technique if you haven’t already. It really lowers blood pressure in the moment. Stress raising your blood pressure? Take a deep breath - Harvard Health
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Due to this thread, I made an appointment for my ongoing high blood pressure. I’m on medication but it doesn’t seem to be working very well recently.
Of course I’m a bundle of nerves!
I’ve been checking my BP at home and it’s been elevated but thought I might wait until I have my annual checkup. Decided I could no longer wait. Of course since my deductible is already met, it helped my decision 
Does stress and or slight weight gain cause higher BP? Cuz I’m definitely very stressed these days. And gained a small amount of weight, I’m blaming the stress
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I know stress does - it’s likely why it’s so high for me at doctor appts. They are admittedly stressful for me now.
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Yes stress will elevate it for sure
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Back in 2012, work-related stress sent my BP through the roof. To the point that I was sent to be evaluated by a cardiologist. I passed every test with flying colors… my heart was fine. Diagnosis? Stress.
Stress or broken heart syndrome CAN raise BP.
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Stress can definitely affect BP - none the less, if it’s consistently high (higher than normal) it’s probably a good idea to just run it by your doc - better safe than sorry.
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I agree with everyone who said do a breathing exercise while they getting ready, taking your temp, checking pulse ox and pulse rate. Even a minute of 5 seconds in, 5 seconds out, concentrating on the breath, lowers mine a considerable amount.
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The tricky thing about white coat hypertension is that once the doctors start making something of it, it’s hard to not feel wound up when they go to take your bp. Sometimes it helps if they take your bp at the beginning and end of the appointment.
DH just takes his bp at home and brings in readings (and device, so doc can confirm it’s accurate).
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Sounds simplistic but a couple years ago I started saying to the person taking the BP reading - doctor, nurse, med tech- my blood pressure is usually measured high at first in doctors’ offices. (Plus I take a couple slow deep breaths.)They almost always say something like that happens with lots of people, don’t worry about it. Ever since then my BP has been lower than it used to be in those situations, even often normal range.
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I’ve been telling them that for the past half dozen years at least, so that part hasn’t helped me, but I will see if breathing deep does anything this next time.
At least the office knows it’s a non-issue at this point. Back in the earlier days they wanted me to take BP meds and it was only after I was able to give them the readings from donating blood and such things that they believed me. The fact that I was deemed unbelievable by many is what led to the stress to start with I’m pretty sure. I know what I feel/experience, but somehow they thought I didn’t. The same thing happened with my mom.
Surprise… there was a tumor - and side effects from radiation for me. For my mom it ended up being Stage IV cancer before she finally got her doctor to even investigate.
Even a couple of years ago I told an ENT doc that about the double vision I have looking left/down and he told me, “hmm, I don’t see that looking at you.” Ok… so my mind is making it up? (The tumor presses on one of the optic sections, so that’s not likely to change.)
I despise going into an appointment having to argue that what’s going on is actually going on. That doesn’t happen so much now, but my guess is my brain thinks it’s going to and gears up for it.
Someday I will probably regret it, but I definitely wait a long time before bringing something up, hoping the body will correct it itself in the meantime - and I’ve just learned to live with a lot as that helps my sanity.