Is it possible to not need bp meds?

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11/17/12 7:18 P

Only an individual's physician can say.

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11/17/12 7:02 P

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11/17/12 6:39 P

Husband lost 40 # and went off his BP med's. Didn't need them anymore.

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11/17/12 6:26 P

Depends

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11/17/12 6:24 P

Yes, unless genetically your genes are that bad!

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11/17/12 4:43 P

My two cents is speak to your physician,and yes I feel it is very posible as long as you physisian agrees.

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11/17/12 12:26 P

Yes, but only with your G.P.'s agreement, for your safety.

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11/17/12 10:32 A

I am living proof that it can happen!!! My dr said no way - once on them it is permanent.
I found a new dr that was on board with a more positive outlook and BAM!!! NO MEDS

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11/17/12 9:42 A

I have taken 2 bp meds -- each twice per day -- for about 7 years now. But a few months ago (after losing a little more weight), I started having some trouble with LOW bp. So my doctor and I reduced the dosage of one of those drugs and that has worked out well. I still take the 4 pills per day, but the dosage of the one med is lower.

I hope to be able to reduce my dosages even more over time. I don't know if I will ever be able to go "med-free" because some hypertension is not related to weight. But I am optimistic that I can reduce my dosage even more.

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11/17/12 1:12 A

I would say yes if you lost enough weight and your doctor said it was ok

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11/17/12 1:04 A

I used to be on not 1 but 2 bp drugs. But ever since I started dialysis, my bp has gone back to normal, so I don't need to take bp meds anymore.

Who knows? Maybe if you follow a healthy lifestyle, you might be able to forgo bp drugs too!

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11/17/12 12:47 A

My doctor has said for me the answer is yes if I continue to lose weight and live a healthier lifestyle and that is my goal to be free of my meds.

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11/16/12 9:14 P

No question it's possible. You just need to move (cardio), strength train & eat healthy, real food. When you drop the weight & become healthy the BP comes down. I'm living proof of it at 61 yrs. young.

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11/16/12 8:25 P

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11/16/12 4:07 P

HAHAHA! You really don't have to speak in code, but yeah, I get it. My father had that side effect from it, too. It's actually made me regular. I used to get backed up. It wasn't unusual for me to go four days without going. However, I'm also eating a lot more fiber, again.

Whole grains, things like flax meal mixed with oatmeal and multigrain breads are good at upping good cholesterol and lowering bad cholesterol. I'm at the upper end of acceptable, but my HDL is higher than my LDL.

The cough IS really irritating. I would really rather NOT take robitussin, but if it gets annoying, I do take it. I try not to more than once a day, though, because too many medications, like you said, can have horrible consequences in the long run. I'd rather not take medicine altogether!

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11/16/12 3:59 P

water pill is triamterine or something like that. Fairly mild as far as water pills go, I gather.

The lisinopril gave me that cough, which was extremely irritating. I'd hate to have to take something else, to deal with something else, that could cause something else.
But, I had a...uhm...'digestive' side effect. It took awhile to figure it out because right after I went on it, I had a dose of stomache flu, which tends to disrupt certain, uhm, things for a few days after the barfing is done.

Add to the fact that I still ate poorly and have no gall bladder...it wasn't uncommon to experience that for a few days here and there.

Either way, I'm betting I can get rid of the BP med all together. We'll see about the statin. That runs in the family. So, not sure I'll ever be able to get off that.

But I'd think at 110/68 average, I've got some room in the BP med department to adjust.
Cholesterol was at 100.

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11/16/12 1:37 P

The only side effect I've gotten is that dry cough. Very annoying but Robitussin just cough takes the edge off for me. I've been prone to upper respiratory infections before-I had pneuomonia for the first time last year, so I DO have to be careful.

The water pill being HCTZ or furosemide or chlorthalidone? I've been on the first two, but my mother takes chlorthalidone.

I hope you're able to stay off the water pill! Awesome job.

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11/16/12 1:03 P

I'm on statin 40mg (for cholesterol)
water pill for BP
nededepine for BP (lisinopril worked really well for BP, but side effects were bad for me)

Just went in to the Dr. today. He was tempted to have me cut the statin all together and not make adjustments elsewhere, as he prefers to only adjust 1 medecine at a time. Makes sense.

But, looking at it, he decided (with a little prompting from me) to get the water pill out of the mix. So, he cut the statin by half, and said to forgo the waterpill.

Will recheck in 2 months to see about further adjustments. Absolutely, he's willing to get me off BP and any other med, if they are not needed.

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11/16/12 12:26 P

Yes, with good nutrition (I mean lots of vegs!!!) and exercise. You can do it if you set your mind on it.

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11/16/12 12:15 P

You may be able to stop taking blood pressure meds if you loose weight, eat better, and exercise. Then again, doing all that will probably help but it still might not be enough to get you off of meds. My doctor said that if I get down to 220 lbs that she wants to try a drug challenge which basically means quit taking my blood pressure meds and see what happens. If my blood pressure is ok I stay off of them but if not I have to start taking them again. This is one of my goals but I'm realistic in that even when I was in my 20s, thin, and a competitive athlete my blood pressure was still boarderline high.

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11/16/12 11:25 A

that is the goal - med free!

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11/16/12 11:11 A

My blood pressure has gone down since I started exercising & losing weight, but I'm still on the meds, just not so high a dosage. Apparently, it is possible to control your blood pressure without meds, so maybe I can beat it eventually, who knows?
Only your doctor can tell you for sure.

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11/16/12 11:03 A

I'm not a doctor, but I would think that as long as if you have not done serious damage to your heart, then living a healty lifestyle at a healthy weight, may help keep you from being on BP meds for the rest of your life. But I know a lot of people who are healthy weight and lifestyle and still need BP meds because of heriditary factors. There are some things that just can't be avoided. Talk to your doctor, take care of your whole self, and know that there are folks here who care and wish you the best!

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11/16/12 10:30 A

Okay, so I got huge again after I, if I'm honest with myself, was battling bulemia and was not honest with the spark community when I first joined and lost all that weight-with purging by throwing up, with laxatives, and my father's prescription strong diuretics. I never went and got help with it, but the behaviors are just so on-point regarding the definition of bulemia, and I'd dealt with it since my late teens on and off. I don't want that to happen again. Trust me. So unhealthy.
Now I am dealing with high blood pressure and have been prescribed an hbp med and it is working.
The question is, if I lose weight CORRECTLY and choose a new consistant healthy lifestyle, will I no longer need bp meds, or is this something I'll have to deal with forever because of my bad choices?

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