onebreathatatime
10-30-2013, 12:17 PM
I know this is a hot topic for a lot of Health Anxiety sufferers, but my story/question is this... About 3 weeks ago I had my blood pressure checked at the dr's... was 135/80, which I must say is pretty good for me as I am always panicking during this.
The following week, I decided to go to the local pharmacy and check my own blood pressure in the machines, well the first reading was high 140 something over like 96.... the second one however was 154/124, I panicked so bad, that I drove myself right to my psychiatrist, who then switched me to Zoloft from Prozac (I was always really anxious while on Prozac). For a week after this I was on edge, having constant panic attacks. I had read that it meant that I have a hypertensive crisis and needed medical attention ASAP.
I talked to 2 Psychiatrists regarding this and both have said not to go by the machines in the drug stores as they are not reliable and to go by the Dr's reading. I was also told that one high reading (even if it was a reliable reading) that it will not kill me but the part I am having difficulty with getting over/believing is...
1. What if my reading at the dr's was low as a one off and the reading at the drug store was correct?
I feel, I keep thinking about this because I have constant head pressure/fullness feeling which I connect with being my blood pressure. I know majority of the time you don't even know you have high blood pressure, unless it's ridiculously high.
Anyone else suffer from Blood Pressure & Heart Rate concerns/fears/phobias and found ways to overcome and/or accept.
**I will also add that I do exercise most days of the week, I eat healthy, practice meditation, which are helpful for this situation.
The following week, I decided to go to the local pharmacy and check my own blood pressure in the machines, well the first reading was high 140 something over like 96.... the second one however was 154/124, I panicked so bad, that I drove myself right to my psychiatrist, who then switched me to Zoloft from Prozac (I was always really anxious while on Prozac). For a week after this I was on edge, having constant panic attacks. I had read that it meant that I have a hypertensive crisis and needed medical attention ASAP.
I talked to 2 Psychiatrists regarding this and both have said not to go by the machines in the drug stores as they are not reliable and to go by the Dr's reading. I was also told that one high reading (even if it was a reliable reading) that it will not kill me but the part I am having difficulty with getting over/believing is...
1. What if my reading at the dr's was low as a one off and the reading at the drug store was correct?
I feel, I keep thinking about this because I have constant head pressure/fullness feeling which I connect with being my blood pressure. I know majority of the time you don't even know you have high blood pressure, unless it's ridiculously high.
Anyone else suffer from Blood Pressure & Heart Rate concerns/fears/phobias and found ways to overcome and/or accept.
**I will also add that I do exercise most days of the week, I eat healthy, practice meditation, which are helpful for this situation.