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Does Tension Cause High Blood Pressure?

  • Posted on January 20, 2012 at 11:43 am



Although this is a direct question the answer to this is both Yes and No! When the person is stressed or is in tension there is a sudden increase in the BP. Although this phenomenon is temporary it does not lead to sustained high bp in that person. Once you are cool and the root cause for that tension vanishes your BP is back to normal. Hence tension does create high blood pressure temporarily and it goes away as you are free from tension. A sudden spike in blood pressure is not going to affect you much.

On the contrary if the person is always under stress most of the time there are chances that the person’s blood pressure will remain high for some duration and it is likely to remain in that higher value. Leading a stressful life most of the time leads to high blood pressure. That is why among the people those who work in high stress environment like air-traffic controllers have high BP. If you are in situation where you have no control over the situation but have lots of responsibilities piled up then you might end up with high BP.

As far as possible come out of the stressful environment as soon as you can. If your job is the main reason for the high stress in your life then you have to find some other means to tackle that high stress environment in your workplace. Deep breathing exercises might come to your help in such situations. This is a simple exercise to reduce you high blood pressure. Get a guide who can help you in breathing exercises. If you do these breathing exercises for about 15 minutes a day you will find that your tension and stress goes off and your high blood pressure also drops down subsequently.

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Tips to Help You Manage Stress

  • Posted on January 7, 2012 at 11:08 pm



Stress can be described as an imbalance between a persons demands and their ability to cope with those demands. The personal demands that cause this stress are ultimately imposed by the individual, therefore stress, to a large extent can be indirectly self imposed.

The rigours of life can be stressful and there are times when most of us feel stressed. Stress is becoming a major cause of illness and unhappiness within the UK whether these pressures come from the self, our peers or feeling unable to cope with the perceived demands put upon us. It is clear that Stress is taking its toll as surveys have shown that stress is a major contributory factor in up to 90% of all illnesses and 5 million people in the UK would describe themselves as being very or extremely stressed.

Some common triggers of stress can include lack of interest at work, time pressures, excessive working hours, relationship difficulties, insecurity of the future and money concerns. This can result in muscle tension, increases in heart rate, cold hands and feet as blood is diverted elsewhere and increases in breathing. All of this can be very mentally tiring which in turn can increase stress levels even more.

Prolonged stress can have long term physical damage as the body’s response to stress creates the fight or flight syndrome. This is where your body concentrates on its perceived emergency situation and prepares itself for battle or to run by secreting adrenaline into the blood stream, halting the digestive system, hindering growth and slowing down the immune system. This can have many effects including causing an increase in general illness levels as the immune system is frequently slowed and stomach ulcers as the digestive system is impeded to protect the stomach lining.

As a counsellor and hypnotherapist, I see a number of people who are suffering with stress or stress related symptoms. I find it’s very important to begin to understand the individual and how they operate – this is key to ensure that any changes in lifestyle are the right changes and can have positive effects. Often, making small changes can be the first steps to larger and long lasting change. Self awareness also plays a significant role to be aware of how the stress became problematic to ensure we are aware of any future build ups to allow us to avoid sliding down a slippery slope.

Being aware that you may be stressed can be the first step to Managing stress. Stress symptoms include mental, social, and physical manifestations. These include exhaustion, loss of appetite, headaches, emotional outbursts (anger/crying), sleeplessness and oversleeping. Increased use of alcohol, drugs, or other compulsive behaviours are often indications. Feelings of alarm, frustration, or apathy may accompany stress.

Tips to help Manage Stress

There are many ways to combat stress and these include:

• Exercise regularly as your body can fight stress better when it is fit. Exercise also produces endorphins which can raise mood and gives general feelings of wellbeing.
• Get enough rest and Sleep.
• Eat healthy, well-balanced meals.
• Learn and practice relaxation techniques – email me for a free relaxation guide.
• Accept that there are events that you cannot control.
• Keep a positive attitude.
• Be assertive instead of aggressive. Assert your feelings, opinions, or beliefs instead of becoming angry, defensive, or passive.
• Talk to others – seek out social support from friends, colleagues and family.
• Don’t rely on artificial means such as alcohol or drugs to reduce stress.
• Learn to manage your time more effectively.
• Set realistic goals – try not to overload yourself or add unnecessary pressure.
• Get yourself out of the situation, whether this be leaving or taking a break.
• Prioritise and try not to worry about the small things.
• Look around – See if there really is something you can change or control in the situation.
• Do something for others as this will allow you to be less conscious of yourself and your own concerns.
• Work off stress with physical activity such as gardening, housework or exercise.
• Be kind to yourself.
• Seek help if you’re feeling overwhelmed.

How and why you experience stress is personal to you. Reducing stress doesn’t mean reducing activity or not achieving your goals but rather being more effective, spending your time wisely and utilising your inner resources.

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Stress and High Blood Pressure – How to React Differently to Daily Situations

  • Posted on January 5, 2012 at 5:31 pm



There is a correlation between stress and high blood pressure, though for some people there is a strong genetic component that can be the important underlying factor. The busy lifestyles that we have nowadays as well as the problems that we are facing in our work, relationships, and finances are definitely adding up to the stress that we are experiencing.

Actually, stress is not just affecting your blood pressure but also all the other systems in your body. Hence, the more stress that a person experiences, the more impact it has on the body. Although people have different coping mechanisms, everyone would agree that eliminating anxiety in healthful ways will help reduce the risk of developing health conditions associated with the mind.

Inner tension can trigger the body’s autonomic nervous system or the fight or flight response. This response is normal and is activated whenever a person is experiencing duress. Once a person is faced with this, the fight response is stimulated and the hormones are released. This release of hormones would then cause the blood pressure to increase.

While researchers are still not able to find strong evidence about the direct connection between stress and high blood pressure, they are researching ways that that stress may predispose a person to various diseases. For one thing, it can cause a person to develop unhealthy behaviors such as smoking, overeating, increased alcohol consumption, and sleeplessness. These attitudes can eventually lead to an increased blood pressure. In addition to these behaviors, the emotional stress that is caused by the anxiety or panic feelings also can contribute to an incrased blood pressure number.

Health care providers advise people to eliminate the stressors in their life so that chronic hypertension can be prevented. It can cause wear and tear of the body, though the postives side is that it can be used as a motivator.

Eliminating inner tension is indeed easier said than done because daily we encounter conditions that press our buttons. But, it is more the response to the situations rather than the circumstances that are the problems.

First and foremost, it is important to identify the stressors in your life. Think about what causes you anxiety and then think of a plan on how you will effectively manage it. What is it that gets to you? It can be your work, your boss, or a person who is constantly annoying you. How will you deal with that annoying person you see each day on the job? Can you take it as a challenge to alter your perspective?

In addition to changing your attitude, it is also critical to start living a healthy lifestyle. Having a daily exercise routine helps to discharge the pressure that builds up and lets you recharge yourself. This will decrease the risk of developing problematical health conditions.

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Premenstrual Tension (PMT)- Vitamins, Herbs and Other Natural Remedies

  • Posted on December 30, 2011 at 11:52 pm



Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is caused by an imbalance of hormones, mostly an excess of estrogen in relation to progesterone. Many women experience a number of symptoms in the run up to menstruation, including headaches, tender breasts, bloating, irritability, depression and lack of energy. There are many things that you are able to do to relieve the symptoms. These include eating little and often prior to your period to stabilize blood sugar levels, taking moderate exercise in the week before a period is due to improve circulation and reduce stress levels, taking vitamin and mineral supplements and using herbal remedies.

What you can do to help PMS

There are a number of things that you can do to improve the symptoms associated with PMS. These include dietary and lifestyle changes and vitamin and mineral supplements and herbs. The following should help the situation:

Cut out or drastically reduce the consumption of sugar, alcohol, salt, tea and coffee, and chocolate. These adjustments will help to balance your blood sugars, water and hormones.
Do not smoke. Smoking reduces the effectiveness of all the other treatments and uses the vitamins and minerals in your diet to clean your system – this means that there are fewer nutrients available for the important functions in the body.
Cleanse your body to remove the build up of toxins. Toxins are often at the base of hormonal problems and therefore of PMS.
Make sure that your diet is as good as you are able to get it. Try to eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, nuts and seeds, beans and lentils, vegetable and seed oils. This should assist in making sure that you get the nutrients that you need, but most people, especially if you also smoke, don’t get sufficient – so also take a good multivitamin and mineral supplement. Make sure that you take:

o 50 mg of vitamin B6 and take the vitamin B 6 once or twice daily in the second half of the cycle. Vitamin B6 regulate the sex hormones.

o Vitamin B 12 will improve the mood levels.

o Omega 3 fish oil as this helps to even out the hormonal imbalances.

o Vitamin D as this assists with the absorption of calcium.

o Co-enzyme Q10 as this will boost the energy levels.

o Vitamin E to reduce the symptoms.

o Magnesium daily may also be of assistance as it will relieve tender breasts.

o Calcium will reduce headaches and pain and prevent moods swings.

o Zinc is needed to produce prostaglandins, which help to balance hormone levels.

If you do suffer from symptoms associated with low blood sugar levels, such as sugar cravings, increased appetite, faintness, irritability, or headaches before a meal eat some unrefined carbohydrates for example, carrot or a piece of fruit about every two hours. Be careful not to miss meals particularly within the two weeks of commencing your period. Missing meals will increase any tendency you may have to low blood sugar levels.
You need to try to take time to relax. Relaxation, deep breathing, yoga, music or meditation may be of assistance.
Herbal treatments for PMS

This revolves around using herbs to restore the hormone balance. These herbs can include any of the following:

chaste tree, false unicorn root, vitex berries, wild yam and black haw.

In addition to the hormonal balancers the following herbs con be used to treat specific symptoms.

For tension, anxiety or depression:

skullcap, wild oats, verain, chamomile, woodbetony.
For extreme tension:

valerian, passionflower.
To lift the spirits:

rosemary, cinnamon, St John’s wort, ginger, lemon balm.
For fluid retention, bloating or breast tenderness:

corn silk, burdock, dandelion leaf.
For breast swelling:

cleavers, poke root, calendula.

All PMS treatments should include remedies to stimulate the liver so that it will function most efficiently. Herbs for this include:

burdock, dandelion root, yellowdock, rosemary, calendula.
Herbal formula

A hormone balancing formula designed to deal with PMS would be of assistance. It contains the following herbs, as well as additional nutrients.

Black Cohosh Chasteberry Piperine Damiana Red Clover Sarsaparilla Tribulus Terrestris

Premenstrual tension is a common condition that is caused by an imbalance of the hormones. The condition can be treated with a range of measures including: dietary changes, vitamin and mineral supplements and herbal remedies.

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Effective High Blood Pressure Home Remedy

  • Posted on December 23, 2011 at 3:35 am



Introduction

Hypertension is a common disorder in the modern life. The most common symptoms can be pain at the back of the head and neck in the morning, dizziness, palpitations, pain in and around the region of the heart, and difficulty in breathing.

Causes of HBP

The modern life style and lack of exercises are the main causes of high blood pressure. Smoking, obesity, excessive intake of tea, coffee, salt, and refined foods are other important reasons for hypertension-related problems. Remember, normal BP is generally less than 130/85 and rise of the BP above 140/90 on a regular basis is a serious problem. This will damage the heart and blood vessels and it will increase the risk of heart attack.

Home Remedy for High Blood Pressure

Regular exercise combined with healthy diet is the most effective high blood pressure home remedy. Walking, jogging, cycling, swimming, and yoga will relieve tension, build muscles, and improve blood circulation in your body. Walking barefoot on green grass for 20-25 minutes daily will improve blood circulation and help you to maintain the blood pressure at normal level. Reduce intake of salt from the diet and avoid eating hot and spicy foods. Fruits such as bananas, oranges, guavas, and apples are good to control HBP.

Consuming garlic on regular basis is another excellent high blood pressure home remedy. Garlic is a wonder drug for heart and it will benefit you in many ways. Fresh garlic and garlic supplements will help you to lower cholesterol levels, prevent blood clots, and destroy plaque. Fresh garlic along with few stalks of celery per day is the best way to reduce the risk of heart disease. Scientific studies have proven that consuming foods such as bananas, oranges, and spinach, which are rich in potassium, will help to lower blood pressure. Anyway, consult a physician before trying this in case you have kidney problems.

Raw vegetable juices such as carrot, spinach, and onion mixed with honey are also beneficial in the treatment of high blood pressure. Watermelon and its seeds dilate the blood vessels and lower hypertension. Take fresh papayas daily and regularly on an empty stomach for a month that will decrease hypertension. Consuming one teaspoon of Indian gooseberry juice and one tablespoon of honey every morning is guaranteed to produce beneficial results.

Conclusion

Well, the list is never ending; hence, you are responsible for selecting a high blood pressure home remedy that suits your liking and lifestyle. HBP is associated with the environment and the factors such as food, lifestyle, and stress. Proper dietary intake and adequate exercises will allow you to lead a healthy lifestyle.

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Ayurvedic Remedies For High Blood Pressure

  • Posted on November 29, 2011 at 3:07 am



Hypertension or high blood pressure means high pressure in the arteries. High blood pressure does not mean excessive emotional tension, although emotional tension and stress can temporarily increase blood pressure.
Hypertension can be classified as either essential (primary) or secondary. Essential hypertension means that no medical cause can be found to explain the raised blood pressure. It is common. Secondary hypertension indicates that the high blood pressure is a result of another condition, such as kidney disease or tumors.

Symptoms of Hypertension:

The first symptoms of hypertension may appear as a pain at the back of the head and neck on waking in the morning, which soon disappear. Some of the other common symptoms are dizziness, palpitations, pain in the region of the heart, frequent urination, nervous tension, fatigue, and difficulty in breathing.

Causes of Hypertension:

The chief causes of hypertension are stress and a faulty style of living. Smoking and an excessive intake of intoxicants, tea, coffee, and refined foods destroy the natural pace of life and prevent the expulsion of waste and poisonous matter from the body. Hardening of the arteries, obesity, and diabetes lead to hypertension. Other cause of hypertension are an excessive intake of common table salt, and eating a high fat and low fiber diet.

High Blood Pressure and ayurveda:

Along with herbal treatment, ayurveda stresses on a healthy balanced diet, healthy lifestyle, yoga and meditation for the treatment of high blood pressure.

Diet :

Diet should be in such a way that it reduces body weight and excess fat, thereby reducing the blood pressure. Therefore the following diet is recommended

A vegeterian diet including the following is ideal for hypertension – Garlic, lemon, parsley, bitter gourd, drumstick etc. Fresh fruits like Indian gooseberry, grapes, banana, guava, and watermelon are consider beneficial. The quantity of salt used should be decreased. Red meat and eggs should be completely avoided. Coffee should be avoided. Quantity of oil used should be reduced and completely avoid the use of hydrogenated oils. reduce the intake of cereals and pulses. Regular exercise, practicing yoga and meditation are very effective. Sound sleep and proper rest is very essential. Avoid anger, tension, anxiety and loud speaking, and smoking. Laughter therapy is consider a good natural treatment of high blood pressure.
Home remedies for High Blood Pressure:

Garlic: It slows down the pulse rate and modifies the heart rhythm, besides relieving the symptoms of dizziness, numbness, shortness of breath, and the formation of gas within the digestive tract. It may be taken in the form of raw cloves or two to three capsules a day.

Indian gooseberry: A tablespoon each of fresh amla juice and honey mix together should be taken every morning as an effective Ayurvedic treatment for hypertension.

Lemon: The vitamin P found in lemon is essential for preventing capillary fragility

Grapefruit: The vitamin P content in the fruit is helpful in toning up the arteries.

Watermelon: The seeds of watermelon, dried and roasted, should be taken in liberal quantities.
Rice: It makes a perfect diet for hypertension who have been advice salt-restricted diets. Calcium in brown rice, in particular, soothes and relaxes the nervous system and helps relieve the symptoms of high blood pressure.
Potato: Potatoes, specially in boiled form, are a valuable food for lowering blood pressure.

Parsley: It keeps the arterial system in a healthy condition. It may be taken as a beverage by simmering 20gm of fresh parsley leaves gently in 250ml of water for a few minutes. This may be drunk several times daily.

Rauwolfia: Among the herbs, rauwolfia is the best Ayurvedic remedy for high blood pressure. The root of the drug in a powdered form is used. Half a teaspoon of this drug should be taken thrice a day.

Vegetable juice: Raw vegetable juices, especially carrot and spinach, taken separately or in combination, are also beneficial in the treatment of high blood pressure.

Dietary calcium and potassium: These two essential nutrients help the body secret excess sodium and are involve in important function which control the working of the vascular system. Potassium is found in abundance in fruits and vegetables, and calcium in diary products.

Useful Ayurvedic herbs for high Blood Pressure:

Broom (Cytisus scoparius), Black cohosh (Cimicifuga racemose), Blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalicroides), Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliaturn), Dong quai (Angelica sinesis), Gotu kola (Centella asiatica), Hawthorn (crataegus oxyacantha), Hyssop (Hyssopus officinalis), Javal devil pepper (Rauwolfia serpentina), Myrrh, Sanicle (Sanicula europaea), Skullcap root (Scutellaria baicalensis), Valerian (Valeriana officinalis), and Wild cherry bark (Prunus serotina).

Preventive Measures for Hypertension

Hypertension prevention include maintaining a healthy weight, being physically active, following a healthy eating plan, that emphasizes fruits, vegetables, and low fat dairy foods, choosing and preparing foods with less salt and sodium and drinking in moderation.

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