BP medication / side effects

[ladybug78]

My father went to a doctor about his high blood pressure last year and got put on benecar with a diuretic.  That made him very dizzy (but brought down his BP right away) so they put him on plain benecar (no diuretic), which still helped his BP, but still made him dizzy.  Eventually he started taking only 1/2 a pill a day, which still controlled his BP and still made him dizzy.  Recently, he decided that he couldn't handle the dizziness anymore so he went off of the meds entirely (w/o telling anyone).  He got a stomach flu the following week, his BP went way up again (170/100) and he went to the doctor.  the doctor gave him bystolic to try.. to see if the side effects would be any more manageable for him.  he has been on it for 3 days now and his BP has changed from 170/100 to 155/110 to 150/117 today... so the top # is going down, but the bottom # is going up... and I'm worried.  My parents want to give it another day or so because they think that he might have been dehydrated from his sickness and that could have made his body retain water and now that he's not as sick, he's still retaining water and maybe it'll adjust itself over the next day or so of not being sick..
But.. I'm worried.

does anyone know anything about this?  I asked a friend of mine who is a family practicioner and he was.. very alarmed and thought that my father should be hospitalized for severe hypertension... which, i told my parents and they basically told me to shut up :-P Realistically, I'm hoping that nothing terrible is happening to him because he's feeling Ok.. but I'm scared.  They called his doctor and the doctor didn't seem too alarmed... just said that they'll probably try a different medication.  

[ladybug78]

Thanks :) I've laid off with the information bombardment and have just been asking for the BP news every day.  Today it was 145/87... odd that the systolic pressure went up a bit, but the diastolic was the bigger problem.. so at least that's under 90 now!  He has been on the beta-blocker for almost 1 week now and his pressure overall is down from 170/100 to 145/87.. so that's pretty good.  He was told that he should give it 2 weeks to do its work, so we're all just hoping that that top # will head down a little bit further :)  So far, he's still side effect free.. so it would be nice if this med would also bring his blood pressure down far enough that he can stay on it!  

Cindy, I'm sorry to hear that your father was the same way!  So frustrating!  Of course, I wonder how I'm going to give my kids the same sort of headaches when I get older :)  They're only 1-year-old now though, so we have some time... I'm sure that's partially why I'm so panicky over my father.  Home with twins all day, I'm so in the habit of taking care of everyone!  I've been trying to remind myself that my father is a grown up and even if he decided he just wanted to kill himself with peanuts.. that would be his right. Fortunately, I don't think that that's his goal.  We're all going to pitch in and try to find some new low sodium recipes that he'll like.  It's so hard since he grew up on peanuts and coke and pizza and burger and fries.. and everything that's 100% sodium!  Low sodium pizza is my goal.  Of course, we're from NJ so pizza is supposed to be super salty and greasy, but maybe with enough seasoning I can make something that'll taste Ok anyways :)

I know that my dad knows better.. and I know that he wants to be healthier.. He just falls back into bad habits when he's sick and stressed out.  I still just can not BELIEVE that he went off of his medication... so I'm going to keep asking them about his BP and side effects to make sure that he gets on a good medication that controls the BP without making him dizzy.. since apparently, if he's dizzy, he'll eventually just stop taking his meds and eat a bunch of peanuts! *groans*  Oh, he's not that much different than my 1-year-olds... stubborn!  They're all Tauruses ;)  I don't really believe astrology.. but I have to wonder sometimes when I see these strong personality traits in all three of them and they were all born 2 days apart :)

Oh, I'm just thinking about that because of all the fuss on the internet news about new astrology signs :)

[cindy707]

Thanks Ladybug....i almost had to laugh at your post because you are pretty much describing my dad and his habits that he had.  I don't know maybe it was the era that they came out of ....coke and peanuts OMG with hypertension....nice......you may be going overkill w. the e mails and may want to try another tactic....maybe guilt him a little to plant the seed in his mind.....i don't know why is it that our parents raised us and then we end up trying to teach them the basics?  And you're right...w. his background he knows better but sometimes i think its hard to teach an old dog new tricks and change habits as they say...if it were me i would stay on it w. him...hopefully at some point your viewpoint w. break through and he'll get it....i think your dad and mine could have been brothers LOL....take care ladybug and we are here for you.....

[ladybug78]

Thanks cindy :)
I have been e-mailing my parents all of the information that I've been reading and everything that my friend has shared with me.  It's extra frustrating because both of my parents are biochemists and I know that they're not ignorant about the dangers.  I'm sure that I've been driving them crazy with my nagging and pushiness about the whole thing, but they know that I mean well :)  
Fortunately, today his BP is down to 137/97... so it's going down gradually and he hasn't been experiencing any side effects, so they're both happy.  Naturally, I'll be happier when the diastolic is below 90.. but now that it's under 100, I can be patient.

My mother let me in on a little secret.. that my dad's BP had probably been affected (when the diastolic was going up despite medication) by the fact that he has had the flu and he ate about 2lbs of salted peanuts and drank a 1L bottle of coke.  *sighs* I guess you always hear about fathers who won't follow their diets... and now I have one!  They are both assuring me now that they're going to take his diet more seriously.  I just can't believe that he would go off of his meds AND go off of his diet at the same time... but maybe this will teach him not to do that again!  

Thank you again, for responding.  :)

[cindy707]

What a great daughter you are to care so much about your dad.  I understand your frustration and worry and you are right to be worried.  High blood pressure is nothing to play around with and can cause some pretty serious issues like a CVA or stroke if it isn't kept under control.  The thing to remember tho is that your parents are adults and make their own decisions but what may help them and you is to get a print out from your friend that is a doctor of the symptoms that your dad and mom should look out for as a red flag.  If it were me i would hand it to my parents....tell them you love them and that you will leave it up to them at this point.  Physicians have to follow pretty strict HIPPA laws and can't even discuss your dads situation w. you w/out written persmission from your dad.  Good luck to you and your family and hopefully everything will work out for you all but at least you know providing them w. the very basic of info on what to look out for can set your mind at ease a little anyway.

[kenkeith]

To speculate on the dose and what drug is the best and more effective is probably the general practice.  Unfortunately, some individuals are difficult to treat because they have other health issues to treat and there can be a conflict, etc.

I take an Ace Inhibitor (lisinopril) to treat high blood pressure, and that medication dilates blood vessels and that has  the mechanism to lower the resistence the heart pumps against and thereby helps the heart and lower blood pressure...best for those individuals that also have a heart condition. I don't have any noticable side effects, and the medication keeps my bp within the normal range.

Benicar has a different mechanism and blocks certain chemicals that tighten the blood vessels.  It is angiotensin ll receptor, and the major side effect of that medication is dizziness.

I can't be of much help regarding appropriate medication, but it appears the bp is trending to a better range.  Thanks for your response.  Take care.

[ladybug78]

Thanks for the response.  That explains why my doctor friend was so worried.  Sadly, my parents and their doctor didn't take any action yesterday... but, thankfully, today his BP is down to 150/100.  Hoping, of course, that it will keep progressing downward.  I, obviously, don't get much of a say in what my parents do.. particularly if they're following their doctor's advice.. so I'm just trying to learn more so that I know when to worry ... not that it really does any good to worry... but it is nice to know that witha  diastolic of 100, he's getting close to Ok.  

Do you know if it's normal for the beta blocker medication to cause BP to go down gradually like this?  When he was on benicar, it decreased almost immediately.. so, I rather wish that he would just take the benicar again to get himself out of crisis range, but, again, I don't get a say in it so right now I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that his new medication will get his blood pressure down further over the next few days.

Do you happen to know anything about different BP meds and their side effects?  Do you think that the beta blocker that he is currently on is any less likely to cause the dizziness that made him stop taking the angiotensin receptor blocker?  So far, he does not have any side effects from it, BUT it also has only lowered his BP in 3 days from 170/100 to 150/100! (with an increase in between!)

[kenkeith]

Your father has blood pressure that puts him into an emergency category.  The critcal stage is 180 systolic and 100 diastolic and greater.  This stage can cause a stroke, kidney damage, etc. He should have immediate treatment to lower the blood pressure to a level that is not a very serious condition.

Thanks for your question, and if you have any further questions or comments you welcome to respond.  Take care. and I wish your father well going forward.  Take care.