High Diastolic Pressure? Please Help.

[Michaelccc]

hi. i'm a 35 year old white male. 5'6 165 pounds. very slightly overweight.  No drinking , no alcohol. But smoke very heavily. Pack a day for 15 years .  Recent results of bloodwork as follows

cholesterol    179          (6 months ago 231)
triglycerides  177         (6 months ago 216)
hdl             91                (6 months ago 38)
ldl             53                (6 months ago  150)

hs-crp levels on blood test 4.0

echo results  from august 15, 2007                 IVS 1.2.  Posterior wall 1.2    docs say its normal but I feel like it can be borderline lvh    

blood pressure varies but usually around mid 120’s and mid 80’s  when measured at home.  diastolic sometimes goes down to high 70’s or low 80s and during stress rises to high 80’s or even low 90’s during high stress.

-Can anxiety affect my bp to this extent that its always in mid 80s and such ?

-Wake up with red eyes every morning. Has nothing to do with exterior allergens I can feel its coming from inside like a pressure feeling. Is this a symptom of possible hypertension

- does this sound like it may lead to DIASTOLIiC DYSFUNCTION?

- numerous echos state “possible lvh or may a normal variant”. Doctors never seem concerned with this. Should I be concerned?

- Does smoking affect diastolic readings ? or mostly systolic readings?

- Should I start exercizing? Would exercize have a major effect on diastolic?

- Does anxiety mostly rise systolic or diastolic?

[Michaelccc]

yeah i gotcha . i figured that even if it is borderline lvh it would not prevent me from exercizing. i wanna however do exercizes not only to prevent possible lvh if it already borderline but to possibly get it to "normal" status so that its not even borderline. and maybe get the diastolic pressure down that has been somewhat on the high side. thanks about my dad. and yeah definetly gotta drop the cigs once again now. :)  .. wish no one ever invented those nasty things

[Momto3]

I'm not sure what exercises would specifically diastolic pressure, but there are a lot of people on the forums with LVH.  I can't imagine that a "borderline" lvh would prevent you from exercising.  Have you asked your doctor?

Glad to hear your dad's surgery was successful!  

Now, it's back to working on dumping the cigs....You know that it has been PROVEN that smoking IS harmful to your heart health, so it seems that would be a great place to start ; )

[Michaelccc]

hey Connie. thanks and good hearing from you again. yes cholesterol improved. i took a lot of flax seed and celery juice. it worked. still needs to be slightly better though doc says. thats crazy that your ekg says MI sometimes. wow. i'd flip out. lol. red eyes. don't know. even when i sleep a lot still wake up . red and not irritated red. feels like pressure behind eyes red. don't know . thats why i though maybe bp causes it. i figured that anxiety and stress affect bp but always thought that systolic would be affected more than diastolic. well being that i have a "borderline" lvh finding, which may be normal for me, i am concerned that maybe its beginnings of diastolic dysfunction that maybe affecting my high diastolic readings. if that were the case i guess i'm trying to play preventative measures so it doesnt actually turn into a "real" problem down the line. smoking was going great until my dad got diagnosed with colon cancer which by the way got cured with surgery but the stress of that situation got me smoking again. curious though. lets just say hypothetically that i am borderline lvh or whatever. would aerobic exercise (i.e. jogging and such) improve possible borderline lvh or actually make the heart muscle bigger? i know some extreme atheletes actually develop lvh from too much exercize thats why i was wondering about that. anyways. how are you? how is everything? healthwise and otherwise

[Momto3]

Looks like your cholesterol and tri-g's and improving.  Here's to continued improvement!

I would not worry about the echo results since the doctor says the results were normal. Doctors are trained to evaluate the test results and correlate any findings to your individual history, body type, etc.  I've actually had results say "myocardial infarctionI", "significantly abnormal values" and "severe mitral regurgitation".  But, once the doctor takes a look and measures the results against the rest of my physical exam and history, she assures me, the pre-printed results are erroneous.

Stress and anxiety can affect BP.

No ideas on the red eyes?  tired?  restless sleep?

What makes you think you are headed toward Dystolic Dysfunction?  You have had a number of tests and the doctor has tried to assure you that you are fine.  That's a really good thing : )

Smoking affects the heart, but you were working on quitting....How's that going?

Absent doctors' orders not to exercise, it is considered heart healthy.  Regarless of its direct impact on your diastolic readings, it's a good idea for overall health.

Connie

[AJWS6]

Are you taking any medications ?  If so, what type ?  Medications can cause blood pressure to fluctuate.  

Yes, smoking can cause bp abnormalities.  Try to cut down on smoking, to eventually quit, your health can only improve.  Also exercising is another great way to keep yourself healthy, and a nutritional diet.    

Anxiety can also contribute to bp fluctuations, mostly on the high side.  BP fluctuates through out the day, best time to check is first thing in the morning.  

Try not to worry about bp, doctor told me, as long as bp is no higher then 140/85 constantly, then bp is fine.