High blood pressure

I have taken clonazepam (.25 mg 3-4 times daily) for 2years.  Recently I began to taper down in January and today is my 13th day totally off of clonazepam.  I have also taken medication for high blood pressure for 2 years, and it has been well controlled by this medication.  Now after quitting clonazepam my blood pressure is quite high (up to 160/100).  My doctors believe that the high blood pressure is happening because for 2 years the only way my body could relax is through clonazepam, and now that it is gone I can't relax.  They say that I cannot increase my dose of blood pressure medication because when I do go to sleep and rest my pressure could fall too low.  Has anyone else had problems with blood pressure when coming off of clonazepam?? I try relaxation breathing, but sometimes I feel like it just makes me worry more.  It's so hard to relax when you are having symptoms of high blood pressure (ringing in ears, nausea, dizziness, squeezing in my arms).  I'm only 26, and otherwise healthy.  Heart problems have been ruled out, I just need to learn how to relax on my own!

Relaxing feels virtually impossible when in a state of anxiety. There are a lot of techniques you can find on this anxiety board. Also maybe check out the insomnia board.

One of the best things you could do is exercise. Just something low impact like walking. Go outside, listen to nature sounds, breathe deep, and connect with nature.  It really will bring your BP down. Try and do it a couple of times a day.   

My blood pressure was low to average before I started klonocrap. Then it went to above average while I was on it. Once I reached tolerance level, it went the highest it's ever been 193/105. Then it was high when I started tapering. My last reading was in Nov. and it was like 155/90.

 

Are you taking your blood pressure at home, in a store or at the drs. office? For me, ANY kind of shopping is stressful so that's not a good place for me to take my bp. Doctor's offices and hospitals are a sure fire way to send me into a panic attack and it doesn't help when the nurse freaks out over my bp. I wish I had a moniter to take it at home, but I've heard that they aren't as accurate.

I have a cuff that I use at home, and it doesn't help.  Whenever I hear it start to inflate I start having racing thoughts about how bad it is going to be.  I have actually forced myself to stop checking it frequently because I get too obsessed that I want to check it all the time.  My doctor told me to resist the urge to check my blood pressure because it was just going to increase my anxiety, and with increased anxiety comes high blood pressure.

I will take some advice that I've gotten on this forum and start exercising more.  Its so hard to teach my body how to relax, after a pill did it for me for the past 2 years.

go for walks, exercise...keep your mind occupied as much as possible.  I know it's hard at night.  I know it's tedious bet you could incoporate some deep concentrated breathing breathing.  you can find a lot of this in books and on the net.  it occupies your mind and will help.  I use to use "soft belly".  where relax your belly and breath in for your nose filling your lungs keeping your belly soft the whole time. and then think "soft" to yourself and exhale through your mouth and think "belly" kind of making your big in a way through the exhale.  if you try it you'll know what i'm saying. here's a link http://www.annieappleseedproject.org/sofmed.html. you can jump right to the soft belly part.  i don't like making a project out of relaxation teniques.

Not a doctor, but I had similar issues a month ago and doubled my blood pressure pills without dr consent,,, dont do that!!!!  Anyway it took about three weeks in my case and I am really doing alot better with the blood pressure.  Hope it is the same for you.  I had heart palps too, but just hold on and perhaps your body will slowly regulate to life with less rxs. BTW I think I had the high bp b/c of the benzos, still on them but a lot less and my bp is falling.  Good luck and keep the faith.  I know where you are coming from, I was terrified, but amd living proof it took care of itself..  Now you take care of yourself. Don Julio

I have a friend who's dr. wants to put her on Xanax to control her bp.

Not a dr.  but lisinopril 10 to 20 mg is the most common way to control hbp in US.  Super inexpensive. Major Side effect is dry cough. 

Raised BP another side effect of getting off the klonocrap.  I'm still battling with it.  Regular exercise should help but suspect when I get fully through this it will be back to where it was prior to benzos.  Just need to convince my cardio of that - he admits he doesn't know the first thing about benzos and the withdrawal process.  Just wants to add more meds to my body - aint gonna happen at present.  I do take one medication for BP - took it prior to benzos so that one can stay as it doesn't have any visible side effects.  God bless the medical profession!!!!!

 

Now when I go to my dr or the cardio my BP is raised and they go into a panic because I've developed "white coat syndrome" (fear of drs) - gosh I wonder why?  I take my BP at home and it's a lot lower, still not perfect, but at present my body is wound up like a coil so have to pick and choose when I take it.  If you do get a home monitor don't take your BP when you are feeling anxious - the reading will possibly be scary.  Don't stress - I'm told when this journey is over everything settles down again.

My blood pressure had been settling down a bit but the past 2 days my numbers have been high again.  My primary care doctor said not to take my bp if i'm feeling anxious, so I try not to, but its hard not to get anxious when I know I'm about to check it.  Another problem is that I can FEEL in my body when my blood pressure is high.  I start seeing what looks like little gnats and sparks floating around my field of vision.  I start to get headaches and I feel a little unsteady or vertigo-ish.  It seems like when I start to get high blood pressure like this my bp medicine does not help b/c it's anxiety related.  I am 13 weeks pregnant and scared to death that I can't control my blood pressure.  High blood pressure is a bad risk factor in pregnancy.  I believe my blood pressure started to go back up (after settling down for a week or 2) because I started back to work, and my husband had been on Spring break from school so he was home with me.  I'm so frustrated because I feel like my high bp is due to my inability to cope with daily like/normal activities.  I have to go back to work, otherwise I will not be able to pay my rent, much less other bills.

Feeling sad, frustrated and defeated

Don't feel defeated, you are not, you are in benzo withdrawal.  Fluctuating BP is a classic symptom.  And of course anxiety just compounds the situation.  Sounds like your primary care dr isn't too concerned about it, other than telling you not to take readings when you're anxious.  Wise words.  Try and put it to the back of your mind, the more you focus on it the worse the anxiety about it will be.  The vision issues and headaches could also be related to anxiety so don't stress.  From my own experience, don't keep taking your BP over and over again - it will really increase the numbers. 

 

 

 

Hi all,

 

I too struggle with high BP. Some years ago when I first realized my blood pressure was high I began monitoring it at home. I was taking xanax as needed at that time and I would usually take it before going to the doctors office and it didn't seem to help at all.

 

I told the doc that I don't like taking it at home  he suggested I take it like this, because like many of you I felt an increase in anxiety just putting the cuff around my arm. He told me the trick to get an accurate reading is to take it three times. That is take it once wait a few minutes with the cuff off move the arm around a little, elevate your arm over your head for a few seconds then take it again wait a few minutes etc. then take it for the third time. Record the lowest reading as the most accurate. He said it was very easy to artificially elevate the BP through anxiety, but virtually impossible to artificially lower it. Therefore the lowest reading is most likely to be the most accurate.

 

Inevitably the first reading was always the highest. For accuracy it is important to wait a few minutes between readings and move the arm around to prevent blood from tending to pool up. Doing it this way I just generally disregarded the first reading although I would record it. Often there was a systolic difference of up to 20 points or even more between the first and second or third reading. There was also an improvement in the diastolic as well. For me it was always the systolic number that tended to be/is a problem. Many people who take their BP regularly loose the anxiety associated with taking it. I don't trust those machines at the shopping centers etc. And at the doctors office I may have a reading of 170/85 and when I go home I will take it and it will be down around 140/76. Not perfect but i can live with a little imperfection (no pun intended).

 

Hope this might help someone.

 

JohnE