Blood circulation is a key component of your body’s functioning. Without proper blood circulation, the body’s organs and cells do not receive the oxygen and nutrients needed. Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, occurs when your heart has to work extremely hard to pump blood through the body.
To begin with, connect with the family medicine department of reputed centers like CareFirst 360. They can guide you with the right treatment. However, let’s go through how to manage your hypertension level on your own.
What is hypertension?
A rather common disease seen in today’s population, hypertension is one of the conditions that is most studied. Its occurrence in today’s society is so common that about 1 in 3 people in the nation today are hypertensive or are predisposed to hypertension. Given the magnitude of its occurrence, it’s important to know what lifestyle factors impact the occurrence of this common disaster.
Hypertension is defined as a condition wherein the blood pressure of an individual shoots up above 120/80 mm hg. These values represent systolic and diastolic blood pressure. The range further demarcates the severity of the disease. Hypertension presents many symptoms such as a racing pulse, heart pains, sweating in excess, and also loss of consciousness in severely undiagnosed cases. It can cause arteries to rupture thus leading to hemorrhages or hematomas that can ultimately culminate in death. Such is the wrath of this disease and thus, is one whose severity should be understood.
What triggers hypertension?
Hypertension is a vascular disease that can be precipitated by a lot many factors. They have been broadly grouped into modifiable and non-modifiable. Non-modifiable are the ones that cannot be changed by an individual’s effort, such as age, race, sex, etc. Modifiable are the ones that can be, rather than which need an immediate alteration in case of impending hypertension. Let’s go through a few of them-
- Diet: One of the key aspects of hypertension development is diet. Consumption of food rich in fat such as cheese, yogurt, etc. predisposes the vasculature to develop hypertension.
- Smoking: Smoking and alcoholism go hand in hand in causing this disaster. Studies have mentioned a significant increase in the occurrence of hypertension amongst people who smoke and drink rather than people who only drink. Smoking alone is also known to be a factor. Since many chronic alcoholics need a cigarette to smoke when they drink, these two conditions usually go hand in hand.
- Obesity: Indirectly associated with diet, obese people have more of a tendency to develop hypertension than the normal population. The reason is that the blood vessels are pre-disposed to atherosclerosis generation which ultimately can cause hypertension
- Stress: Increased stress about work, personal, social life, or any other issue has shown an increased incidence of hypertension. This can be also attributed to the association of smoking among people dealing with stress.
- Tobacco: It impairs blood vessel function and renders it susceptible to hypertension
- High salt in diet: Excess salt causes increased circulating sodium which by its osmotic action increases circulating blood volume, thus predisposing to hypertension.
Anger is a natural emotion that all human beings experience, but excessive anger can lead to high blood pressure and it causes other health problems. It is very common to get angry and not be able to control anger due to stressors in life such as work, maintaining relationships, and arguments with loved ones. Stress is a common factor that causes hypertension.
Stress can be due to anger, which triggers the “fight” or “flight” hormone and increases blood pressure. In the anger phase, your blood vessels constrict and blood flow will increase, leading to hypertension. Research has shown that controlling anger can help reduce hypertension.
How can you manage your hypertension?
Some ways to manage anger and hypertension at home if you’re unable to talk to your family physician are as follows:
- Take a break
If you feel anger coming on, take several deep breaths. Get out of the situation and try to relax your mind and body. Counting will also help to reduce anger and give peace to your mind. Using phrases also helpful in getting rid of anger, such as “all is well”, and “just be calm”. If you can, try to go on holiday or take a day of leave from work to reduce anger.
- Think before reacting
Sudden reactions are common when experiencing, and thinking before reacting means you are calm and controlled. Sometimes, the reaction can cause the situation to spin out of control. Just put yourself in the position of another person and then think about your reaction.
- Adapt listening as a skill
Listening is a skill that will help you understand the feelings of others. If you are a good listener, this will help you control your anger and problems associated with anger such as heart issues. With better listening skills, a person can communicate better and more calmly.
- Laughing
As we are all aware, laughing can lighten up any day. Laughing is the best medicine that treats various health problems. It can boost immunity to fight against disease and keeps the mind calm and cool. As we discussed, anger is related to hypertension, and laughing will control both anger and blood pressure.
- Exercise
Running, walking, and jogging will keep your body free from hypertension. These are the exercises that will control anger and reduce stress levels. Daily exercise will help you to live a healthy life.
Wrapping Up
Still, if you’re unable to manage your hypertension level, make sure to visit CareFirst 360 center’s family medicine department. The family physician will evaluate your hypertension level, family history, and medical history, and recommend the right treatment.
