Medication helps lower blood pressure quickly, typically within a few days. However, it may not be the best long-term treatment due to side effects. Medication can help manage high blood pressure while a person changes their underlying lifestyle that may be causing high blood pressure.
“It may take a month to six weeks to bring your blood pressure down by slowly raising your medication doses,” Durso notes. “Lowering blood pressure too quickly can cause dizziness and increase the risk for falls.”
Everyone's blood pressure rises and falls many times during the course of a single day, sometimes even within minutes. Many factors contribute to these changes, including physical activity, emotion, body position, diet (especially salt and alcohol intake), and sleep deprivation.
Usually, blood pressure starts to rise a few hours before a person wakes up. It continues to rise during the day, peaking in midday. Blood pressure typically drops in the late afternoon and evening. Blood pressure is usually lower at night while sleeping.
For those who have hypertension, regular physical activity can bring blood pressure down to safer levels. Some examples of aerobic exercise that can help lower blood pressure include walking, jogging, cycling, swimming or dancing. Another possibility is high-intensity interval training.
How to lower blood pressure immediately at home and naturally
What lowers BP right away?
Unfortunately, there is no quick way to lower blood pressure without medical intervention. The best way to lower blood pressure is with long-term behavioral changes—like reducing stress, getting better sleep, exercising, and eating a low-sodium diet—but this takes time. Certain medications can also help.
Drinking water can help normalize your blood pressure but doesn't necessarily lower your blood pressure unless you are dehydrated. Because your blood is made up of 90% water, the overall volume will decrease when you are dehydrated.
Call 911 or emergency medical services if your blood pressure is 180/120 mm Hg or greater and you have chest pain, shortness of breath, or symptoms of stroke. Stroke symptoms include numbness or tingling, trouble speaking, or changes in vision.
How high can your blood pressure go when you are nervous?
A. Blood pressure normally goes up and down 20 or 30 points during the day. Surges up to 200/120 due to stress are impressive, and out of the ordinary.
When you're dehydrated, sodium levels in your blood typically rise. Your system responds by releasing more of a hormone called vasopressin, which works to help your body hang on to water. Vasopressin also can cause your blood vessels to tighten, or constrict, which makes your blood pressure rise.
These spikes, which typically last only a short period of time, are also known as sudden high blood pressure. These are some possible causes: Caffeine. Certain medications (such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) or combinations of medications.
Can a tight blood pressure cuff cause a high reading?
You're using the wrong-sized cuff
A BP cuff that is too large will give falsely low readings, while an overly small cuff will provide readings that are falsely high. The American Heart Association publishes guidelines for blood pressure measurement [2].
How do you treat high blood pressure in 3 minutes?
If your blood pressure is elevated and you want to see an immediate change, lie down and take deep breaths. This is how you lower your blood pressure within minutes, helping to slow your heart rate and decrease your blood pressure. When you feel stress, hormones are released that constrict your blood vessels.
What should I do if my blood pressure is 160 over 100?
If your blood pressure is very high—higher than 160/100, or when either number is higher—you don't have a decision to make. You definitely need medicine to lower your blood pressure.
The European Society of Cardiology²¹ recommends that people lay down and take naps during midday to help lower their pressure levels. Additionally, the American College of Cardiology claims that the average systolic blood pressure drops by about 3 mm Hg²² for each hour one lays down for a nap.
Chronic anxiety is a common mental health condition that affects nearly a third of Americans at some point in their lives. Left untreated, anxiety may lead to physical health conditions that include high blood pressure.
Can being nervous at doctor cause high blood pressure?
White coat syndrome, or white coat hypertension, is the term for when you get a high blood pressure reading in a doctor's office and a normal reading at home. The anxiety of being around doctors in white coats can make your blood pressure rise. Most people don't need treatment if their blood pressure is normal at home.
Q. When I am monitoring my blood pressure, which number is most important — top, bottom, or both? A. While both numbers in a blood pressure reading are essential for diagnosing and treating high blood pressure, doctors primarily focus on the top number, also known as systolic pressure.
If you are diagnosed with a hypertensive episode, you will be given oral or intravenous medications to lower your blood pressure. Damage will also be assessed. If the heart is involved or you've had a stroke, additional treatment will be given to address those complications.
Most doctors consider high blood pressure as greater than 130/80 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). Severely high blood pressure is greater than 170/100 mm Hg.
Some people will experience symptoms such as headache, numbness or tingling several days before they have a serious stroke. One study found that 43% of stroke patients experienced mini-stroke symptoms up to a week before they had a major stroke.
Evidence-Based Answer. Walking lowers systolic blood pressure by 4.11 mm Hg (95% CI, 3.01 to 5.22 mm Hg). It lowers diastolic blood pressure by 1.79 mm Hg (95% CI, 1.07 to 2.51 mm Hg) and resting heart rate by 2.76 beats per minute (bpm; 95% CI, 0.95 to 4.57 bpm).
1. Bananas. These are rich in potassium, a nutrient shown to help lower blood pressure, says Laffin. One medium banana provides about 375 milligrams of potassium, about 11 percent of the recommended daily intake for a man, and 16 percent for a woman.
Caffeine may cause a short, but dramatic increase in your blood pressure, even if you don't have high blood pressure. It's unclear what causes this spike in blood pressure. The blood pressure response to caffeine differs from person to person.