Understanding About how High Blood Pressure and Anxiety are Connected

The correlation between increased blood pressure and stress has been well documented, but the idea of stress contributing the long-term high blood pressure has not yet been proven. Although high blood pressure and anxiety seem to go together, not everyone with anxiety has high blood pressure.

Stress does cause temporary high blood pressure and anxiety is sometimes responsible for other unhealthy activities such as overeating, drinking and smoking, and while the stress itself will not cause continued high blood pressure, the other activities have been shown to contribute to persistent high blood pressure.

A blood pressure of less then 120 over 80 is now considered the norm to which other readings are compared. Readings above 160 over 100 are considered to be dangerously, or stage 2 high blood pressure and anxiety, known to cause temporary spikes, can add to the already dangerous condition.

Controlling Anxiety can Help Blood Pressure

There are some who are on prescription medication for anxiety and their bouts can cause their blood pressure to reach upper ranges which can be dangerous. However, the linking of their high blood pressure and anxiety together has been a somewhat successful process.

Most stress in a person’s daily life is normal when little things affect a routine. Stress has been basically defined as person’s feeling of being overwhelmed by demands placed on them compared to the amount of time available to meet those demands. Some people actually perform better under stress while some people fall mentally apart. This can increase their high blood pressure and anxiety medication may be necessary.

Learning ways to control stress and reduce anxiety can have a positive effect on blood pressure, but understand that stress does cause temporary increases in blood pressure and it will not be a factor in persistent high blood pressure. These known spikes are why some use the line don’t have a stroke when someone becomes overly excited or stressed about something in their life.

Anger and anxiety excite certain hormones in the body which causes the heart to pump faster, which in turn elevates the blood pressure. If the high blood pressure and anxiety increase the heart beat significantly, then than causes of a heart attack or stroke also increases.

Blood pressure should be checked often if you have already been diagnosed to have it, and if not, it should be part of your annual physical, especially as age progresses, so as to become aware of it if you do.