Blood pressure spikes

[lattegirl]

Hi do people get spikes for low blood pressure from just taking salt and some caffeine?

I  was supposed to try midodrine but was too scared because of the spikes and confused if I take tablets regularly would it make the spikes much worse

.Anyone else worked thru this ?

Many thanks 

[Pistol]

Hi - I can relate, because I too was very scared to try new meds. But we don't know what helps - or does not - until we try. In the end I always try what my Doctor suggests and have found that even if it does not work out - at least we know. It's like a puzzle: if we do not try to fit the pieces together we will never know which ones fit and which ones do not. I suggest you try what your doctor prescribes. Be brave and know that there are many meds that help - but we have to try them to know!!!

[ramakentesh]

Interestingly my BP is all over the place when symptomatic and unmedicated - usually on the higher side. Midodrine and phenylephrine actually lower my heart rate and orthostatic BP presumably by stabilising things. 

[lattegirl]

Pistol ,

Thanks for the input you are right but when I have good spells I tend to think it's not necessary .

[lattegirl]

Interesting, I wonder how much is affected by our diet when not on meds as related to taking meds. Have you any experience on that too ?

[Guest ANCY]

My BP is all over the map right now, we've dealt with it by using midodrine (10-20 mg 5 x a day) florinef (0.1 mg 2 x a day) and clonidine as needed for dangerously high spikes. The midodrine has served me well as its short acting and if I end up higher than I should be it's only for a couple hours. Florinef is more long acting so we don't mess with the dosing, it does help (most of the time) maintain a higher baseline bp. 

That's been my experience, I do get headaches from the midodrine and some other side effects but for me the benefits outweigh them. It really boils down to wether your body can tolerate the meds and how useful they are for you as a part of your treatment plan. 

I have a feeding tube so had roughly the same intake day to day for a while. Despite this, I still had a wide range in BP. Right now I'm struggling to get adequate hydration and nutrition which is of course lowering my baseline BP.

[yogini]

The good thing about midodrine is that it wears off in a couple of hours.  My doctor gave me permission to take it as needed - so for example if you are having a spike you could skip a dose if your doctor agrees.  Salt should not cause your BP to spike - it works over time.  But caffeine can.  It's complicated so think your doctor can best help you think it through.

[lattegirl]

On 19/02/2018 at 3:18 PM, ANCY said:

My BP is all over the map right now, we've dealt with it by using midodrine (10-20 mg 5 x a day) florinef (0.1 mg 2 x a day) and clonidine as needed for dangerously high spikes. The midodrine has served me well as its short acting and if I end up higher than I should be it's only for a couple hours. Florinef is more long acting so we don't mess with the dosing, it does help (most of the time) maintain a higher baseline bp. 

That's been my experience, I do get headaches from the midodrine and some other side effects but for me the benefits outweigh them. It really boils down to wether your body can tolerate the meds and how useful they are for you as a part of your treatment plan. 

I have a feeding tube so had roughly the same intake day to day for a while. Despite this, I still had a wide range in BP. Right now I'm struggling to get adequate hydration and nutrition which is of course lowering my baseline BP.

Really helpful thanks and sorry you are having such a rough time hope things improve for you