Anxiety can produce physical sensations ranging from trembling and shaking in the body to sudden increases in blood pressure.
All of us experience anxiety from time to time, such as when nervous about visiting the doctor. But it’s essential to distinguish between anxiety-related bodily arousal and chronic stress which can lead to high blood pressure.
Chronic Stress
Stressful feelings could be contributing to high blood pressure. Hypertension places additional strain on your heart and blood vessels, potentially causing permanent damage over time. Some don’t even know they have it as symptoms are typically not apparent unless something unexpected like a heart attack or stroke occurs – often being diagnosed during routine check-ups or emergency situations like these.
Chronic stress is a risk factor for both anxiety and high blood pressure, yet you have an opportunity to do something about it. Lifestyle changes may help lower both conditions, while medications used to treat anxiety also tend to reduce blood pressure.
Anxiety disorders impact around 40 million Americans and are characterized by persistent feelings of worry or fear over everyday events or circumstances. Unfortunately, there’s no cure for anxiety disorders but you can take steps to manage and improve your wellbeing.
As soon as your anxiety hits, your body’s fight-or-flight response kicks into gear and causes blood pressure to temporarily rise to prepare for potential threats – whether real or perceived. While this may be necessary in dangerous situations, such as when fighting off predators, this response also applies to non-threatening worries and emotions like worry. Unfortunately, however, its continuous state can lead to chronically high blood pressure (Mayo Clinic, 2021).
Anxiety may lead you to engage in unhealthy behaviors as a means to cope with stress, such as smoking or overeating – both risk factors for high blood pressure that make managing anxiety harder.
One other consideration with anxiety medications, specifically serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors and monoamine oxidase inhibitors, is their potential impact on increasing your blood pressure. Therefore, it’s crucial that all the medicines prescribed to you by your physician don’t adversely impact it in any way.
There are various ways you can reduce stress, such as exercise, getting enough restful sleep and eating a diet low in salt, fat and sugar. Meditation, breathing exercises or deep relaxation techniques may also provide relief – plus don’t forget that family and friends or mental health professionals can always offer assistance!
Anxiety Increases Blood Pressure
Anxiety is a form of stress, and, like any type of tension, can cause temporary increases in blood pressure. The reason behind these spikes lies within our body’s natural reaction to anxiety: fight-or-flight response which increases heart rate and blood pressure to prepare us to fight or flee any perceived threat or danger. Most often these spikes will dissipate once the anxiety subsides but in rare instances they can persist resulting in symptoms like irritability, changes in sleep/diet patterns, headaches fatigue/confusion/confusion etc.
Anxiety increases your likelihood of engaging in unhealthy behaviors that contribute to high blood pressure. People living with an anxiety disorder are more likely to engage in unhealthy habits like smoking and overeating; both of which raise your risk for high blood pressure – increasing anxiety symptoms while at the same time increasing risk.
If you are experiencing symptoms of anxiety, such as headache, vision problems, chest pain or shortness of breath, it is crucial that you visit a physician immediately. If hypertension is detected by their examination process, doctors typically advise making lifestyle changes to manage it more effectively – this may include eating healthily, engaging in regular physical activity and cutting back on foods high in salt or fat content.
Un ray of hope lies in the discovery that many medications used to treat anxiety actually have the opposite effect, helping reduce blood pressure by mitigating stress’s negative impacts on your body. Furthermore, practicing relaxation techniques may also help lower levels of stress and anxiety and improve health outcomes.
According to experts, managing high blood pressure requires approximately 70% lifestyle changes and 30% medications. Weight management, diet modifications (reducing salty food), regular exercise routines and adequate rest are all proven ways of lowering both stress levels and blood pressure levels. Learning anxiety management techniques on your own or with assistance from mental health professionals can also assist. For some individuals simply learning relaxation can bring down blood pressure significantly (Clinic, 2019).
Stressful Situations
Stressful situations may increase blood pressure quickly, but long-term anxiety is more likely to have lasting repercussions that lead to increased hypertension (high blood pressure). Chronic stress puts strain on your heart and blood vessels causing physical issues including high blood pressure (hypertension).
Stress causes your body to go into fight-or-flight mode, which releases hormones like adrenaline that increase heart rate and blood pressure temporarily – this may be useful when there’s immediate threat, such as hearing an ambulance siren close by or getting involved in an automobile accident, but when this spike happens frequently due to non-threatening events or worries it can become harmful, especially if you already have hypertension, have other risk factors for it such as being overweight/obese/smoker, having diabetes or being over 40 years old (Chu et al., 2022).
There are various strategies available to you for combatting anxiety that can help to lower your blood pressure. Some of them include getting enough rest, eating healthily and regular physical activity as a means of relieving stress levels; and participating in relaxing activities like meditation, yoga or deep breathing exercises in order to calm yourself. It is also crucial that as much stressors from your life such as toxic people and environments be removed as possible in order to promote overall well-being.
At its core, anxiety and high blood pressure management is best achieved when patients collaborate with their physician in treating its source – whether this means lifestyle modifications, psychotherapy or medication depending on your specific situation. Start by including the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension eating plan into daily life (NIH, 2021); reduce foods high in sodium, fat and sugar while engaging in regular physical exercise that improves your mood and relieves anxiety. Furthermore, consult with your physician regarding stress-reducing herbal supplements as they can also help alleviate tension. Finally, always visit a primary care provider if you suspect high blood pressure.
Work Related Stress
Work stress is something we all experience, from dealing with demanding bosses to long hours on the job. Many believe job stress to be the cause of high blood pressure; however, research does not support this assertion. Most studies examining the link between work stress and hypertension found no relationship. Instead, lifestyle factors were more influential when determining risk factors for hypertension.
Stressful situations may trigger short-term increases in blood pressure; however, prolonged elevations of it are much more dangerous and harmful to health. That is why it is crucial for individuals to manage their anxieties effectively and ensure they get enough sleep and exercise regularly, rather than turning to cigarettes or alcohol as an outlet for managing their problems.
Persons suffering from high blood pressure should be able to differentiate between anxiety-induced bodily arousal and hypertension caused by medical conditions like coronary artery disease, renal disease or obstructive sleep apnea. When concerned, consult their physician about lifestyle changes that could lower their blood pressure through stress management techniques, support systems or medications as needed.
An effective way to combat hypertension is through physical activity, quitting smoking and caffeine intake, getting at least seven to nine hours of restful sleep each night and eating healthily and drinking plenty of water, with limited consumption of foods high in saturated fats. Mental health education is also invaluable; raising awareness of stress levels’ connection to anxiety, hypertension and other conditions can be very effective in fighting the condition.
References
Chu, B., Marwaha, K., Ayers, D., & Sanvictores, T. (2022, September 12). Physiology, Stress reaction. PubMed; StatPearls Publishing. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK541120/
Clinic, M. (2019, January 9). 10 ways to control high blood pressure without medication. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-pressure/in-depth/high-blood-pressure/art-20046974
Mayo Clinic. (2021, March 18). Stress and high blood pressure: What’s the connection? Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-pressure/in-depth/stress-and-high-blood-pressure/art-20044190
NIH. (2021, December 29). DASH Eating Plan | NHLBI, NIH. Nih.gov. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/education/dash-eating-plan
