The low down on hypotension

“New year, new me!”

Let’s be honest, we have all begun the new year with a similar resolution– reassuring ourselves that this time is different, this time we will really want get fit and healthy. And if you’re committed to become the new you this year, your first pit stop will have to be this article!

We often correlate high blood pressure with high stress and more often than not you will come across a ‘how to reduce high BP’ article in your emails, but with the exponential attention given towards high blood pressure, we often forget that there are other medical conditions that are overlooked way too often — one of them being low blood pressure.
Unlike hypertension which is very, very common not many are aware of the dangers of low blood pressure.

So what is low blood pressure or hypotension?
A blood pressure reading appears as two numbers. Optimal blood pressure is less than 120/80, In healthy people, low blood pressure without any symptoms is not usually a concern and does not need to be treated. But low blood pressure can be a sign of an underlying problem — especially in the elderly — where it may cause inadequate blood flow to the heart, brain, and other vital organs.

Generally, it is always better to have a lower blood pressure, but having low blood pressure is bad. Hypotension often causes the inadequate flow of blood to vital organs like the heart and liver which can result in inadequate oxygen to these organs as well as permanent damage.

Symptoms of hypotension?
You should get your blood pressure checked if you keep experiencing symptoms like -
• Dizziness or lightheadedness
• Fainting
• Nausea
• Fatigue
• Blurred vision
• Confusion
• Rapid, shallow breathing

Now let us understand the common causes of hypotension or low BP -

1. Dehydration: You will become dehydrated when your body loses more fluid than you drink. The most common cause of water loss from the body is excessive sweating.
2. Anaphylaxis: Anaphylaxis can occur when you have a severe reaction to certain allergens. This condition is also referred to as anaphylaxis shock.
3. Hypovolemic Shock: Hypovolemic shock (hemorrhagic shock) is a life-threatening condition that results when you lose more than 20 percent of your body’s blood or fluid supply.
4. Heart attack: During a heart attack, the blood supply that normally nourishes the heart with oxygen is cut off and the heart muscle begins to die. As the heart’s ability to pump blood is compromised your pressure drops.
5. Bleeding: Bleeding or haemorrhage can refer to blood loss inside the body, called internal bleeding. Or it can refer to blood loss outside of the body, called external bleeding.
6. Cardiogenic Shock: Cardiogenic shock occurs when the heart has been damaged to the point where it’s unable to supply enough blood to the organs of the body.
7. Congestive Heart Failure: Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a chronic condition that affects the chambers of your heart lowering blood pressure.

How do you manage hypotension?
The most obvious solution is to visit a doctor who can give you the right medications and lifestyle changes required to overcome this condition, but not all of us have the luxury of time, money or access to constantly visit a hospital for the slightest discomfort.
But, you don’t have to lose hope, as you can use communities like Blood Pressure Support on CareSpace to reach out to others suffering from this condition or you can even get professional advice from doctors and experts directly on the platform.

CareSpace is a unique community platform which will help you connect with people of similar interests and health conditions with great degree of privacy. Here are a few more key benefits you can enjoy by joining the Blood Pressure support community on CareSpace -

1. CareSpace has a one stop tracker that helps you track your vitals like blood pressure, glucose levels, weight etc. As this is available offline also, you will never have to worry about missing a reminder whether you are travelling or in an out of coverage area.
2. On medication for hypotension ? Check out the medical reminders feature on CareSpace where you can schedule reminders for dosage and timing of your medication.
3. CareSpace carefully filters out and selects relevant news articles that are related to hypotension (and many such conditions) so that you stay up to date on recent developments.
4. In the highly curated video library, our members have access to thousands of videos related to hypotension that can help them in broadening their awareness of hypotension.
5. Members also have the option to follow specific tweets related to hypotension through relevant tags right from the platform.
6. CareSpace also has many physicians, nutritionists and specialists who often hold expert sessions where anybody and everybody can ask their health related queries and get the answers.
7. Do you want to rope in friends/family members with similar ailment? Create a private and exclusive community on CareSpace and and invite them. You will still have access to all other features and even follow the public community for general discussions and support.
8. Not comfortable discussing your low BP issues in public? You can ask for advice in one on one chats or shoot a query to the experts anonymously and without sharing personal details like phone no. and email.
9. Fellow members can also recommend local doctors and diagnostic centres for you to connect with. You can also use CareSpace to get tips from members as well as doctors for suggestions on various treatments, and if you aren’t satisfied you can also consult alternative medicine practitioners like ayurveda.
10. On the BP support community, you will get the information about what foods to eat and recipes that optimise nutrition for management of hypotension from nutritionists. You can also find recommendations for healthy alternatives like flavoured water and electrolyte supplements from the members.

It is often the lesser known conditions that can cause the most damage — so it is important to be in the loop and keep your body healthy. CareSpace can help you do just that by helping you to not only get the latest info but by enabling you to track your health indicators.

Join the Blood Pressure support community on CareSpace and take charge of your health with the guidance from our members as well as trained physicians today!