High blood pressure is a common medical condition which causes the blood to forcefully move against the walls of your artery high enough so that you develop other health conditions such as heart disease. Blood pressure is determined by the amount of resistances of blood flowing to your arteries and the volume of blood your heart pumps. The narrower your arteries, the more your heart pumps blood. This causes hypertension, or high blood pressure. The pressure is called tension in the arteries.
You can have hypertension for years and not know it because you have no symptoms of the medical condition. That is why it is called a silent killer. If you do not suffer any of the signs or symptoms of high blood pressure, your body may still suffer damage. For instance, you may experience damage to your heart and blood vessels. If your blood pressure becomes uncontrolled, the chance of developing serious health problems such as a stroke or heart attack increases.
Blood pressure readings are quick and painless. The results are given in two numbers. Systolic blood pressure, which is the top number, shows the tension in the arteries as your heart contracts. The second number, or bottom number, is called the diastolic pressure. This number shows the pressure in the arteries as your heart relaxes.
1. Nervousness
Nervousness alone is not a medical condition or serious problem. It is described as feeling uneasy or scared or fearful. Most of the time, nervousness will happen during some big event like a job interview. However, it can be an indication of high blood pressure. It also has some symptoms not associated with hypertension such as rapid heartbeat, sweaty hands, upset stomach, trembling and breathlessness. You may also experience difficulty concentrating, restless, agitation or dizziness. The symptoms of nervousness can happen at any time. However, with high blood pressure, you tend to experience these symptoms frequently and for no reason at all.
2. Insomnia
Insomnia is a common type of sleep disorder. You have trouble falling and/or staying asleep. If you do get an adequate amount of sleep, it may feel like you obtained no sleep at all because you do not wake up refreshed. Insomnia can be short-term or ongoing. Short-term form of the medical condition is generally caused by events like a family emergency or stress at work. The chronic form of the medical condition is a side effect of another medical problem such as hypertension. Signs of this medical condition include sleeping for short periods of time, inability to fall asleep and spending most of the night away.
3. Facial Flushing
When your face feels flushed, the blood vessels in your face dilate. Facial flushing happens either in response to specific triggers. It is an involuntary reaction to the trigger. It generally occurs on the cheeks of your face, but can also occur on your chest or neck. These triggers vary from consuming a hot drink, cold weather or sun exposure to consuming alcohol. When the blood vessels in your blood dilate, it temporarily increases your blood pressure. It is important to note that hypertension is not the cause of facial flushing, the condition is a symptom of the medical condition.
4. Obesity
Obesity is a medical condition where you accumulate a lot of body fat. You are not considered overweight, but obese. The result of the high amount of body fat is a negative effect on your health. It can occur because you eat too much of the wrong foods and/or beverages. It may also occur because of lack of exercise. You may also develop this medical condition from not getting enough sleep. Obesity does not cause specific symptoms. However, it does lead to other health problems such as stroke, diabetes and cancer. Obesity can be a signal that you have high blood pressure.
5. Chest Pain
Chest pain happens in many different ways and for different reasons, including having high blood pressure. It can be a sharp stabbing pain to an annoying dull ache in your chest. The pain you experience in your chest that feels like burning or crushing. Regardless of the type of pain you feel, it may travel to your jaw, neck or one or both arms. The pain may last for a few minutes and go away. It may come back later. The pain may also vary in its intensity. You may also experience signs of chest pain such as shortness of breath or vomiting.
6. Irregular Heartbeat
An irregular heartbeat, also called an abnormal heartbeat, occurs when your heart rapidly beats or skips a beat. It may beat too slow, fast or irregularly. The medical term is called arrhythmia. Your heart is a pump with a complex system of nodes, chambers and valves that regulate how your blood pumps through it. Any medical condition can cause your heart to change the way it beats because it may become damaged or compromised. It changes its pattern and may leave you feeling pain, fluttering, discomfort or pounding in your chest. The change in pattern can happen at any time.
7. Blood in the Urine
Hematuria, or blood in the urine, can indicate a serious medical condition like hypertension or have no reason to be there. Blood that you notice in your urine may be visible to the naked eye, which is called gross hematuria. It may be only detectable under a microscope called microscopic hematuria. The blood may appear cola-colored, pink or red. Blood in the urine may occur with little to no signs. If you have a medical condition such as high blood pressure, it may accompany signs of hypertension. It may occur because of medication you are taking such as a laxative.
8. Migraines
A headache happens when your head hurts. Migraines are different from headaches. Migraines cause a pulsing sensation or throbbing pain on one side of your head. It accompanies other symptoms such as vomiting, nausea or sensitivity to sound and light. A migraine is thought of as an attack because the pain can be disabling and lasts for hours or days. You can experience other signs of a migraine before it happens. These signs include tingling on one side of your face, leg or arm. Blinds spots and flashes of light are also indications of a migraine. Migraines are often an indication you may suffer from hypertension.
9. Sweating
Sweating occurs when your sweat glands located inside your skin secrete a salty fluid called perspiration. The common name is sweat. You typically sweat in certain areas such as your feet, palms of your hands and underarms. The reason you sweat is to keep your body cool when you exercise or in humid or hot weather. When you sweat for no reason or excessively sweat, it is a sign of an underlying medical condition such as high blood pressure. It When you have hypertension, your body may have trouble regulating your body temperature. You may not be able to control the amount of sweat or when you sweat.
