Power of Prevention

It was a really slow day today at work for a few hours.. then this lady came in and needed her blood pressure done, and I got all excited, cause I am awesome that way. Then it was slow again and I had all this time to myself to think about whatever I wanted to think about.

Blood pressure- a friend of mine recently wrote on my facebook wall and made a comment about me saving people's lives with my blood pressure taking skills. I'm pretty sure that was meant as a silly comment, she is a good friend of mine. As I just mentioned though, I had all this time to think about whatever I wanted to think about today, and I came up with an interesting thought: taking blood pressure IS kind of like saving lives! Before you say "this whitie is crazy" and exit the computer screen, let me tell you in better detail what I mean.

Hypertension= high blood pressure= systolic pressure (top number) of 140 or over and a diastolic pressure (bottom number) of 90 or over. AKA- the silent killer. Hypertension puts you at risk for stroke, and can lead to chronic kidney disease. Many people do not realize they have hypertension until they get their blood pressure checked at an appointment and their pressure is through the roof, or they have a stroke.

So here is what I am thinking. Blood pressure, a first year nursing student can take blood pressure. You can go to the grocery store in Canada and take your blood pressure with a machine. It isn't a terribly difficult or expensive test! Over the past month that I have been here, I have taken a lot of blood pressures. Almost every time I tell them the number, the conversation goes like this ".. so is that high?" "do you know what regular blood pressure should be?" "..no.." "typically we say that a normal blood pressure is 120/80, though often if it is lower than that, it is ok too. Do you know what your blood pressure is usually?" "..ahh.. nope" I then take this time to inform them about how blood pressure that is a bit lower is ok, unless they are feeling very ill or like that might black out. I tell them that blood pressure higher than 120/80 is more what we are worried about, and that you want to watch your blood pressure to see if it is usually high or low, and if the number is changing. For those who have high blood pressure but are not quite hypertensive I tell them that they can limit salty foods, exercise, and not smoke/limit alcohol intake to help lower their blood pressure. Those that already have hypertension will get advised by the doctor and usually given some medication, and return for checkups to keep tabs on their pressure.

I know we can't prevent everything, but I think it is worth talking about how we can keep our blood pressure lower, and how it is important to check blood pressure, so one day you aren't hit with "uhh your blood pressure is 190/100"" and last you checked (5 years ago when you last saw a doctor) it was.. hmm what was that number.. 120/85? maybe?

Anyway, all of that to say, that when I talk to someone about their blood pressure and help them understand what the numbers mean, and how they can help keep their blood pressure in a healthy range, I am helping save lives =)