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High blood pressure is called hypertension. Anxiety doesn't cause long-term high blood pressure. But bouts of anxiety can trigger temporary rises in blood pressure. Temporary rises in blood pressure that happen often, such as every day, can damage the blood vessels, heart and kidneys.
Stress can cause a steep rise in blood pressure. But when stress goes away, blood pressure returns to what it was before the stress. However, short spikes in blood pressure can cause heart attacks or strokes and may also damage blood vessels, the heart and the kidneys over time. The damage is like the damage from long-term high blood pressure.
This type of high blood pressure is caused by an underlying condition. It tends to appear suddenly and cause higher blood pressure than does primary hypertension. Conditions and medicines that can lead to secondary hypertension include: Adrenal gland tumors; Blood vessel problems present at birth, also called congenital heart defects
These hormones may raise blood pressure by making some blood vessels smaller. This makes it harder for blood to flow. Most birth control pills, patches and other devices carry warnings that high blood pressure may be a side effect. The risk of high blood pressure is higher if you're older than age 35, overweight or a smoker.
Caffeine may cause a brief rise in your blood pressure, even if you don't have high blood pressure. This short-term spike in blood pressure happens mainly in people who don't drink caffeine often, rather than in those who do. Still, the blood pressure response to caffeine differs from person to person.
Heavy alcohol users who cut back to average drinking can lower their top number in a blood pressure reading by about 5.5 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) and their bottom number by about 4 mm Hg. If you have high blood pressure, do not drink alcohol or don't drink much alcohol.
If you get a very high blood pressure reading at home and don't have any symptoms, relax for a few minutes. Then check your blood pressure again. If it's still very high, seek medical care. Call 911 or emergency medical services if your blood pressure is 180/120 mm Hg or greater and you have chest pain, shortness of breath, or symptoms of stroke.
But the opposite is also true. High blood pressure (hypertension) can cause atherosclerosis. Sometimes, the cause of the elevated or high blood pressure isn't identified. Conditions and medications that can cause elevated blood pressure include: Adrenal gland disorders; Heart problem affecting blood vessels present at birth (congenital heart ...
High blood pressure may affect the brain in the following ways: Transient ischemic attack (TIA). Sometimes this is called a ministroke. A TIA happens when the blood supply to part of the brain is blocked for a short time. Hardened arteries or blood clots caused by high blood pressure can cause TIAs. A TIA is often a warning sign of a full-blown ...
If you take them together or do not wait 2 weeks, you may develop confusion, agitation, restlessness, stomach or bowel symptoms, a sudden high body temperature, an extremely high blood pressure, or severe convulsions (seizures). Nortriptyline may cause a serious condition called serotonin syndrome if taken together with certain medicines.