So we are in the midst of pretty crazy summer heat. It's been in the 30Cs since last week, reaching 38C with humidity yesterday and today. Drew (Taanshi79) generally doesn't tolerate heat well, having to limit his time outside to short periods in the mornings and evenings (much to his dismay). We noticed that on top of the quickly overheating we're used to his blood pressure is also really taking a nosedive, going way lower than his usual lows. With it comes (to be expected) dizziness, fatigue and light headedness. Our best guess is the humidity as the culprit, because it's way more humid here than it was in the prairies. Now I've googled heat in connection with blood pressure and all I'm getting is hypertension, nothing about hypotension. Anybody got any insights for us?
I dont have an airconditioned apartment and I have to keep myself cool in Summer, I've been using ice blocks to keep my head and neck cooler, a special cooling mat which I keep in the freezer to sleep on at night....I also found an Aussie site which sells nice looking cooling hats which I'm gong to purchase before Summer at the end of the year. Maybe wearing a cooling hat will help
tarabev, oh wow no air conditioning? That must be miserable. Do you sweat at all? Drew doesn't. We use a spray bottle to mist him with water and cool wet towels around his neck. That used to work quite well when we lived in the prairies where it gets hot but not as humid as here. We tried the something cold on his head but he hates how that feels. We are really more concerned about the crazy blood pressure drop that's been happening the last few days when he's outside and wondering if that could be the humidity or if we should worry that there's something else going on.
I dont have an airconditioned apartment and I have to keep myself cool in Summer, I've been using ice blocks to keep my head and neck cooler, a special cooling mat which I keep in the freezer to sleep on at night....I also found an Aussie site which sells nice looking cooling hats which I'm gong to purchase before Summer at the end of the year. Maybe wearing a cooling hat will help
A few years ago I had to do with a very experienced doctor for something else and he broached the subject of blood pressure. Told me I should be sprinkling salt on my food.
I thought that was strange, because I thought salt was bad. You know : too much salt. too much fat. too much sugar.
Turns out that doesn't apply to us.
We have to drink a lot to avoid urinary infection. But we have low blood pressure because we do not have enough fluid. So what is going on ? Every time we pee we lose electrolytes. And we can't retain liquid without electrolytes. So nothing of what we drink stays in our bodies, we get increasingly dehydrated, thus low blood pressure.
In the old days people took salt tablets in the desert, etc. Today they take gatorade.
Long story short, I now add salt to my food (which tastes better anyway) and I feel better.
I buy pink Himalayan salt. It’s less salty tasting than straight plain white salt, and it contains lots of trace minerals. Now that I’ve been using it for several years, the plain white iodized salt tastes harsh and strangely offensive.
Medicinal News Today- Pink Himalayan salt is chemically similar to table salt. It contains up to 98 percent sodium chloride. The rest of the salt consists of trace minerals, such as potassium, magnesium, and calcium.Jul 30, 2018
tarabev , oh wow no air conditioning? That must be miserable. Do you sweat at all? Drew doesn't. We use a spray bottle to mist him with water and cool wet towels around his neck. That used to work quite well when we lived in the prairies where it gets hot but not as humid as here. We tried the something cold on his head but he hates how that feels. We are really more concerned about the crazy blood pressure drop that's been happening the last few days when he's outside and wondering if that could be the humidity or if we should worry that there's something else going on.
No, I hardly sweat at all......Ive got used to not having aircon, I got ceiling fans put in my lounge and bedroom which helps a lot, I also use the cool towels. That site which i linked in my other message also sell cooling neck ties....they dont have ice blocks in their items, they have cooling beads which is what is in my pads which I sleep on in summer, the cooling lasts a lot longer than plain ice blocks or gel pads.
If you're concerned at all about his blood pressure then its my opinion to always err on the side of caution and go and see your GP or specialist.
I dont have an airconditioned apartment and I have to keep myself cool in Summer, I've been using ice blocks to keep my head and neck cooler, a special cooling mat which I keep in the freezer to sleep on at night....I also found an Aussie site which sells nice looking cooling hats which I'm gong to purchase before Summer at the end of the year. Maybe wearing a cooling hat will help
hello prairie. This is an interesting post. I have become somewhat of an expert on low blood pressure, since I suffer from it myself. My blood pressure can dip dramatically after eating, a syndrome called post-prandial hypotension. My normal BP is around 90/50 but the systolic (the upper pressure) can drop into the 50s. In the morning my blood pressure is in the 50s. 55/38 is not unusual. When I get hot it also drops, which is what's happening with your husband. Do you know what he's blood pressure is when it drops? What is his normal blood pressure?
Regarding the post on sodium (salt). Your electrolytes (which includes sodium) can plummet if you drink lots of water. By lots of water I mean anything over 3 liters. I try to keep my liquid intake to around 2 liters a day. I do find that my sodium levels drop dramatically if I drink more. One tends to pee it out. I take a sodium tablet every day, and I also sprinkle plenty of salt on my food. But you should only do this if like me your sodium levels are low. You need regular blood tests to ascertain what your sodium levels are. Sodium is important for blood pressure. The adrenal glands are responsible for maintaining sodium levels in the blood. Fludrocortisone is a drug used to keep one's blood pressure up. It works on the adrenal glands, causes them to hang onto the sodium in your body, thus raising your blood pressure. 50 micrograms fludrocortisone is the recommended dose for people who have constant low blood pressure. But here's the rub. You could spiral into a dysreflexic attack if you get a urine infection or some other negative stimuli. If you're taking fludrocortisone, and you get autonomic dysreflexia, your blood pressure will be considerably higher than if you weren't taking it. Yesterday my blood pressure was dangerously low after eating an evening meal. I thought I was going to die. My wife had to tip me back in my wheelchair. I was in a right state. Yes, I'd be very interested to know what your husband's blood pressure actually is.
mikeq, Drew's blood pressure in the morning before getting up is around 100/50, that's the highest it will ever go (other than during an AD episode). Once he's up systolic will dip down as far as 50 systolic for a while, same as after eating. His usual, normal during the day blood pressure is somewhere between 80 and 90 systolic and 50 to 60 diastolic. His blood pressure going a bit lower in the heat is not entirely new, just how low it goes (50s and the other day it was below 50 when we first checked).
that is amazing. I've always thought that I'm beyond normal for a high lesion spinal injury. I never thought I would ever meet anybody with blood pressure that drops like mine does. It would appear that me and Drew are exactly alike. I can understand your concerns. Drew can Skype me if he wishes to talk about it on mikeq_uk, that is if his blood pressure is high enough for him to be able to function. I know I even have trouble talking when my blood pressure is very low. I cannot hold a telephone conversation without feeling as if I have been disembowelled and I'm about to die (I get a horrible, sickening empty feeling in the stomach and I begin to feel lightheaded when my blood pressure drops).
that is amazing. I've always thought that I'm beyond normal for a high lesion spinal injury. I never thought I would ever meet anybody with blood pressure that drops like mine does. It would appear that me and Drew are exactly alike. I can understand your concerns. Drew can Skype me if he wishes to talk about it on mikeq_uk, that is if his blood pressure is high enough for him to be able to function. I know I even have trouble talking when my blood pressure is very low. I cannot hold a telephone conversation without feeling as if I have been disembowelled and I'm about to die (I get a horrible, sickening empty feeling in the stomach and I begin to feel lightheaded when my blood pressure drops).
all the best
Mike
While I am not a high quad nor immobile my blood pressure has been low all my life. My dad was similar. When in my 20s I often gave blood but would run up and down the stairs several times before the BP check to make sure mine was high enough to give.
Sometimes in the middle of the night I will sit up to transfer to chair (bathroom run) and get a feeling similar to what you describe, Mike, though if your scale runs to 10 mine only goes to 7. It us extremely unpleasant and once I had to just lay back down and hope for the best. I woke an hour later, mostly ok, and had not pissed the bed.
There was an older gentleman on another forum whose BP dipped so low as he ate he would fall asleep on his plate. His doctor gave him a stimulant to take before meals.
an interesting and somewhat amusing post, Tetra. I can imagine the guy falling asleep on his plate. I wonder what stimulant the doctor gave him? I'll have some amphetamines. Haven't had any for many years. LOL
prairie, I know that what you and Taanshi are dealing with isn’t the same as a non-injured person with low blood pressure. But here’s a research article on low blood pressure that gives a lot of information on the low blood pressure phenomena in general. Maybe you’ll see something it it that will provide a useful clue. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3029466/
“He's Dizzy when he Stands Up.” An Introduction to Initial orthostatic Hypotension 2011
On page 10, it says this: “For more debilitating forms of IOH [Intraoperative hypotension] preventive and treatment options currently favor physical maneuvers. Bilateral handgrip for 15 seconds before rising forestalls IOH by evoking the exercise pressor reflex which can substantially increase blood pressure (11). Lower body muscle contraction while seated (e.g. pumping calf muscles) can also help as a preemptive maneuver. Also, lower body muscle tensing of legs, buttocks and abdomen particularly attenuates the transient arterial blood pressure decrease once standing has occurred (15) and can be potentiated by handgrip.”
I’m paraplegic, with no useful movement below my chest. But I have involuntary reflexes and spasms in my legs.These are sometimes activated by touching my thigh with my hand or when I grab a rail on the bed and pull to reposition myself. If Taanshi’s body has any of these involuntary responses (muscle contractions) to your touch, the muscle contractions may be used to quickly help his blood pressure recovery (rise.)