Does being nervous raise your blood pressure

Can Anxiety Cause High Blood Pressure?

According to the Anxiety & Depression Association of America (ADAA), anxiety disorders affect more than 40 million adults every year in the United States. Anxiety can cause a wide range of physical symptoms, including an increase in blood pressure levels.

Although anxiety isn’t linked to chronic high blood pressure, both short-term and chronic anxiety may cause your blood pressure to spike.

In this article, we’ll explore the link between anxiety and high blood pressure and treatment options for both.

Fortunately, anxiety doesn’t cause chronic high blood pressure. However, it can lead to a short-term increase in blood pressure.

When you begin to feel anxious because of a stressful situation, your body enters fight-or-flight mode. This happens due to the activation of your sympathetic nervous system. During fight-or-flight mode, your adrenaline and cortisol levels rise, both of which can lead to an increase in blood pressure.

Although stress and anxiety can cause high blood pressure, it’s only temporary, and levels generally return to normal once you’ve calmed down again.

High blood pressure, or hypertension, is a chronic condition that occurs when blood pressure levels are elevated. Chronic high blood pressure can be quite dangerous and can cause significant damage to the body, especially the brain, heart, kidneys, and eyes.

Hypertension is classified into two categories:

Primary hypertension. This type of hypertension develops in the absence of a specific trigger and is the most common type of hypertension. Primary hypertension is often thought to develop due to genetic, environmental, or lifestyle causes.
Secondary hypertension. The cause of this type of hypertension is generally known and is often another underlying condition. Secondary hypertension is often caused by conditions that affect the kidneys, heart, or thyroid.

Interestingly, anxiety can also cause a type of high blood pressure commonly called white coat hypertension. This type happens when your blood pressure is typically normal but spikes in a medical setting, such as a doctor’s office, due to medical anxiety.

Anxiety is a natural response to a perceived threat and is something that all of us experience from time to time. When you feel anxious and your fight-or-flight response is activated, you may experience:

nervousness
restlessness
panic or dread
rapid heart rate
sweating
difficulty breathing
chest pain
hyperventilation
shaking or trembling
muscle twitches
chills or hot flashes
numbness or tingling
weakness or fatigue
nausea or vomiting
diarrhea
poor concentration
depersonalization or derealization

In some people, chronic anxiety is due to an underlying anxiety disorder rather than just environmental causes. Anxiety disorders include:

generalized anxiety
panic disorder
specific phobias
obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Just like anxiety can cause temporary high blood pressure, high blood pressure can sometimes cause anxiety.

For example, some symptoms of high blood pressure mimic those caused by anxiety, such as:

shortness of breath
dizziness
chest pain
changes in vision

Experiencing these symptoms or any other symptoms of high blood pressure can lead to an increase in anxiety.

In addition, having a chronic condition like high blood pressure can cause depression and anxiety. In fact, the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) states that people who have chronic illnesses are more likely to experience mental health conditions, such as anxiety.

One 2018 study found that up to 51 percent of people with pulmonary arterial hypertension may have anxiety and panic disorders, with many of these individuals going untreated for these conditiƒwas ons.

If you have frequent episodes of high blood pressure that are caused by anxiety, treating the underlying anxiety disorder can help bring your blood pressure back down to healthier levels.

Treatment options that may help include:

Psychotherapy

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the gold standard treatment for most anxiety disorders. CBT techniques can help address and change problematic thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that contribute to anxiety.

Research has shown that CBT can be as effective as medication in treating anxiety disorders.

Other treatment approaches can also be considered, depending on the type and severity of the anxiety disorder. For example, exposure therapy is effective for treating specific phobias, while trauma-focused therapy and interactive therapy such as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) can be helpful for conditions like PTSD.

Medications

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the most commonly prescribed medications for anxiety disorders. SSRIs work by increase the uptake of serotonin in the brain, which can reduce the symptoms of anxiety.

According to the research, SSRIs are most effective when combined with psychotherapy.

In some cases, benzodiazepines may be prescribed to provide short-term relief of anxiety symptoms. However, they’re highly addictive and are generally prescribed for short-term use only.

Other

While psychotherapy and medications are effective methods for treating anxiety disorders, lifestyle changes are also important.

Make sure that you are getting enough sleep, eating a balanced diet, and moving your body physically. Relaxation techniques such as meditation, yoga, and massage can also help.

Things you can do to feel less anxious

Whether you have an anxiety disorder or not, everyone can benefit from reducing their daily anxiety levels. Here are some changes that you can make in your daily life to lower your anxiety levels:

Get enough sleep. Sleep is very important for overall health, and getting enough sleep can make a huge difference in daily anxiety levels. Most people need 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night, so make sure to aim for this.
Eat a balanced diet. Eating nutritious foods can help support both your physical and mental well-being. Aim to fill your plate with whole foods, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins, whenever possible.
Move your body. Moving your body is important, whether that involves weight training at the gym or taking a walk around the block. Daily exercise and movement can help increase your endorphins and lower stress levels.
Practice mindfulness. Mindfulness is the practice of bringing your awareness to the present moment, which is incredibly important when you have anxiety. Meditation is a great mindfulness practice to reduce daily stress and anxiety.

Medications used to treat anxiety can help reduce overall anxiety levels, which can reduce blood pressure spikes. However, some anxiety treatment options may also cause an increase in blood pressure levels.

One meta-analysis from 2017 investigated the impact of SSRIs and serotonin and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) on blood pressure levels. Data from over 13,000 participants was analyzed, and the researchers found that while SSRIs didn’t have any significant impact on blood pressure, SNRIs caused a slight increase in blood pressure levels.

If you have high blood pressure and have recently started taking medication for anxiety, keep track of any changes in your blood pressure levels. This can help your doctor determine if adjustments need to be made to any of your medications.

Treatment for high blood pressure generally involves making a handful of dietary and lifestyle changes. This includes increasing physical activity, maintaining a healthy weight, limiting sodium, and increasing intake of whole foods.

If dietary and lifestyle changes aren’t enough to lower your blood pressure naturally, certain medications may be prescribed, such as:

beta-blockers (which are also prescribed to reduce symptoms of anxiety)
diuretics
ACE inhibitors
angiotensin II receptor blockers
calcium channel blockers
alpha-2 agonists

Generally, if you have high blood pressure and it’s causing an increase in your anxiety, treating the high blood pressure can help to reduce your anxiety symptoms.

Although anxiety can’t cause chronic hypertension, there’s a definite connection between anxiety and blood pressure. Anxiety leads to a natural increase in blood pressure due to the fight-or-flight response, and high blood pressure can sometimes also lead to an increase in anxiety.

If you’re experiencing symptoms of anxiety or high blood pressure that are impacting your daily life, talk with your doctor about which treatments may work for you.

Can Anxiety Cause High Blood Pressure?

Although anxiety isn’t linked to chronic high blood pressure, both short-term and chronic anxiety may cause your blood pressure to spike.

In this article, we’ll explore the link between anxiety and high blood pressure and treatment options for both.

Fortunately, anxiety doesn’t cause chronic high blood pressure. However, it can lead to a short-term increase in blood pressure.

Although stress and anxiety can cause high blood pressure, it’s only temporary, and levels generally return to normal once you’ve calmed down again.

Hypertension is classified into two categories:

Primary hypertension. This type of hypertension develops in the absence of a specific trigger and is the most common type of hypertension. Primary hypertension is often thought to develop due to genetic, environmental, or lifestyle causes.
Secondary hypertension. The cause of this type of hypertension is generally known and is often another underlying condition. Secondary hypertension is often caused by conditions that affect the kidneys, heart, or thyroid.

nervousness
restlessness
panic or dread
rapid heart rate
sweating
difficulty breathing
chest pain
hyperventilation
shaking or trembling
muscle twitches
chills or hot flashes
numbness or tingling
weakness or fatigue
nausea or vomiting
diarrhea
poor concentration
depersonalization or derealization

In some people, chronic anxiety is due to an underlying anxiety disorder rather than just environmental causes. Anxiety disorders include:

generalized anxiety
panic disorder
specific phobias
obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Just like anxiety can cause temporary high blood pressure, high blood pressure can sometimes cause anxiety.

For example, some symptoms of high blood pressure mimic those caused by anxiety, such as:

shortness of breath
dizziness
chest pain
changes in vision

Experiencing these symptoms or any other symptoms of high blood pressure can lead to an increase in anxiety.

If you have frequent episodes of high blood pressure that are caused by anxiety, treating the underlying anxiety disorder can help bring your blood pressure back down to healthier levels.

Treatment options that may help include:

Psychotherapy

Research has shown that CBT can be as effective as medication in treating anxiety disorders.

Medications

According to the research, SSRIs are most effective when combined with psychotherapy.

In some cases, benzodiazepines may be prescribed to provide short-term relief of anxiety symptoms. However, they’re highly addictive and are generally prescribed for short-term use only.

Other

While psychotherapy and medications are effective methods for treating anxiety disorders, lifestyle changes are also important.

Make sure that you are getting enough sleep, eating a balanced diet, and moving your body physically. Relaxation techniques such as meditation, yoga, and massage can also help.

Things you can do to feel less anxious

Whether you have an anxiety disorder or not, everyone can benefit from reducing their daily anxiety levels. Here are some changes that you can make in your daily life to lower your anxiety levels:

Get enough sleep. Sleep is very important for overall health, and getting enough sleep can make a huge difference in daily anxiety levels. Most people need 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night, so make sure to aim for this.
Eat a balanced diet. Eating nutritious foods can help support both your physical and mental well-being. Aim to fill your plate with whole foods, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins, whenever possible.
Move your body. Moving your body is important, whether that involves weight training at the gym or taking a walk around the block. Daily exercise and movement can help increase your endorphins and lower stress levels.
Practice mindfulness. Mindfulness is the practice of bringing your awareness to the present moment, which is incredibly important when you have anxiety. Meditation is a great mindfulness practice to reduce daily stress and anxiety.

If dietary and lifestyle changes aren’t enough to lower your blood pressure naturally, certain medications may be prescribed, such as:

beta-blockers (which are also prescribed to reduce symptoms of anxiety)
diuretics
ACE inhibitors
angiotensin II receptor blockers
calcium channel blockers
alpha-2 agonists

Generally, if you have high blood pressure and it’s causing an increase in your anxiety, treating the high blood pressure can help to reduce your anxiety symptoms.

If you’re experiencing symptoms of anxiety or high blood pressure that are impacting your daily life, talk with your doctor about which treatments may work for you.

Stress and arterial hypertension

Stress is the eternal companion of our life. It arises as a result of excessive nervous and mental stress, despondency, lack of positive prospects or a state of uncertainty. Stress is multifaceted in its manifestations. It plays an important role in the occurrence of not only disorders of human mental activity, but also a number of diseases.

Indeed, mental stress causes an increase in the release of hormones that increase vascular tone, increase cardiac output, accelerate heart contractions and, as a result, lead to an increase in blood pressure.

Stress is a factor provoking the development of arterial hypertension.

How can you tell if stress is having a negative effect on you? There are many signs, and they are all different in their manifestations.

All alarms can be divided into four categories:

Physical - dizziness, clenched jaws, headaches, indigestion, tense muscles, impaired sleep, palpitations, tinnitus, slouching posture, sweating of the palms, fatigue, exhaustion, trembling, weight gain or loss.

Psychological - worries and fears, difficulty in making decisions, forgetfulness, pessimism, devastation.

Emotional - a manifestation of anger, aggression, tearfulness, a feeling of powerlessness, frequent mood changes, irritability, a feeling of loneliness, negative thinking, nervousness, longing.

Behavioral - alcohol, drugs, overeating, changing jobs and even places of residence, if this is possible.

Stress management is a useful skill that every modern person needs. It is very important to learn how to cope with stress yourself and protect yourself from its consequences, including such as arterial hypertension.

How to overcome stress:

Use your time wisely (decide on the main tasks, and then assign a time for each of them and fix them, for example, in your notebook. After that, you can plan the rest of the tasks and assign time for them in between the main tasks).
Avoid negative assumptions (eg “everything always goes wrong with me”, “I can’t do this”, etc.) and tune in to a positive outcome (eg “I can do this”, “I can do it” etc.).
Analyze the causes of your anxiety. After you understand what the true cause is, think about how to minimize or completely eliminate the existing irritant.
Avoid bad habits, they only exacerbate the presence of problems.
Take rest breaks. Breaks should be taken not only during work, but also on weekends. In particular, make sure you get good sleep.
Maintain positive relationships with other people.
Go in for sports. At the preparation stage, you should undergo a medical examination, which will allow you to answer the following questions: What kind of sport is optimal for you? What is the maximum allowable load? Physical activity should be dosed. Sports should be done 3-4 times a week. The recommended duration of one workout is 30-60 minutes. The load should be increased gradually.
Take proportionate responsibility. Don't take on things you can't handle.
Set realistic goals in life.

How to learn to relax.

Muscle relaxation. Switch your thoughts to yourself and your breathing. Take a few deep breaths, exhaling slowly. Mentally "walk" through your body. Pay attention to areas of stress. Relax your muscles. Slowly turn your head to the sides one or two times. Roll your shoulders back and forth. Then breathe deeply again. You should feel relaxed.

Psychological relaxation. This is also a very important moment of relaxation. Learn to imagine yourself in pleasant places: whether it is a quiet forest, a calm sea or mountains. This allows you to relax.

Relaxing music. Find quiet calm instrumental music in the store or on the Internet. Currently, there is such music on the market, specially created for this purpose.

Blood pressure during stress

How stress and blood pressure are related

In response to stress, the heart rate and cardiac output increase, and blood flow to the muscles increases. These changes are associated with increased production biologically active substances - catecholamines (adrenaline and norepinephrine) and the hormone corticoliberin in the hypothalamus, which through the central nervous system causes activation of the sympathetic system and production of glucocorticoids by the adrenal glands ³ .

Glucocorticoids also increase blood pressure and cardiac output, enhance the action of catecholamines and other substances that affect vessels (renin, angiotensin II). As a result, under stress, vasoconstriction occurs, blood pressure rises ³ .

Is high blood pressure dangerous due to stress

It has been established that high blood pressure due to stress can be a dangerous phenomenon ⁴

Thus, elevated blood pressure at work is more closely associated with target organ damage than blood pressure measured at the doctor's office or even blood pressure at night ⁵ . Stress contributes to increased manifestations of arterial hypertension or other risk factors for diseases of the heart and blood vessels ⁶ .

Stress hypertension

White coat hypertension (GBH)

The most studied variant of hypertension due to stress is "white coat hypertension" ⁷ . white coat hypertension (GBH) - a type of hypertension, in which the increase in blood pressure ≥140 and / or ≥90 mm Hg. Art. can be traced only at a medical appointment, when measuring Blood pressure by home blood pressure monitoring (DMAP) and / or daily blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) blood pressure figures - in normal range ⁷ . The prevalence of HBC in diagnosing hypertension is 9 to 12% ⁸ .

A white coat phenomenon may be suspected when BP values obtained in a healthcare facility are elevated but according to ABPM (ABPM - 24-hour blood pressure monitoring) or DMAD (home blood pressure monitoring) level vascular pressure is controlled. The white coat phenomenon occurs among:

many people with elevated BP numbers, especially those with grade 1 hypertension,
very elderly patients (>50%) ⁷ .

Compared with healthy individuals, white-coat hypertension correlates with a wider prevalence of metabolic risk factors and damage to target organs. There is a “white coat effect” as an additional pressure-increasing response in a patient with hypertension to the process of measuring blood pressure (anxiety reaction), which can be observed in a medical institution ⁷ .

Arterial hypertension in the workplace is diagnosed with an increase in the average daily systolic blood pressure > 135 mm Hg. Art. and/or diastolic blood pressure>85 mm Hg. Art. and the difference between the indicators obtained on weekdays and weekends, from 6 mm Hg or more. Art. for systolic and / or from 3 or more mm Hg. Art. - for diastolic blood pressure ⁹ .

Beta-adrenergic receptors are activated during work associated with active stereotypical load and mental stress. This is followed by:

increase in cardiac output.
frequency and strength of myocardial contractions,
violation of the function of its relaxation,
an increase in systemic blood pressure.

This state has much in common with the "preparing to fight or flight" state known in animals. With chronic stimulation, protective reactions of a functional nature are transformed into irreversible structural changes ¹⁰ .

Activity accompanied by feelings of dissatisfaction and disappointment, passive stereotypical activity, lack of control over the situation, does not cause stimulation of beta-adrenergic systems and heart function, but is accompanied by significant vasoconstriction, mainly due to stimulation of alpha-1 adrenergic receptors. This type of reaction is similar to the lesion reaction in animals ¹⁰ .

Patients at risk

Persons who are subject to high demands at work without the right to make decisions. This category includes:

workers,
service conveyor,
waiters,
nurses.

The high risk group includes:

employees who are in the middle of the hierarchical ladder in the service,
workers who are under pressure from superiors and from subordinates, for example, foremen on production, middle managers ¹⁰ .

For workers whose work is associated with psycho-mental stress, arterial hypertension is registered 3 times more often ¹⁰ .

Adverse external factors affecting stress in the workplace, act in conjunction with such undesirable internal factors like depression, anger. Their mutual negative role can be exacerbated by characteristic of a high stress lifestyle overeating and unhealthy eating, smoking, alcohol abuse ¹⁰ .

What to do if an arterial hypertension?

Patients with hypertension that developed against the background of the permanent influence of stress factors are recommended to correct their lifestyle, in in particular to reduce cardiovascular risk.

Lifestyle modification measures include ⁷ :

1 Restriction of salt intake to less than 5 g per day, which leads to a decrease in systolic blood pressure by 4-5 mmHg Art.
2 Restriction of alcohol consumption (less than 14 units per week for men, less than 8 units for women; one unit of alcohol consumption is 10 ml of alcohol, or 125 ml of wine, or 250 ml of beer).
3 Increase in the diet of the proportion of fresh vegetables and fruits, fish, nuts, vegetable oils, dairy products low fat, meat.
4 Body weight control. In obese individuals, a decrease in body weight by 5-10% from the original leads to a significant reducing the risk of cardiovascular complications.
5 Regular moderate aerobic exercise (at least 30 minutes 5-7 days a week).
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