Lowering your blood pressure
choices, addressing sources of stress and including stress-reducing practices in our daily or weekly routine can also be important.
Explore your perception of pressure and urgency – do you apply the same level to approaching your inbox as you do when you need to slam on the brakes in the car to avoid an accident? Have you made what you do each day full of pressure and urgency? If so, you might like to rethink your priorities and save it for when you really need it.
Meditation has also been shown to help with the regulation of stressrelated high blood pressure. Try meditating early in the morning – perhaps before others in your household get up – as often this is the most peaceful time of the day.
The way you breathe has a powerful impact on your biochemistry, predominantly via your nervous system. One of the only ways that science has proven to disengage the body’s stress response is through diaphragmatic breathing so a daily breathing exercise can be highly beneficial. Focus on making your exhalation longer than your inhalation. You might like to place a hand on your belly to help you connect your breath to this area.
Other stress-relieving practices include tai chi, qi gong, restorative or gentle yoga practices. Investigating if you have sleep apnoea is also important as this too can be a cause of high blood pressure.
Hi Amanda. Firstly, it is important that you visit your GP and have your daughter tested for type-1 diabetes.
What you are describing can be a symptom of this and it is essential this is investigated.
If she does not have type-1 diabetes, it would be useful to have