High Blood Pressure/Water Retention

[Anonymous]

After a number of doctor visits in a row with high BP readings (as high as 153/95) my doctor decided I needed to try taking BP meds to get my numbers down. A few months later on a routine checkup, the numbers were pretty good, but still not stellar. I decided I was going to work really hard to lose the 20 lbs that had crept up over the last 2 years. I stopped drinking diet coke (my only source of caffeine) 6 weeks ago. I also joined Weight Watchers, and had steadily been losing weight, as of last week had hit 9.4 lbs lost. I increased my exercise, though I can still do better there, I will admit. Well, after months of trying to figure out why I had begun shedding hair like crazy, (thyroid was normal, first thing we checked), I did a bit of research and found out that my BP medication did list alopecia as a possible side effect. Right away, the doc decided to switch, but after seeing alopecia as a side effect of the new drug (not a diuretic like the first) the doc agreed to let me do a 2 week trial without meds, taking my BP daily, and reporting back after those 2 weeks.

So, after 1 week off the diuretic (which I started long before I started WW, and started losing weight slowly, .5-2lbs a week) I weighed in today and gained 5.4 lbs!!! I ate very well this week. I did not go on some bingeing vacation. I am about to start af, probably tomorrow, but have been through a few of those since starting WW, and have NEVER gained more than 1 lb. Obviously, this must me some side effect of going off the diuretic/bp med. But, sheesh, I thought I was going to hit the 10 lb mark today, and instead, I left feeling utterly defeated, and am now only down 4 from where I started. My goal this week is to drink more water, I have already cut out all processed foods, with the exception of some limited snacks...what else to do to get rid of this water naturally? This SUCKS!

[Anonymous]

Are you watching sodium? Sorry you're having a rough time with this, but don't give up on the weight loss goals.

[Anonymous]

PP, I had cut WAY back on sodium. I would often use canned soups, or boxed side dishes (awful I know) and completely stopped using either. Instead we have simple brown rice, or homemade soup. Beyond that, I guess the only thing left would be an occasional snack of crackers or something. We do not eat out often at all, and I do not add salt to my food. Beverage wise, I am down to almost 100% water, with occasional OJ in the morning. The one additional piece that will help with both the BP and the water retention is increasing my exercise. So, this week, Spring Break I will kick start that. I plan get in at least 1 run (2-3 miles), an early AM spin class, and have started putting on running gear and taking the kids out on their bikes/scooters. My youngest is 4 now, so they can go at a good clip. Last time I did that, we made it almost 2 miles through the neighborhood according to my GPS. I feel the only place I can do better is exercise.

[Anonymous]

http://www.webmd.com/diet/ss/slideshow-salt-shockers