High Blood Pressure

 

What is Hypertension?

Please note that I do not accept new clients for therapy at the moment, apart from one-off Sandplay Therapy and Sound Healing sessions.

Hypertension is a term that refers to raised blood pressure which is consistently over 140/90 mmHg.

High blood pressure is associated with a number of health risks, including coronary heart disease and reduced life expectancy. About 1/3 of population in the UK are estimated to have hypertension, and many are not aware of it. Over 90% of hypertension cases have no known medical cause, and are referred to as Primary or Essential Hypertension. The remaining sufferers have medical conditions that cause or contribute to raised blood pressure levels.

What help is available?

In the first instance you should seek help of your doctor or physician, who may prescribe medication and give lifestyle advice.

Some of the possible lifestyle changes which can help normalise blood pressure:

  • Reduce stress through relaxation, meditation or breathing exercises
  • If you are always in a rush and feel under pressure, improve your time management skills
  • Make sure you have a good belly laugh at least once or twice a week
  • Discuss your salt intake with your doctor (you may need to reduce it)
  • Increase amount of physical activity you do and make it fun
  • Eat more fruit and veg, especially those that are purple-red in colour (beetroot, aubergines, blackcurrants, raspberries etc)
  • If you are overweight, take steps to reduce your weight to healthier level

If you don’t want to struggle on your own and would like professional assistance in addition to the medical care you are receiving, I can help as a Certified Practitioner of Hypnotension, which is a specialised one-to-one treatment programme based on hypnotherapy, cognitive interventions, behavioural coaching and lifestyle approaches that helps you normalise your blood pressure naturally, and is undertaken alongside any treatment prescribed by your doctor.

Hypnotension is a programme suited to people who have the so called Primary or Essential Hypertension, which has no identifiable medical cause (>90% of all cases). We will work together to adapt the programme to your individual needs, to ensure that we address any emotional, psychological or lifestyle factors contributing to high blood pressure.

If your blood pressure is raised due to medical reasons, for example Cushing’s syndrome or Obstructive Sleep Apnoea, this programme would not be applicable, though stress reduction can be beneficial to ease the symptoms of such medical conditions.

For Frequently Asked Questions about the Hypnotension programme and further information on the potential benefits, visit the main Hypnotension website.

Below is an excellent 10 minute video by Dr Mike Evans on one of the best ways to improve your health generally – in fact watching this can dramatically enhance your life!

Hypnotension: high blood pressure