by Janet Higdon

Created on: January 22, 2007   Last Updated: May 16, 2007

For years my blood pressure was on the borderline. My stressful job along with my 5-10 pound weight gain each year finally pushed it over the edge. My doctor put me on medication to keep my blood pressure down and for a while I complied with his advice. But I found that one medication usually leads to another and the problems eventually pile up. I simply did not want to spend the rest of my life on medication. I began looking at nutritional supplements and recommended diet changes. I knew from experience that I could not stick with radical changes.

I visited a local health food store and discussed my situation with the counselor there. She helped me choose supplements that were geared at what I needed to accomplish. She also helped me to understand that WHITE can be really bad. I started the supplements and slowly began to make changes in my diet. My biggest challenge was the sugary cokes. I finally experimented enough with other drink options until I found one I can live with. I knew I was never going to do without bread so I slowly incorporated wheat or whole grain bread into my daily life. I don't avoid fried food entirely but I do limit it to 1 to 2 times a month. I haven't really given up anything, I have just been trying to make better choices. Sometimes I still fall back to my old ways but I no longer stay there.

After 2 months of taking the supplements and changing some of my habits I feel great. On a recent visit to the hospital for some tests my blood pressure was the lowest it has been in 20 years and that is without medication. I can't tell you what might work for you because everybody has different goals. If you really want to lower your blood pressure without medication I would strongly recommend that you look into the supplement regimen. Do research and talk to someone who knows supplements. My doctor even approved of my approach because he felt like I had a good chance of succeeding. I bet your doctor would help you too.

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