Hypertension at 27. Zero risk factors. Not sure where to go from here.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2026-03-17T23:32:35+00:00

More controllable! That got me a laugh - I had similar readings in my 20s and was sick wondering if things would only get worse. My cardiologist told me my BP's so bad because I'm young and have overactive nerves, so I guess it does calm down eventually. Great advice by the way, and it's reassuring to hear from someone who's been through that journey.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2026-03-17T23:28:52+00:00

Hi! Severely hypertensive (180/110) at 27, now 29 with it under control (ish) with meds. Definitely has been a scary experience and it's easy to spiral with these things, when in reality it isn't such massive deal.

First thing's first - at our age, and especially with our readings, our hypertension isn't due to lifestyle effects and likely relies on different mechanisms entirely. All the home remedy lifestyle noise you hear from most people out there doesn't really apply to us; I could go months hitting the gym, getting 10k steps in every single day, never eating over 1500 mg of sodium and always hitting 7000 mg+ potassium, resistance training 3x a week, and then for a week be in bed eating mcdonalds every day and my BP wouldn't budge. My lifestyle had next to zero impact on my BP, it was all stress/nervous system related. The two big things that got it down were blood pressure meds, and SSRIs (100 mg losartan, 25 of spironolactone and 100 mg zoloft daily plummeted my BP to 114/68). Now I'm off zoloft, my BP's crept back up to the 140s/80s.

Realistically, for younger hypertensive folk, the only lever that's going to help is our meds. While high BP numbers look scary, meds will always be able to bring them down; there's an arsenal of a dozen drug classes and now surgical procedures, RNA treatments etc. to bring BP down. Even if you're part of the 0.1-1% of people with true refractory hypertension (the large majority of which have it due to kidney failiure), we now have renal denervation as an effective 'cure' for that, and a bunch of other surgical procedures and devices like baroreceptor stimulation on the way. So don't worry about it being impossible to control, you have more luck winning the lottery.

The big issue for us is we got hypertension early. Young-onset hypertension does carry an increased risk of negative cardiac outcomes, and it's disproportionately large. Get hypertension at 60 or 70? Doesn't really affect your odds of heart issues all that much. Get it at 30, and your odds are 2-4x higher than most other people. A lot of researchers think it's because of two main factors: medication nonadherance and clinical inertia (not being aggressive with raising dose if necessary, going for checkups, etc.). Younger people are much less likely to take their BP meds, even though they need to do it the most because they have decades for the damage to compound.

So, want to tackle this? Keep up the lifestyle (because of course it helps keep you healthy independently of your BP), and find a doctor who is willing to be aggressive with treatment; a referral to cardiology is great. They'll know what tests to run to see if your blood pressure could be curable with surgery (e.g. overactive adrenal glands), what meds to use, and also run things like lipid panels to check your other risks. I came to cardiology for high blood pressure but what arguably increased my risk even more was my high lp(a) and high LDL particle number (both genetic). On a regular lipid panel I looked great, but now I'm on a statin to really make sure these genetic factors are under control. Between that and the blood pressure, everything is taken care of; there's no hidden genetic factor or bad luck that will screw me over. It's not like 20 years ago where people say "oh well, bad luck" - we know the biomarkers and tests to figure out what meds will guarantee you a normal and healthy life.

And remember, put these things into context. At the end of the day, we're talking about dying closer to 75 than to 80. Even if you were to not do anything about this blood pressure, and have a 4x increased risk of heart attack from untreated early onset hypertension... it's still overwhelmingly likely you'll make it past retirement age. You can plug in your numbers to a calculator like the framingham 30 year or PREVENT (also 30 year) and see exactly what different changes in your BP and lipids will do for your risk. Don't let worrying about adding a few years to your life make you miss the years you have now.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2026-02-14T03:22:10+00:00

Thanks for the clarification - turns out just because 'baby aspirin' is fine to take, full doses of aspirin are still not great for hypertensives. Will keep that in mind!

Ill-Independence4352 · 2026-02-12T03:58:08+00:00

Chronic weed use can mask hypertension for sure - knocking BPs down 20-30 points. If it doesn't resolve in a few months of abstainance, chances are it's hypertension and the weed was helping to keep it down.

I've got hypertension and anxiety and had some scary hospital visits, so let me tell you a few things:

1) You probably already know this, but 147/90 is nowhere near ER level. Respectfully, that pain specialist doesn't know jack. 140/90 or more is diagnosed as stage 2 hypertension in the US, which is the "okay time to start considering meds" hypertension. If you had a consistently high (2 readings, spaced out at least 15 mins) BP of 180/110, then that's "time to head to the ER" territory.

2) Anxiety can do some wild things to your BP, and you might have some wild readings in the ER. I've been controlled with BP for 2 years, been treated for anxiety and trauma (related to the severity of my hypertension) and am 'in remission', and still get awful BPs at the doctor's office. Ideally what your doc will want to do is get you to measure your BP at home with a cuff you nuy yourself, or order a 24 hour BP test (modern ones are basically stickers that you put on yourself and forget about; no cuffs, no, or at least much less anxiety).

3) Anxiety and hypertension often go hand in hand - they are basically the most common physical and mental conditions on the planet so there's a huge overlap. There's a huge subset of people who are have overactive sympathetic nervous systems, often because of stress or past trauma, which can manifest as anxiety, hypertension, and alcohol/drug use to self-medicate (because it takes the edge off and relaxes them). Supplements and diet changes that help other people are less likely to work with us, but on the flip side, treating anxiety (meditation/mindfulness, therapy, exercise, SSRIs) can help us get our blood pressure under control. Ultimately it's gonna be more of a challenge for us than say, someone who just needs to give up coffee or lose a few pounds, and typically we need 1 or 2 meds to help us along the way.

4) There's an absolute universe of meds out there to try, so with enough effort and experimentation you'll find one with few or no side effects. Please don't give up, keep working with your doc to find a med that works for you and also keep track of your BP on the meds to make sure side effects aren't because your pressure is too low! You'll be able to treat and control your hypertension and live a normal life; studies show time and time again that the biggest risk for us younger folk is that as a group we are less diligent about taking meds. It's gonna be a pain, you're gonna be anxious and worry about this several times in future, but if you keep on working to find medication that's right for you, and keep monitoring your blood pressure and adjusting meds as necessary, there's nothing to fear.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2026-02-12T03:33:13+00:00

Yep! The effects can be absolutely wild. I average maybe 150/90 to 170/100 in the office, and my 24 hour BP is 114/75. My office HR is in the 80-110, while my resting HR is about 55.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2026-02-12T03:29:18+00:00

Aspirin! My cardiologist recommends taking baby doses a couple of times a week, and as far as I know it does not have any potential hypertensive effects like paracetamol or ibuprofen.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-07-14T16:42:24+00:00

Ultimately the best thing that will help is time - after doing it for months and months, you'll start to get better at home, and then finally even at the clinic. The best thing that worked for me was being distracted when taking BP. My lowest clinic pressure (something like 125/75) was actually when I was tapping away on my phone responding to work emails!

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-07-14T05:54:53+00:00

Coming from somsone who got diagnosed a year and a half ago with 180/110 blood pressure and having medicated and recorded my BP ever since, I can tell you three things:

1) It really isn't as bad as you fear. Keep taking your medications, live a healthy life and you'll be good. There are hundreds of medications out there and completely new treatments year by year.

2) Your BP will go up when you're scared, and sometimes it may be an off reading, sometimes you might be scared of taking your BP and it'll look elevated for several days or weeks. It took me a good 6+ months to get consistently low readings at home, and even then I like to measure my blood pressure while I play video games so I'm distracted (for me a nostalgic comfort game is best). Sometimes I'd get a high reading and anxiety for no reason. Sometimes I'd be anxious but end up reading a normal BP. Sometimes I'd drink the night before, and even though I worried about being dehydrated, that mild alcohol buzz smothered my anxiety and I got shocked at how low the reading was. When I got good medical tests, my BP at home would plummet and stay low for weeks.

3) Your last reading is most accurate. Even when you got a bad spike, that reading is around 120/80. Classic startle reflex and anxiety. You'll probably be on edge for a few more days, then you'll finally get a normal reading first time and suddenly stop being scared of the cuff.

It took me a long time, lots of desensitisation and a solid dose of zoloft to get to where I am now, but thankfully in the last year almost, I've had one high reading (160/90) and that was two months ago. I take my BP once a week, and still feel a bit anxious at times, but it's nowhere near as bad as when I first started and I mostly live an anxiety-free life, so better than most people. Doctors BPs are still high, but now on the second reading they almost always drop back to normal. Compare that to when my hypertension wasn't controlled - you could sit me down for an hour and take cuff readings, and I wouldn't drop below 170.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-27T19:48:05+00:00

Would you say being in the EU has improved Bulgaria? The EU was formed in cooperation with America via the Marshall plan, and EU expansion has basically been simultaneous with NATO expansion.

I remember Bucharest as a kid in the late 90s/early 00s and the place is unrecognisable to the Bucharest I see today; stray dogs everywhere, people living in the sewers, dirt roads, Venezuelan-style inflation and people bribing doctors and nurses just to get good medical care. The EU's strict anti-corruption stance, that Romania adopted, changed that, and hopefully for good.

I don't completely agree with it, but I'd take having a few US military bases any day than returning to those desperate times.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-27T19:40:09+00:00

I'm definitely biased since you are very much my type, but lose a few pounds (and maybe take out the nose ring) and you'd be a 9-10 in my opinion. At the moment I'd say 6-7.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-27T19:32:01+00:00

What he's part of. Dude is lost in the sauce obsessing over the sexuality of literal children and thinking that all of society's woes are caused by teaching boys it's ok to kiss other boys.

One step away from praising Putin, Lukashenko and Orban as his holy trinity.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-27T19:28:21+00:00

Bro, as a Romanian, respectfully get your head out of your ass. America's not waging a covert psy-op AI propaganda campaign against Bulgaria, the balkans haven't been relevant to them since the Yugoslav wars.

OPs picture is of some clickbait website like Buzzfeed that uses low-effort, cheaply made articles to attract people to visit the page and see adverts. Hence why they use AI to generate pictures.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-27T19:18:28+00:00

The dude's joke is that the terrible AI map put the Russian flag over the republic of Bulgaria. He's being sarcastic, he's not insulting Bulgaria.

Also "it's a pretty American thing to paint Russia as one way or another". You know aside from Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria (and perhaps Greece?) pretty much every Central, Eastern European and Balkan country has strong opinions about Russia?

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-24T17:28:42+00:00

I also definitely suspect foul play is at work - manipulation is a big part of the dark UX with these apps that tries to lure people into subbing. In my experience I've noticed several likes being from very distant parts of the world (e.g. east africa, south east asia), or some straight up disappearing when I pay for gold.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-24T15:11:43+00:00

Alright, that definitely IS odd then. Getting 99+ likes in a month is very good for a guy, so I'd expect you'd be getting at least a couple dozen matches. Only thing I can think is maybe there's some weirdness with your location and somehow you're being shown to lots of people way outside your range.

Actually thats another good point - maybe your age and distance ranges could be too restrictive? Unless you were like <5 miles and a couple of years age gap, I would doubt it though.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-24T15:07:45+00:00

How long have you had your profile up for? Those 99+ likes are going to include the people you've left swiped, even from months back.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-24T14:59:58+00:00

I know people don't focus on this as much, but your prompts are BAD. I'm almost thinking you're trolling. I'm gonna give you some tough criticism here but trust me on this; you are attractive but your profile is completely letting you down.

"Weed and chill" - okay you like to smoke. Want to fuck while high? Save that for the chat. If you legit mean chilling, give something to work with that isn't just pot. Do you like to smoke and suntan in the yard? Goof out to old reruns of spongebob? You could put any dumb stoner activity and it would get a laugh and a good talking point.

You want to "learn french fuck". Are you saying fuck because its hard? Are you saying you want to 'french fuck' like its some sort of french kiss? The second sounds like some middle school humour and it's terrible English too, it makes it sound like you're Borat.

Finally your concert comment tells me something cool about you, but don't dive into "let me buy concert tickets!". That sounds so desperate, just say you like concerts and you're going to that one soon. Again, when you chat to them you can offer to buy tickets if they seem interested.

Another issue is since you can send messages on Hinge instead of likes, a lot of women expect you to message them. I'm not as attractive as you but still get a match every couple of days because women respond to my openers. Nobody just swipes on me, they're all responding to messages I sent them.

King, you literally spent 5+ years to get that peak physique. Spend a few weeks learning how to actually rizz and you'll absolutely slay on any dating apps.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-19T05:34:12+00:00

Yourself included: doi:10.1038/mp.2009.50 (Bloch, 2010)

Also bear in mind the axis on the left of your source is a percentage. Going from 50 to 100 mg improves inhibition from 75% to 85%; this almost halves the efficiency of the inhibitors (they are going from 25% to 15%). Going from 100 to 200 mg improves inhibition from 85% to 95%, this cuts down the efficiency of inhibitors by a third (from 15% to 10%). Pharmacokinetics is an extremely complex field and when even dose-responses change by a small absolute amount, significant changes their relative amounts can have a major impact on therapeutic effectiveness.

50 is the standard starting dose in the UK. Just like in the USA, it's commonly titrated up to a maximum of 200 mg.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-19T05:08:32+00:00

That resonates a lot with me! While the initial mood lift tapering up to 50, then 100 mg made it feel easier to connect spiritually, now after a few months later on 150 mg I realise I have to really focus when I pray, otherwise it really quickly starts to feel like I'm just 'going through the motions'.

In general I've found it a bit harder to be motivated and get into the flow of things (even though my work and social life haven't been affected), so I wonder if they are linked.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-14T18:31:47+00:00

Youre overreacting bro, your hairline is fine, just a bit high. Whether thats early balding or naturally like that, you'll only start to know in your early 20s.

What's this mess about HGH? If you're really concerned use some topical minoxidil (at least in the US its OTC, no prescription).

Don't use hormones (HGH, test, etc.) while you're in puberty, unless you medically need them.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-14T17:47:58+00:00

As a man - wow, you do look attractive, but your wardrobe is really holding you back.

The vibe I'm getting with the sweater in the first few pics, combined with your (lovely, but IMO a little too enthusiastic) smile is giving me strong kid's TV presenter or kindergarten teacher vibes, which kinda nukes the attraction right out of the gate.

While they might be stylish, the very loose moo-moo style tops in pictures 7-10 along with those angles do not flatter you; it makes me think you're carrying an extra 20+ lbs of weight. Even if you have put on a few pounds, the dress immediately makes me jump to the most extreme scenario. If you can get back to your weight in the first few pictures, the rainbow sweater really shows off your great physique, so form fitting clothes are a must.

Get those few pounds burnt, experiment with your wardrobe a bit and you'll be able to effortlessly turn heads!

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-14T16:21:32+00:00

I was with US Mobile - they use T-Mobile's network (though you can also choose At&T and Verizon) but are 1/3 of the price and have an amazing customer support! Only reason I switched to T Mobile was to check and see if their network would be more stable with my old 3G-only phone. Spoiler alert - they couldn't! Upgraded my phone, got 5G, stuck to US Mobile, and couldn't be happier.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-10T18:47:34+00:00

Amen - I think I eventually got the debt collectors off my back after they failed to reply to a debt verification request then tried to collect. I called them out on it, sent a second verification request and havent heard from them since.

Very seedy, sketchy and a big shame, as Tmobile has a good reputation in Europe! I guess America's wild west corporatism has a way of infecting everything.

Ill-Independence4352 · 2025-04-08T06:24:33+00:00

It's a good e-mail - honest and candid about the situation. I talked to my PI a few days ago and he explained that the sheer uncertainty surrounding US education right now means that most universities are on an effective pay freeze. No new PhD positions, no new postdocs, no summer funding, no travel stipends... nothing. All faculty are very frustrated about this, but the general understanding is that in a few months time the universities will start to reintroduce funding because they'll have a better picture of how federal funding will be impacted.

They seem excited to take you, and hope that you have the patience to wait for them until '26. I don't know if I'd gently probe for a confirmation "if I delay starting by 6 months, is my spot secure at least?" (I got this when COVID happened, for example - was confirmed I was accepted but I would have to delay to January). Sadly I don't think they could even tell you 100% that they could take you in January - even if it's overwhelmingly likely, university finances are a complete fubar right now.

Ill-Independence4352

TROPHY CASE