High blood pressure is incredibly common and yet it’s amazing how many people don’t realize they have it. If you think your elderly family member might have high blood pressure, it might help to learn some of the signs and then take that information to her doctor. Testing her blood pressure is easy to do and it’s something she might need to get used to doing regularly.
Her Vision Is Blurry Sometimes
Your senior’s entire body is affected by high blood pressure, but especially her eyes. The eyes are sensitive to changes in pressure and there are blood vessels in each eye that feel the same increase in pressure that other blood vessels in the body experience. Your senior might mention that sometimes her vision is blurry or that she’s experiencing other vision issues. As her blood pressure goes up and down, these symptoms might come and go.
She’s Really Tired
High blood pressure can be exhausting for some people. Your senior’s entire body is working harder than it typically does, and that has an effect. Your senior might also be sleeping differently than she used to, like falling asleep later and later or having trouble getting to sleep at all. During the day, she might be a lot more sluggish than usual due to both lack of sleep and increased blood pressure.
Your Senior’s Having Frequent Headaches
One of the symptoms that people seem to recognize most often in people with high blood pressure is headaches. These happen because the pressure in the blood vessels in your senior’s head are under increased pressure just like they are in the rest of her body and there’s nowhere for that pressure to go really. Tracking headaches can be important because there are so many potential causes of headaches. Getting to the root of the problem might take some time.
Her Breathing Is Sometimes Affected
Your senior’s heart and lungs make up the bulk of her circulatory system. These two organs work together to move blood and oxygen throughout her body. When her blood pressure is high, your senior might not be getting all the oxygen she needs. That can cause her to feel short of breath with even a little bit of activity. It’s important to talk to her doctor right away because shortness of breath can have a variety of other causes, too.
If your elderly family member does have high blood pressure, she needs to keep track of how well she’s managing it. Tracking her symptoms and keeping up with blood pressure readings on a home monitor can help your elderly family member to manage her hypertension. Working with elder care providers can help her to remember what to do and when it’s time to test again.
If you or an aging loved one is considering hiring a Caregiver in La Jolla, CA, or the surrounding area, please contact the caring staff at Love 2 Live Care. Call Today 1-619-291-4663