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02Apr 2019 by Tonya Breaux-Shropshire

Hypertension Support Group

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Undoubtedly, many people have found peer support to be useful in helping them improve their blood pressure. Need education and support to get your blood pressure at goal? I created the Circulation Network especially for this reason. The Circulation Network meets every first Tuesday of each month at noon. The group meets in the West Pavilion Conference Center Room C. During the meetings, people get support to obtain their goal blood pressure goal. Strategies are explored to overcome barriers to control blood pressure. Resources are also discovered to help attendees and their family members get to goal blood pressure. Who Should Attend The Circulation Network? The UAB Circulation Network is a free support group for faculty, staff and family members who have high blood pressure. Particularly, people with resistant hypertension…

25Mar 2019 by Tonya Breaux-Shropshire

What Vitamins To Consider To Reduce Resistant Hypertension?

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While I am not giving you medical advice, there are vitamins I want you to consider TO HELP REDUCE YOUR RESISTANT BLOOD PRESSURE. Ask your doctor if you need supplementation with vitamins that have been shown to help control blood pressure. They are vitamin D3, K2, AND MAGNESIUM. I will give you further details about these vitamins and how they help decrease blood pressure below. Resistant Hypertension and Vitamin D3 According to research, people with the lowest level of vitamin D have the highest blood pressure. Vitamin D is usually very low in African Americans and in others who do not get enough sunshine. Patients with chronic kidney disease most times have vitamin D3 deficiency. In fact, according to research found in the Archives Internal Medicine in 2009, 70%-80% of…

25Mar 2019 by Tonya Breaux-Shropshire

How to Know if You Really Have Hypertension

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You must accurately measure your blood pressure to prevent a hypertension crisis. Accurately measuring your blood pressure is the most important thing to do to prevent and treat hypertension. As you know, office blood pressure measurement is the gold standard for monitoring resistant hypertension. Surprisingly, office measurements by your health care provide are not your true blood pressure. [caption id="attachment_896" align="alignnone" width="200"] Checking blood pressure[/caption] In fact, research has shown that home blood pressure monitoring is the most accurate representation of your true blood pressure. If you use a home monitor, you can partner with your health care provider to control your blood pressure. Do you know how to accurately measure your blood pressure? Hence, you will know your true blood pressure numbers if you do. In this post, I will…

15Mar 2019 by Tonya Breaux-Shropshire

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Hi, I'm Dr. Tonya! I am a clinical scientist, registered nurse, and hypertension consultant (coach). I am here to help you control your blood pressure using information I learned in my training as a clinical scientist in resistant hypertension. I want to help you because I want to help eliminate uncontrolled hypertension. I have witnessed unnecessary refractory hypertension, heart attacks, strokes, and kidney failure due to uncontrolled resistant hypertension. I say these poor outcomes are unnecessary because most hyertension can be controlled with medication. Prior to becoming a clinical scientist and adjunct professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, I was a registered . I have served in various settings including a telemetry step down unit, emergency room, primary care clinic, and occupational health clinic. I currently work in…

06Mar 2019 by Tonya Breaux-Shropshire

5 Tips and Tricks For Better Blood Pressure Control

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Are you fed up with having elevated blood pressure and have tried lifestyle modifications to get your blood pressure down without success? Did you know that almost half of Americans have trouble controlling their blood pressure despite cheap and even free well-tolerated medications available to treat elevated blood pressure? We know that hypertension must be controlled to prevent morbidity and mortality, but before the hypertension landmark trials done at Veterans Affairs Hospitals in the late 60's and early 70's, we thought that uncontrolled blood pressure was not a problem. As the story goes, due to our lack of knowledge about hypertension, many died from uncontrolled blood pressure, which is also called the "silent killer." For example, our president Franklin D. Roosevelt loss his life to a stroke after suffering from uncontrolled…

03Mar 2019 by Tonya Breaux-Shropshire

Welcome to Hypertension Resistant To Treatment!

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Welcome to Hypertension Resistant To Treatment! Hi I'm Dr. Tonya! I am here to help you lower your high blood pressure. In most cases, uncontrolled blood pressure causes unnecessary health problems. BLOOD PRESSURE CAN BE CONTROLLED TO PREVENT UNNECESSARY HEALTH PROBLEMS. If YOU are READY TO DO WHAT IT TAKES to control your blood pressure, start with the 30 Days To A Better Blood Pressure under the Hypertension School tab. After completing this program, go to the blog which has a new post at least every week. Let's go! We hope that you enjoy my blog and podcasts. I thank you in advance for your support! Please subscribe to this blog, but most importantly, use the content to control your blood pressure and improve your health.

27Feb 2019 by Tonya Breaux-Shropshire

Can You Prevent Kidney Failure If You Have Resistant Hypertension?

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Can you prevent kidney failure if you have resistant hypertension? Resistant hypertension is high blood pressure that is difficult to control on two medication requiring 3 different classes of blood pressure medication (usually including a water pill called a diuretic). Most times resistant hypertension can be controlled with the 3 classes of antihypertensive medication. The simple answer is that it depends. Certainly you can prevent kidney failure that occurs due to uncontrolled resistant hypertension by keeping your blood pressure controlled. You see the problem with most kidney failure is the damage that is done to the kidneys' filter also know as the glomerulus. If you want to prevent kidney failure or further damage to your kidneys, you have to protect the filter. Your kidneys filter your blood to get waste…

14Feb 2019 by Tonya Breaux-Shropshire

The Best Tool You Will Need for Blood Pressure Control!

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The Best Tool You Will Need for Blood Pressure Control! Blood Pressure Monitoring is essential for everybody but especially for people who are resistant to take blood pressure medication or people who's blood pressure is difficult to control. Blood pressure is dynamic and it varies. However, blood pressure should vary within the normal target goal blood pressure. Researches developed new hypertension guidelines that have set new controlled target goals blood pressure. In addition to monitoring in the medical clinic, the new guidelines says that blood pressure less than 120/80 mm Hg is the target goal for the average person 55 years old or older. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skwzoadqYTM In 2015, researchers compared blood pressure taken by medical office staff with blood pressures taken by hypertension clinic experts. Poor blood pressure technique was found,…

13Feb 2019 by Tonya Breaux-Shropshire

Potassium: Do You Have Enough?

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Are you feeling tired, having chest palpitation, or muscle cramps in your legs? Why am I asking you these questions, and what would bananas have to do with these symptoms? I am glad you asked. Potassium deficiency might be an indication for primary aldosteronism. People with resistant hypertension commonly have low potassium. Primary Aldosteronism is a particular type of resistant hypertension that may require Spironaldactone, which could correct the low potassium level. See video below for the definition, and details about this diagnosis. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qM-9hhKRAzc The hormone aldosterone is released from the adrenal glands, WHICH are on top of each kidney. The renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system regulates blood pressure by regulating renin, angiotensin, aldosterone hormones. High levels of aldosterone cause an increase in sodium and decrease potassium levels. This change in the…

06Feb 2019 by Tonya Breaux-Shropshire

University of Alabama Preventive Medicine HealthSmart

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The American Heart Association's Get to Goal Program Every Wednesday - 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. Dr. Tonya Breaux-Shropshire is here to help you eliminate high blood pressure and improve your cardiovascular health. She is an adjunct faculty member of the School of Nursing and Fellow in the Vascular Biology and Hypertension Program in the Department of Medicine at UAB. Dr. Shropshire joins UAB HealthSmart to facilitate the Get to Goal™ program and: This program is a Health Equity and Multicultural Initiative designed to close the racial disparity gap in the treatment of high blood pressure. Please call 205.996.2304 to make an appointment. Provide blood pressure screenings and healthy lifestyle messagingTeach how to monitor your blood pressureProvide community resources to help manage your blood pressureTeach you to enter your readings…

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