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Tuba Playing and High Blood Pressure

Posted: Sat Jan 06, 2018 1:29 pm
by Bill Troiano
I check my BP almost daily since I was diagnosed with a left bundle branch back in 2009. I already had high BP before that and I was taking some med. to control that. But after the bundle branch block diagnosis, my cardiologist put me on metoprolol, a beta blocker, to control my bundle branch block, while also controlling my blood pressure. He also urged me to get into better physical shape, so I joined a gym and have been working out / exercising 4-5 days a week since (unless my schedule doesn't allow it or I get sick.)

I usually check my BP in the morning after the gym, breakfast and coffee. It's under control for the most part. But, last month, for some reason, I decided to take my BP after practicing for 45 min. to an hour. It was noticeably higher than it should be and in the danger zone. I've checked my BP after practicing several times since then and it is always high. It stays up there for several hours after practicing too.

Has anyone else experienced anything like this?

Re: Tuba Playing and High Blood Pressure

Posted: Sat Jan 06, 2018 2:58 pm
by Bill Troiano
Hi Joe,
Aside from performance jitters, no. But, this is when I'm practicing. No jitters there and no other signs that I'm aware of. Maybe I should give up practicing.

Re: Tuba Playing and High Blood Pressure

Posted: Sat Jan 06, 2018 3:03 pm
by PaulMaybery
I was borderline High, and for several years it took quite a bit of pick and choose by the cardiologist to arrive at a menu for Paul. Now from my perspective this is all anecdotal, being that I have no scientific proof of any of this, but the consistency of the results is worthy of consideration;

Here is what happens with me, when the blood pressure either goes up or down.

With lower, there is less chance of angina just getting the horn to gig.
With my High blood pressure, very simple tasks caused shortness of breath such as moving a chair, or ascending the stairs to a stage.
When the vascular system is back to normal and not constricted or Hyper tense, thelip tissue seeme to be fuller and restores itself quicker between strenuous passages,
At one point I simply refused to due the old warm-up tune-up in a room down the hall. carrying a 25 lb load of plumbing is not what you want to do just moments before the down beat.

With the blood pressure out of control is was near impossible to get any effective work done in the gym. I was a wreck.'
I had to sit to play the euphonium if for a solo and on the contrary, standing for the tuba was no problem,
The higher resistence of the euph caused me to hypo-ventilate and find my self gasping for air every several bars,

Now, the moment of clarity has arrived and the meds are very well managed and I have found that the breathing issues went away. Attending pain from not being able to sustain a good cardio workout also diminished.

In my case the two go hand in hand. The meds control the BP so the patient can exercise effectively, in turn the BP drops even more, Reaction to strenuous activity becomes a non-issue. With the ability to exercise, just about all of the pain lowered to barely noticeable levels. No more Tylenol. Weight issues become better managable in a lower B+P scenario and this also spirals as each helps the other.

A wind player needs be careful in consulting the Dr. as some meds have an attending tremor effect. Not good.

MY TAKE ON THINGS: A GOOD BP LEVEL IS THE BEGINNING ACHIEVING A CERTAIN HAPPINESS AS SO MANY THINGS THAT SEEMED RESISTANT TO IMPROVEMENT JUST WOULD NOT IMPROVE. BY BEING ABLE TO EXERCISE, MOST ISSUES WILL RETREAT INTO THE OCCASIONAL ACHE OR PAIN.

There are many things that are connected with HBP, these examples are only a few.

Re: Tuba Playing and High Blood Pressure

Posted: Sat Jan 06, 2018 4:21 pm
by Bill Troiano
That's interesting, Paul. At least, I have my annual cardiologist appt. 2 days before USATEW. Maybe, he'll change my meds. Stress has been a problem for the past 6 months too. My wife's mom suddenly passed away back in June. She had an abdominal aorta rupture and passed pretty quickly. She and my father-in-law were/are 90 yrs. old. We moved him from Fla. to live with us because he really can't take care of himself anymore and he's driving us nuts. He always drove me nuts, but they only visited twice a year and I sucked it up. Now, it's been 6 months that he's been here. I get into deep depression at times and I found I'm capable of thoughts I never knew I could possibly have. So yeah, I have problems, but I still wonder why my BP goes up after (or during) playing.

Re: Tuba Playing and High Blood Pressure

Posted: Sun Jan 07, 2018 12:11 pm
by TheGoyWonder
could be one of those deals where some med gives you high blood pressure, so you have to go on BP meds, which give you problem C, which makes you need to take another BP med, which gives you problem D. stay off pills as much as possible!

Re: Tuba Playing and High Blood Pressure

Posted: Wed Jan 10, 2018 10:12 am
by eupher61
There seems to be a logic behind higher BP after the exertion of playing in any setting. It's a physical activity, just holding one of these silly instruments can be exhausting. Practice is usually more intensive activity than a performance, more steady playing, so it makes even more sense to me. But, I don't have to tell you that as high as you describe ain't right.

Re: Tuba Playing and High Blood Pressure

Posted: Wed Jan 10, 2018 11:04 am
by Three Valves
I was doing all right until I stated practicing with The Presidents Own.

They play everything to a quick step and I almost hyperventilated!!

Otherwise, I calm myself with long, sonorous tones and Word Class Sound. :tuba:

Re: Tuba Playing and High Blood Pressure

Posted: Wed Jan 10, 2018 11:10 am
by bort
Bill, there is a LOT going on in your life besides the BP and tuba playing. Your personal life sounds like it is extremely stressful right now, and I'm sorry for both your loss and for your difficult times in the past several months. Your problems and stresses are real, and although I'm not suggesting you seek out "happy pills," seeking some family counseling could be a very positive thing for you. I know that when my grandparents were late in their lives -- and mostly in terrible health -- it was a very difficult time for my parents. There's no way around some of these things, but making sure you have an outlet for help for yourself is a good thing. Hope it gets better for you soon.

Re: Tuba Playing and High Blood Pressure

Posted: Tue Jan 23, 2018 4:35 pm
by royjohn
One has to be very careful diagnosing high blood pressure and there is no guarantee that your doctor or nurse will do it right. Best to buy a unit and check its accuracy against a standard and take multiple readings at home. There is taking a reading too soon after activity and "white coat" hypertension at the doctor's office to contend with. The Mayo Clinic website says to sit quietly and relax for 5 minutes before a reading and to check it by repeating it again after three minutes. Don't take right after waking or within 30 minutes of caffeine intake. Take a reading in the morning and evening. It would be completely normal for blood pressure to be elevated above these relaxed, resting readings during exercise and tuba playing may qualify as exertion. I would imagine that readings could get quite high compared to resting during exercise and that this is not particularly dangerous if you are cleared for exercise.

I went to one GP's office where the NP took one reading after I had waited an hour for the appointment (and I hate waiting in a doctor's office) and it was somewhat high (140 or so over 100 maybe?) and she pulled out her prescription pad. That was my last visit to that office. Side effects on BP meds are often a problem, whereas meditation and exercise are not harmful and may do all that is necessary along with reducing salt intake if you are salt sensitive. If you can learn to meditate and take BP after meditating and it is a lot lower, this may tell you something about your stress level. Yes, all kinds of stress reduction, perhaps including some kind of counseling, might be a help.

This is just my personal take on it. I just don't see how taking some nice deep breaths to do something fun like tuba playing could be bad for you.

Re: Tuba Playing and High Blood Pressure

Posted: Tue Jan 23, 2018 4:51 pm
by bone-a-phone
I get sweaty playing trombone. It's physical and mental exercise. All of that heavy breathing has got to raise your blood pressure a little.