Blood pressure medications are medications prescribed by qualified health personnel when they notice that your blood pressure is high. I have come to realise that a lot of people go into denial when this diagnosis of high blood pressure is made. Some will reject medications prescribed by their physician and opt in for herbal medicines.

Why are people so scared of these medications? Do they know the risks attached to not taking medications or non compliance with them? This article will discuss some reasons I have noticed why people fail to comply with taking their medications and why you need to encourage yourself to be compliant with this.

Some facts you need to know about high blood pressure

• High blood pressure is not caused by “thinking”. Although stress can predispose an individual to developing high BP, you can develop it even if you are not stressed.

• The fact that nobody has ever had high BP in your family doesn’t mean you cannot have it. Although high BP has been linked to family history, this doesn’t mean that you can not have it if you don’t have a family history of it.

• The fact that you are not fat does not mean you cannot have high BP. Although obese people are at a higher risk of developing high BP, an individual with a normal weight can also develop it.

• You need to note that when some organs in the body are diseased, it can lead to high BP.

• The number of people with high BP has increased over the years because of our diet. Most of the things we consume are contributing to fat depositing in our blood vessels (pipes) leading to increased pressure in these vessels.

Why people diagnosed with high blood pressure fail to take their medications as prescribed 

• The belief that the medication is for life and most people see this as a burden they are not ready to bear for the rest of their lives.

• The cost of the medications is also a challenge to some people. Due to the bad economy, a lot of people are struggling to feed and take care of their family and cannot afford most of these medications. They only purchase these medications when they have extra funds for it.

• Religious beliefs firmly held by some people also made them opt out of medications and rather follow religious pathways for their healing.

• The hatred some people have for drugs is another factor. Some people can not withstand taking  medications for even few days. Although side effects are not common if medications are prescribed by a qualified personnel, the fear of side effects has scared some people away from taking these drugs.

• False counselling by neighbours, families and friends has also contributed to this.

Why you must take your high blood pressure medications as prescribed

You need to note that if you do not need high blood pressure medications, it will not be recommended. High blood pressure is a chronic disease and usually people with this disease might need to take these drugs for the rest of their lives.

You cannot just visit the hospital once in a lifetime and continue medications on your own without a follow up. Follow up is essential as it helps your Physician to know when to reduce or add to your medications. It will also help to know when to request for some investigations or refer you to a specialist.

Why then must you take your medications?

• Taking your drugs will help your BP to be under control and prevent complications.

• If you do not take your medications, your heart will try to compensate, become flabby and can eventually fail. In other to prevent heart failure, you will need to take your medications

• Uncontrolled high BP can lead to stroke. An individual with a stroke will have his hand and his leg paralysed. This might be one sided or even involve both sides. I am sure you do not want this to happen, therefore you need to take your medications. 

• High BP can damage some other organs in your body such as your eyes, kidneys and your nerves. This can lead to blindness, kidney failure and painful or no sensation in your hands and legs.

For pregnant women 

If you are a pregnant woman who has been having high BP before pregnancy or who just developed it in pregnancy, it is essential you take your medications because failure to do so can lead to some complications in your baby and yourself.

Some people believe that once they start the drugs now, they will continue it for life. What if the BP causes irreversible damage to your organs or system, how will you live that kind of life you intend to live?

A lot of times, high BP that was noticed first in pregnancy tends to resolve a few weeks after delivery. You should therefore not bother yourself about whether it will go down or not. All you need to do is to take your medications to prevent complications.

As a pregnant woman, you must take your medications to prevent the following:

• High BP in pregnancy can lead to convulsion in the mother if there are associated kidney issues.

• High BP will prevent enough blood and nutrients from reaching your baby. This can lead to delivery of a small for age baby.

• It can lead to miscarriage in early pregnancies. 

• It can lead to the death of a baby in the womb.

• It can lead to bleeding in pregnancy. This bleeding can be severe enough to take the life of the mother and the baby.

• It can lead to severe bleeding after delivery as the womb may find it difficult to contract.

Conclusion 

I want to believe that now you can see reasons why you must take your medications. Compliance with these medications and followup can allow you to live your life without any complications.

If you are having side effects on some medications or you feel the medications are too expensive, kindly speak to your Physician who will review your medications.