8 Natural Ways to Lower Blood Pressure in Minutes
If you often experience severe headaches, fatigue, irregular heartbeat and chest pain, you may be suffering from hypertension or high blood pressure.
This condition can be caused by high levels of stress, lack of sleep, obesity or other underlying diseases, and sometimes even healthy people can suffer from it.
Fortunately, there are some simple techniques that can help you relax your blood vessels and muscles, thereby keeping your blood pressure under control.
Massage the ears and neck
There are 3 points on the head and neck that can help lower blood pressure in minutes:
Find the first point behind the ear and draw an imaginary straight line to the center of the collarbone where you will find the second point.
With your fingers, gently massage the neck with light movements up and down along the same lines.
Repeat 10 times on both sides of the neck.
The third point is located on your face at the level of the earlobe about half a cm from the ear.
Massage it on each side with your fingertips for about a minute in a counterclockwise circular motion.
Massaging these areas will relieve tension in the neck muscles and restore proper blood flow to the brain.
Try acupressure
GB 20, or Wind Pool, is one of the most effective acupressure points for treating high blood pressure.
You can find these points right at the base of the skull, in the hollow on either side of the spine.
Activate both at the same time by applying firm but light pressure with both fingers.
After about a minute or two, you will feel your headache noticeably improve.
Practice breathing through the left nostril
Deep abdominal breathing through the left nostril will help control blood pressure levels by relaxing blood vessels and reducing stress hormones.
How to do it:
Sit on the floor or in a chair in a comfortable position with your back straight.
Place your left hand on your stomach.
Close the right nostril with the right thumb.
Take a deep breath through the left nostril, hold your breath for a few seconds, then exhale.
Breathe slowly and deeply through the left nostril for only about 3-5 minutes.
Practice bee breathing
Bhramari pranayama, or bee breathing, will help you instantly relax your mind and get rid of headaches and migraines associated with hypertension.
How to do it:
Sit on the floor in a comfortable position with your back straight.
Place both index fingers on the cartilage of the ears.
Breathe deeply.
As you exhale, make a buzzing noise as if you were a bee and at the same time press on the cartilage of your ear.
Repeat this exercise 7-10 times.
Listen to classical music
It appears that listening to light music such as classical, Celtic or Indian music can help lower blood pressure, especially if you combine it with breathing exercises or meditation.
This is because this type of music has a relaxing effect on your body and reduces the stress hormone cortisol.
Some researchers believe that music that can help lower blood pressure usually has very little variation in volume or rhythm, has no lyrics, and has parts that repeat at intervals.
Drink a glass of water
In some cases, high blood pressure can be caused by dehydration.
When you are dehydrated, the volume of blood in your body decreases and therefore increases peripheral resistance.
To avoid this condition, whenever you start feeling the symptoms of hypertension, drink a glass or two of plain water.
This will help restore adequate blood volume in your body and lower your blood pressure.
Guided relaxation: Savasana
Savasana, or resting pose, can help lower your heart rate and significantly lower your blood pressure.
You just need to lie on your back, close your eyes and try to relax every muscle in your body.
Rest in this position for about 10-15 minutes and eventually you will feel much better.
In addition to normalizing your blood pressure, it will also help balance your nervous system.
Soak your feet in hot water
Soaking your feet in very hot but still tolerable water can help keep your head and neck cool and prevent blood from rushing to your brain.
Basically, you need to take a bucket or basin and fill it with hot water.
Then sit on a chair and put your feet in the water for 10-15 minutes.
The blood in your head will move to your legs and your blood pressure will slowly return to normal.
Bonus: a super easy exercise to keep your blood pressure under control
Isometric strength training, or contracting and relaxing the muscles in your arms when pushing a stress ball, can help improve the dilation of your blood vessels and your ability to relax.
Do this exercise for about 12-15 minutes 3 times a week. After one month, your blood pressure level should drop by 10%.
Are you prone to high blood pressure? How do you keep it under control? Tell us about your experience
It will be great if you follow us and share this article with your friends and your opinion (or experience) in the comments!