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Comment by Etheryte | Hacker News Reader

This is super exciting, thanks for posting! I developed high blood pressure after Covid and have done a few 24h studies to better understand it. The traditional machines are super bulky, essentially like carrying a regular BP monitor around with a pouch that's strapped to you, maybe just a bit smaller. All in all it's far from convenient and can kick in at inopportune times. Having around the clock insights would hopefully give me a better understanding of the condition. For context, I've jumped through all sorts of specialty doctor hoops and there is no known underlying cause outside of the fact that it just showed up after Covid.

Do you or anyone you know happen to have firsthand experience with the device?

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Hey I have firsthand experience with it as indicated in the post. Probably a few months worth of wear at this point.

BP remains a great mystery to me, even with the device. My cardio fitness is pretty good despite carrying a few extra pounds (I'm in the low 50s for resting heart rate), and while overnight I dip down in the 120's, I can see it shoot up based on various things like cold plunge, caffeine, exercise (during), etc. I can also see it drop temporarily (hot tub, meditation, the hours FOLLOWING intense exercise, etc).

I had many pet theories through the years - that I had white coat syndrome, that I disliked the feeling of the cuff, etc etc. But the device showed me that, no, something really is going on independent of these pseudo-causes.

BTW water retention seems to play a big role. When I did keto, which causes a big drop in water retention, my BP also went down. Strange. Supplements have an impact too.

All this to say - get the device and see for yourself, but you might find yourself in the same place I am - which is that you have much better understanding of what's going on in terms of symptoms but are still on the search for "the underlying cause" if there even is such a thing.

Thanks for sharing your experience, I appreciate it. What I've seen from the 24h studies I've is very similar to what you describe, BP is highly variable throughout the day and nearly everything you do (or don't do) has an influence on it. One saving grace, if you can call it that, is that BP responds extremely well to medication. I take a small pill every morning and my doc says so long I keep it up, I've nullified all related health risk since my BP is now in a good range. So something to consider if, like me, you never find an underlying reason.

I've found similar. I don't know if it was post-Covid, but I have completely asymptomatic high blood pressure. It's really scary to go to the doctor for an extremely routine health check expecting to be back at work in an hour, and then suddenly be told that your blood pressure is so high that you need to go to hospital immediately.

There's no obvious cause, I'm fit and healthy in all other ways, I've had multiple blood tests and ECGs, my cholesterol is normal, everything is normal, just the blood pressure. I also didn't know about this machine but I might get one. I have developed anxiety around having it taken (because of the experience of getting sent to hospital!) so it goes up when I take it, like extreme white-coat syndrome.

I'm definitely getting one of these gadgets so I can see what it really is, without the stress and pain (those things hurt!) of inflating cuffs.

You can request a 24 hour monitor from your doctor.

Just curious if you BP was low/normal at night?

Not really, it was usually hovering right around the border of what's considered high blood pressure. As you might guess, the daytime numbers were off the charts compared to that. Luckily my body responds very well to the medication and a small dose is all I need to stay in a good range the whole day.

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