My blood pressure is 150/100. What should I do?
A blood pressure of 150/100 is high but not an emergency. Do not panic, unless you also have chest pain, severe headache, breathlessness or vision changes.
Where 150/100 sits: the US guideline calls anything from 140/90 upward stage 2 hypertension, and the European one calls it grade 1. Either way it is the level where, if home readings confirm it, doctors usually start treatment rather than watch. Confirmation means an average, not a single number: seven days of morning and evening readings, seated, arm supported, averaging 135/85 or above at home.
Recheck properly after five quiet minutes. If it stays in that range, measure twice daily for a week and book a doctor visit with the numbers. Most guidelines treat sustained readings at this level with lifestyle changes plus medicine.
Cut added salt, walk daily, limit alcohol, and sleep properly while you wait for the visit. These help within weeks, but they support treatment rather than replace the appointment.
See a doctor promptly if
- A reading of 180/120 mmHg or higher with chest pain, breathlessness, weakness on one side, slurred speech, confusion or sudden visual change. This is an emergency
- Blood pressure of 140/90 mmHg or higher in pregnancy, especially with headache, upper abdominal pain, visual disturbance or sudden swelling
- A repeated reading of 180/120 mmHg or higher even without symptoms. This needs same-day medical assessment
- New severe headache, nosebleeds that will not stop, or breathlessness lying flat alongside high readings
- Blood in the urine, or a sharp fall in how much urine you pass, together with high readings
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Answered by the AskDoc Medical Team · Medically reviewed under our Medical Director, MBBS · How we review
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