Profile For Instructor David P.

I had to deal with this issue, while in school I got a dot physical and my blood pressure was 180/114 - too high for dot regulations which are that it must be less than 140/90....

Brian has had a similar experience to what happened to me. Here is my advice:

I teach at at CDL School, and for the first time in my life my BP was high this past spring. I was offered a 3 month card, with the paperwork to give to my regular doctor for treatment. I was required to see him, get treatment (for me it was 1 simple pill a day and my insurance covers it free), and I had to return twice within that 3 month period to be checked for my BP. Once I did that, I was given a 1 year card by the physical folks. I will continue to get 1 year cards from here forward.

I caution you, depending on your state, the physical folks may report the 3 month DOT card to the DMV. There may be paperwork for you to give to the DMV to continue to keep your CDL depending on your state. This is what it is like in NY. So make sure you keep all the copies of your paperwork. Do not fax that paperwork, hand carry it to the DMV to be sure your license is protected.

Items that helped me go from 164/124 to 132/76 in 1 month were these:

Cut out ALL fast food and reduce sodium. Cut caffeine down to VERY low amounts. Cut out ALL soda. Stop taking/abusing Ibuprofen and Naproxen (Motrin and Aleve). Manage my sleep better, making sure I was getting the right amount.

I hope this helps, best of luck.