I switched my family doctor about a year ago because my former practitioner wanted me to come in and have my blood pressure checked monthly or every six weeks or so primarily so that he could bill my insurance. This stressed me out a lot as frequently I had to wait for him to show up as I always had an 8 AM check-up and then I would be always arriving late to work as he never showed up for 8 AM, and so course my blood pressure tended to go up. He would generally check it twice, once at the beginning and again at the end and it did vary a bit. So I do have HBP but on medication it is controlled and I am very careful about my diet. Of course I should exercise more and lose 10 pounds. With my new doctor I go every 3-4 months and at my last physical it was 130/78.
Weight is always an interesting issue.
I’m fat. But I’ve been on Weight Watchers for the last 6 months, and I’ve lost 25 pounds. So I’m considerably less fat than I used to be. But my BMI is still over 30, so doctors are obligated to be disgusted with me.
This led to an interesting situation at my doctor’s office last week. Both the doctor and the nurse couldn’t figure out whether to congratulate me on the weight loss or scold me for having a BMI in the obese range. They were stumbling over themselves trying to do both things at the same time.
I went to my doctor after kidney stones since the nurse told me my BP was very high and it freaked me out. They took it at beginning with machine as always, my lovely doctor came in a talked with me, ran an ekg which was normal, calmed me down and then took the BP manually with stethoscope and it was lower and well within range. She said combination of white coat and machines not as accurate (but that might have been to make me feel better:))
She is funny about weight. At one of our first visits she said she used to tell patients to basically eat less and exercise more. And then she turned 40 and realized it’s not quite that simple. Love my doctor.
I was shocked when DH (who is thin) didn’t bother to take off his shoes or empty his pockets before stepping on the scale at a recent doctor visit. Are you kidding me?!?!?
Congrats on the weight loss, @Marian! I won’t scold you. 
The first time I see an MD, my BP goes way up. I ask to have it redone at end of visit, and it goes down. Either I’m worried about what the doctor will say, or I’m annoyed at being kept waiting.
I have worked in the healthcare industry along side medical practitioners all my working life.
However I STILL have white coat “fever”. To me it’s like a test that I have to pass, I get nervous& of course that drives my BP up.
I agree with the other posters, get an at home monitor. I have found the best way to convince the doctor of those readings is to take your monitor on a visit. Get the doctor to do BP readings with both their equipment & yours. It acts as a baseline calibration which they can judge your at home readings.
Word of caution - if your BP is high, please act on it. There is no shame or sense of failure in taking medication to lower your BP. The potential consequences are just not worth it.
@Marian, losing 25 pounds is something to celebrate. Your doctor should be happy and congratulatory only. Good job!