What do you do to combat stimulant induced cardiopressor effects? (high BP, tachycardia)

The one thing that scares me about stimulant use (well, the one thing aside from the fear of possibly ending up with permanent psychotic problems) is the thought of having a heart attack or stroking out.

A while back I bought a wrist cuff for monitoring BP and pulse and when taking stimulants I make sure to check myself regularly so that I don't overdo it. Yesterday, I didn't manage to make it to the methadone clinic on time and I have been detoxing so I felt pretty lousy. I received an order containing 2-FMA, 3-FMA and 3-FEA and decided that I would see if the 2-FMA could combat the dsyphoria and, as I wasn't going to sleep well anyway, I figured I would stay up all night so that I could be sure to get to the clinic first thing in the morning.

I ended up using more 2-FMA than I usually would (although less than I have at times), taking nearly 140mg between 5.30pm and 8.30am. On top of this, I was a little foolish and took an oral dose of 15mg 3-FMA an hour after my first 30mg 2-FMA dose, and after I had taken a total of 70mg 2-FMA I tried to add 3-FEA about 5 hours after my initial dose. It was not behaviour that I'm especially proud of and not something I would normally do, but I had been feeling terrible and I was hoping that releasing as much dopamine and serotonin as I safely could would help ease my suffering. Adding the 3-FEA after I had already taken 3-FMA was quite a bad idea, I think, as it may have put me at risk of serotonin syndrome, and of course combining three separate stimulants is a good way to amplify side effects out of all proportion. I would not have done so but for the 2-FMA dose ceiling and my opiod withdrawals. I found that even after a 5-10mg bump of 3-FEA, I could feel a sense of pressure in a blood vessel going up my neck that was quite concerning, while other times I felt short of breath and I felt I was on the verge of angina at times also. Performing regular checks I found that my resting pulse was almost always above 100, reaching 121, while my BP got as high as 150/97.

I counteracted the high BP by taking several 1mg doses of diclazepam over the course of the night, so that was usually only a small amount higher than 120/90, but the pulse remained over 110 consistently and I found that a little distressing. I have been told I have a right bundle branch block, which I am told is harmless and just produces a slight mis-coordination of the contractions between atria and ventricula. I usually experience no noticable effects from this aside from occasional shortness of breath if I consume too much sodium and my GP said he did not think it would be a contraindication to my stimulant use, but I do sometimes hear an irregular beep rhythm when the wrist cuff measures my pulse, and I don't like that so I want to do everything I can to keep my BP and pulse down when using stimulants.

Aside from taking benzodiazepines for BP, I also keep cayenne pepper and Tabasco sauce on hand as these can be quite powerful for dilating blood vessels and I have even read claims that cayenne can relieve a heart attack as it happens. (It is also able to stop a nose bleed quite rapidly).

Another thing I do is to drink beet juice or eat fresh or pickled beetroot, as this contains compounds that can lower blood pressure by dilating blood vessels. An added benefit is the betaine which reduces levels of triglycerides and blood-vessel damaging homocysteine, so just generally good for CV health.

I also take aspirin on days I use stims to thin my blood and reduce chance of clot formation. I take a soluble tablet of 250mg sublingually for rapid absorption and fewer GI problems maybe 2-4 times daily. I have also read that doing this can help during a heart attack.

Drinking water also helps to keep the blood from getting too thick.

Something of great interest I learned today are techniques that can apparently achieve quite a rapid reduction in pulse rate. One example is carotid massage which stimulates the parasympathetic vagus nerve to slow the heart, although I have read that it's not recommended to do this outside a hospital setting because of the risk of dislodging clots and causing cerebral emboli. I have tried a version this morning that involves massaging laterally to the artery so that you are not actually massaging the artery but targeting the vagus nerve itself and found it to be effective. But, big disclaimer, carotid massage has been implicated in cardiac arrest in cases of strangulation and autoerotic asphyxiation so this should probably not be a front line method. Other vagal maneuvers include the Valsalva method, where you take a deep breath, pinch your mouth and nose closed and then contract the muscles you usually would to exhale and/or have a bowel movement. Doing this a few times can apparently be effective at reducing pulse. Lastly, using the dive reflex by submerging your face in a bowl of cold water and holding your breath is also supposed to reduce your pulse. I'd recommend doing your own reading on these methods to learn how to do them the right way.

Then there's the old classic of deep breathing. My preferred method is embryonic breathing where you push your stomach out and fill the base of your lungs first and then keep going until you have maximal lung expansion, holding a few seconds and then exhaling from the top down.

Other things that I think may help a bit are relaxing herbal teas like chamomile or valerian and omega-3 rich oils like flaxseed oil or fish oils, although this is perhaps weak sauce when dealing with stim induced cardiac freakout. Mulungu tea is a more potent sedative that I believe would also help. I still have to research whether a cold shower would be helpful in activating the dive reflex or whether it increases heart rate and BP.

That's everything I can think of. I feel like the vagal methods are some of the most rapid and powerful, while the likes of aspirin, benzos, cayenne, beet juice and maybe mulungu are must haves.

TL; DR: Are there any other methods to acutely reduce blood pressure and heart rate while taking stimulants that I'm unaware of? Are there other herbs, foods, supplements or medications that you would recommend?