Ask the Doctor. I'm 45 years old. At the doctor's office, my blood pressure readings are usually pretty high (the top number may reach 150 or 160), but my home monitor shows numbers more like 130/90. My doctor calls my problem "white-coat hypertension" and reassures me that it isn't dangerous. But it bothers me that my pressure shoots up like that. I have plenty of stressful moments every day, and my blood pressure must be going up then, too. Should I be on medication?