Heart disease is the number one cause of premature death in North America. Whether you think you thrive on stress or not, prolonged, chronic psychological stress has the capability and tendency to erode your health. For many years, heart disease was thought of as primarily a male issue: I am sure you are familiar with the image of a stressed out, type-A businessman dropping dead from a massive heart attack. Within the last ten years, it has become clear that women are just as much at risk for heart attacks and strokes. In fact, women are more likely to die of a heart attack, or suffer a second heart attack. Additionally, the signs, and even the risks increasing the likelihood of a heart attack, are different between the sexes.

A recent study published in Circulation found that women who have already had one heart attack have twice the risk of having another heart attack triggered by mental stress compared to men with a similar heart attack history. This study found that there were more significant changes in circulation, or blood flow, due to stress in women than in men. When the women perceived themselves to be under stress, the blood vessels in their bodies constricted more than those in their male counterparts. When blood vessels constrict, blood flow is restricted to the area they supply. When that happens in the heart, the muscle of the heart does not get enough blood flow, and heart tissue can die from lack of oxygen supply. You may have heard of Raynaud’s disease where a person’s fingers and toes can turn cold, numb, and blue in response to cold or stressful emotions. This study in Circulation illustrated that the constriction of the blood vessels in response to stress doesn’t only happen in the limbs, it can also happen in the heart and make a heart attack more likely.

Modern women are experiencing an increased amount of daily stress, and a decreased ability to deal with it in a constructive way. You cannot go out and find me a bucket of stress, as it is a reaction the body has to something it perceives as threatening in the environment. Stress management is taking its place among those well-known concepts because more and more research is supporting a healthy stress resilience and the importance that has to combat the diseases that plague us the most. Women’s bodies are more sensitive to the effects of stress in relation to cardiovascular disease and heart attack risk and mortality, and therefore any plan to protect women from heart disease MUST include stress management and cultivating stress resilience.

When you experience stress, hormones like cortisol and adrenaline are secreted in an effort to help the body adapt to the challenges it is facing. We have two automatic systems in the body, the sympathetic, which prepares the body for a fight, or to flee danger, and the parasympathetic that supports digestion and repair. During stressful events, the sympathetic system is activated, resulting in blood pressure, blood sugar, and heart rate all increasing. Over time, an imbalance between the two systems can occur causing health problems.

Chronic stress increases the likelihood of having chronic diseases like heart disease, cancer, depression, autoimmunity and diabetes, to name just a few. The importance of a healthy diet, nutrition, and exercise are not likely to surprise to you. Stress management techniques also help you to achieve health and vitality by reducing the negative impacts of stress.

Exercise

We know that physical fitness helps keep people healthy due to the beneficial effects on the heart, lungs and blood vessels. Physical fitness and activity also blunts the hormone imbalances that occur in the body from chronic stress.

Meditation

Mindfulness and healthy thought patters can decrease inflammation and help with circulation, especially after heart attacks. (Dal Lin, 2018) People at known risk of coronary events who participated in a meditation program experienced a significantly reduced risk of dying from heart attacks and strokes. (Schneider, 2012)

Sleep 

A lack of adequate sleep increases a person’s likelihood of death. Period. Getting an average of 8 hours of sleep a night helps to balance the hormones and function of the parasympathetic and sympathetic systems and allows the body time to repair.

Adaptagenic support 

Supplements can help support healthy stress resilience and minimize the systemic effects of stress. Herbs such as Tulsi (Cohen, 2014) ginseng (QI, 2018), ashwaghanda, and Rhodiola have long been proven effective. Other supplements such as B1, B6, coenzyme forms of B5 and B12, alpha lipoic acid, phosphatidylserine and tyrosine can also help the body insulate itself biochemically from stress. (Kelly, 1999)

Make love, get a massage, or enjoy companionable touch 

Recent research has shown many benefits to the hormone oxytocin including its ability to modulate the body’s reaction to stress. (Wdowin, 2016)

Disconnect from screens and electronics 

Prolonged exposure to screens, especially at night, can decrease sleep quality and increase the effects of stress on the body.

Go outside and enjoy nature

People who take time to walk outside and enjoy nature also enjoy lower blood pressure, lower stress hormones like cortisol, lower pulse rate, and a more balanced sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system. (Park, 2010)

Elizabeth Banks starred in a video that perfectly illustrates signs of heart attacks in women, you can watch it here: 

The most common sign of a heart attack in women is chest pain, but women are more likely to have other signs as well, such as nausea and jaw pain. Common signs of a heart attack in women are:

1. Chest pain, pressure, a feeling of being squeezed, and or a sense of fullness in the center of the chest. It may last a few minutes, or go away and then come back.
2. Pain or discomfort in one or both arms or the back.
3. Tightness of the jaw
4. Stomach pain, nausea or vomiting
5. Shortness of breath
6. Cold sweat
7. Dizziness or light-headedness

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