Affairs of the Heart
Affairs of the
Heart
(Part 1)
by Darra McMullen,
Women’s Health Network
Writer/Researcher
February is
Heart Health Month, and as such, is the perfect time to address “affairs of the
heart” in all their myriad types. Some
types of heart health factors, such as diet and exercise, are well known and
often discussed. Other aspects of heart
health, including stress levels, personal relationships, sleep quality, and
life satisfaction “ratings” are addressed less often and are too frequently
downplayed as minor influences on cardiovascular health, when in fact, these
issues can be major players in the game of heart attack and stroke prevention.
All of the
above listed heart health factors will be addressed this month, but first,
let’s take a look at the warning signs of heart attack, stroke, and atrial
fibrillation so that we can be better prepared to recognize and deal with a
crisis should we be faced with one ourselves or among those persons around us.
Heart attack warning signs often include
one or more of the following:
• Chest
discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes or
that goes away and then returns. The
discomfort can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain.
• Upper
body discomfort or pain in one or both arms, back, neck, jaw, or stomach can
also be heart attack warning signs.
• Shortness
of breath with or without chest discomfort is another common symptom.
• Other
signs of heart attack are nausea, lightheadedness, and breaking out in a cold
sweat.
This last
group of symptoms is more common in women, and sadly, frequently results in
women being misdiagnosed as having anxiety or panic attacks.
Stroke warning signs include the subsequent
list of symptoms:
•
Sudden-onset numbness or weakness of the face, arm, or leg, especially on one
side of the body, can indicate stroke.
• Confusion
or trouble speaking or understanding is also common.
• A sudden
loss of vision in one or both eyes can be symptomatic of stroke.
• Stroke
may also be indicated by a sudden-onset of trouble walking, dizziness, and loss
of balance or coordination.
• A sudden,
severe headache with no known cause can be indicative of stroke as well.
About Atrial Fibrillation:
Atrial fibrillation is another
serious heart condition with which we should all be familiar. Atrial fibrillation, also known as AFib or AF
is a quivering or irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia) that can lead to blood
clots, stroke, heart failure, and other heart-related problems. AFib is the most common serious heart rhythm
abnormality in people older than 65 years.
Untreated AFib doubles the risk of heart related deaths, and causes a
four-to-five-fold increased risk for strokes.
Unfortunately, many people are unaware they have the condition or may
not realize the seriousness of the disorder, even if aware of its presence.
Because
AFib is a common and potentially life-threatening problem, we should all be
familiar with the symptoms of this condition as well.
Symptoms of atrial fibrillation include the
following:
• Rapid and
irregular heartbeat
•
Fluttering or “thumping” in the chest
• Dizziness
• Shortness
of breath and anxiety
• Weakness
• Faintness
or confusion
• Fatigue
when exercising
• Sweating
•Chest pain
or pressure
Interestingly,
some people with AFib have no symptoms at all, putting them at great risk of
heart related problems because their condition goes unrecognized and untreated.
Of course,
the preferred path of life would be for no one to ever have to suffer from
heart attacks, strokes, or atrial fibrillation, but because such an idyllic
situation is not possible, we should do all we can to protect our
cardiovascular systems and keep them working as well as possible for as long as
possible.
Fortunately,
there is a lot we can do to help ourselves.
Dietary and supplement advice is so large a category to examine that it
deserves its own article and will get one later this month. Also later this month, we’ll look at the
effects of sleep quality (and quantity) and stress levels on the heart’s
health.
For now,
let’s take a moment to think about our personal and professional relationships,
as well as our daily interactions with strangers and how all of these
person-to-person contacts can help or hurt our heart health. With Valentine’s Day so close in time to the
present, we can (and should) think warm thoughts about those we love and reach
out to them. Their and our hearts will
benefit from the positive emotions and attention.
What we
probably don’t often think about around Valentine’s Day (or any other time) is
true, genuine forgiveness of those people who have caused us hurt or
disappointment of some kind. Both
everyday experience and scientific studies have shown that holding on to
grudges, anger, jealousy, resentment, and similar negative emotions raises
stress levels, blood pressure, and blood sugar, putting the heart and
cardiovascular system in greater peril.
If negative
emotions are at the forefront of your mind more often than you’d like, try
letting go of these hurts or angry feelings.
Try forgiveness, seeing things from another person’s point of view, or
thinking calming thoughts when feeling overwhelmed with negativity. Your heart and cardiovascular system will
thank you for it, and who knows, a fresh, more optimistic outlook may even lead
to figuring out a way to deal with a difficult relationship constructively for
all concerned.
Ditto the
above approach for dealing with everyday frustrations. If someone rudely cuts in line at the grocery
store (or on the freeway), find constructive ways to rise above the event and
not let it ruin your day or your health.
Learning to dial back everyday stress is a proven method of making life
more pleasant and heart health better.
We’ll look
at more ways to help your “ticker” keep strong for years to come in our next
installment of “Affairs of the Heart (Part 2)”, available later this month,
probably around February 20th.
