It’s easy to reach for your favorite comfort food or skip a workout when you’re feeling down. Even when you’re not feeling your best, it’s still important to consider your heart health.
People are less likely to make healthy lifestyle choices when they are stressed, anxious, or depressed because they may feel overwhelmed. They might be more likely to smoke, not exercise enough, get too little or too much sleep, drink too much alcohol, and not take their medications as directed. These bad habits can make you more likely to get heart disease over time.
Not only can trauma, depression, anxiety, and stress cause changes that can have an impact on your health, but they can also cause you to develop heart-harming behaviors. Mental health also has physiologic effects on the body, according to research.
Over 7% of Americans over the age of 18 say they are depressed, and 20% of heart attack survivors say they are depressed.
Is depression a risk factor for heart attack or disease?
Heart rate and blood pressure go up, blood flow to the heart goes down, and your body makes more of the stress hormone cortisol when you’re depressed, anxious, or stressed. These effects may eventually result in heart disease. After cardiac events like heart failure, stroke, and heart attack, depression and anxiety can also occur.
What can I do to alleviate my anxiety, depression, or stress?
There are three essential steps you can take to alleviate stress, anxiety, or depression.
1. Address the root cause of your anxiety, stress, or depression.
You might feel down for a few days at a time, but if it continues for more than two weeks, you might need to get help. Depression is a problem when it makes you sad or doesn’t want to do the things you used to like anymore. It can affect your ability to work and live at home and cause a variety of emotional and physical issues.
2. Be patient when choosing healthy habits.
Something as basic as going for a stroll, 30 minutes per day, regardless of whether you just 10 minutes all at once, can help your heart. While engaging in physical activity can boost your mood, doing so on a regular basis can also boost your mental health, lower your risk of depression, and improve your overall quality of life.
If it has become a habit to eat unhealthy foods, try using healthier cooking methods or substituting healthy ingredients to cut calories, added sugar, fat, and sodium. When dining out, opt for salads and other low-fat dishes or healthy snacks like fresh fruits and vegetables.
3. Alter your healthy lifestyle one step at a time.
Avoid attempting to “fix” everything at once. This is especially true if quitting smoking is one of your bad habits.
Smoking cessation can be challenging. If you smoke, talk to your doctor to see if you need medication or other assistance to quit. Prescription drugs or nicotine replacement therapies may be used. You could also ask for a referral to a program that helps smokers quit.
A word from the doctor —
In the end, you need to take care of yourself to break the downward spiral. That could be a structured activity like yoga or tai chi, or it could be something you can do anywhere like meditation, music listening, or reading a book.
And if you still seek any help regarding your health, then contact me right away!
