Coronary heart disease and stress: how to manage stressors?

Angina and stress: dangerous liaisons? 

Angina is a painful feeling that is normally felt in the chest when there is less blood flow to your heart.  Alongside the chest pain, it is possible to experience angina in your arm, stomach, jaw, or other places in the body. Because angina is the symptom most likely to be related to heart disease and global death rates, it is extremely important to know how it is linked with stress and how to manage it. 

Stress is caused by a change in environment from inside or outside the body that elicits a biological response. If stress happens first in the mind, it has effects all through the body, including, of course, the heart and circulatory system. Indeed, too much stress can raise blood pressure, and rushes of hormones made by the body during stress can narrow the arteries and worsen angina. By working to minimize the stress in our lives, a positive feedback cycle of angina itself causing more stress can be avoided.  

Recognizing stress to prevent or reduce coronary heart disease 

Figuring out how stress affects your body is an important step in dealing with it. Sometimes it is not easy to recognize stress because we are caught up in the flow of life. The things in your life that cause you stress are called stressors. Often, stressors are things you cannot control. These could be: 

• major life events or changes, such as losing a job 

• family responsibilities 

• loneliness 

• health issues 

• money worries 

• conditions in your life, such as not getting along with a family member 

• bereavement. 

Your responses to these stressors are your stress reactions. Everyone has his or her own individual stress reactions. Think for a moment about when you are stressed out or upset. What happens to you?

Thoughts: 

• Do you have trouble concentrating? 

• Do your thoughts race, or freeze up? 

• Do you start to think “the worst”? 

• Are you more likely to see yourself, your future or other people negatively? 

Emotions: 

• Does stress lead you to have anxious or sad feelings? 

• Do you get easily angry? 

• Do you feel numb and uninterested in life? 

Body: 

• How do you feel physically? 

• What happens to your breathing? 

• Are your muscles tighter? 

• Does that create pain anywhere, like headache, back or jaw pain? 

• What happens to your sleeping patterns? 

• How does your stomach feel? 

• Do you sweat, have dry mouth, diarrhea or constipation? 

• What happens to your heart rate? 

• If you measured your blood pressure, what do you see? 

Behaviour and actions: 

• How do your habits and behaviours change? 

• Do you eat less or more? 

• Do you have more junk food and sugary drinks? 

• Do you stop exercising? 

• Do you start smoking? Drink more alcohol, use prescription or non-prescription drugs? 

• Do you become nervous or keep to yourself? 

• Do you have frequent bad temper and lack of patience? 

Handling stress to prevent chest pain 

It may be possible to change or remove the stressor. For example, you may be able to change your job, your work schedule, avoid difficult people or unpleasant situations. But in many cases removing the stressor is not possible. In this situation, you need to change your stress reaction. Here are some strategies to help you: 

Mental responses:

 you cannot control all parts of your life, but you can control your response to stress and keep a positive attitude. Identify your thought habits that can make stress worse. For example: 

• deciding right away that it is going to be bad, without even looking closely at the facts. 

• looking only at the bad parts and not seeing the good. 

• worrying about problems that are not yours. 

Emotional responses:

 figure out your emotional reactions to stress and talk about them. 

Physical responses: 

• try deep breathing and relaxation exercises. 

• listen to music. 

Behavioural responses: 

• decide what you can change about the stressor, take action and do it. 

• keep up your healthy habits: eat healthily and avoid reaching for junk food as its effects are short lasting and will make you feel worse in the long run. 

• spend time with friends and family: it is important to maintain social connections and talk with people you trust. They will know what you are going through and may be able to offer a helpful perspective if you care to discuss the stress factors in your life. 

• exercising regularly, to relieve stress, tension, anxiety and depression, and calm you. Consider a nature walk, meditation, tai chi or yoga. 

• get enough sleep: seven to nine hours a night. 

• maintain a positive attitude: keep a gratitude journal and write weekly entries. You can look back on your day and write the things you enjoyed doing, or the things you feel grateful for. This can help you focus on the positive aspects of your life. Even bad days have their little pleasures. 

• find a stimulating hobby, such as cooking, painting or knitting, that can keep you engaged so you don’t dwell on negative thoughts or worries. 

• connect with a casual acquaintance or stranger: the benefits of connection are not restricted to your inner circle. Even casual interactions promote social and emotional well-being. To defuse stress, you can enjoy small talk with a cashier or a delivery person. 

• connect with a furry friend: the act of petting a dog or a cat decreases blood pressure. Interacting with your pet can relieve stress and suppress stress hormones.  

All these tips have one thing in common: they help you to step back and redirect your thoughts. Using all or some of them in your daily routine can prevent stress from building up, and help you prevent or reduce angina risks.