Reducing StressChapter 5, Lesson 3

Preventing Heart Disease

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Improving your ability to manage stress can reduce your risk of heart disease.

You may find parts of your life stressful. Some stress can be healthy, but too much stress can affect your overall health and heart health both indirectly and directly.

When you experience stress, your body produces hormones that help you to respond to the stressor. Too much stress over time can:

Stress is the body’s response to certain stimuli or stressors. Situations you find to be

stressful may not be the same for others.

While stress doesn’t always cause health issues, choosing poor methods of stress management can have negative effects on your health. Often, people who are stressed choose to smoke, drink alcohol, participate in drug use, overeat or eat unhealthy foods for comfort and relief.

All of these counterproductive forms of stress management can lead to a variety of conditions, many of which affect the heart.

Impact weight management

Contribute to chronic diseases

such as heart disease and hypertension

Raise your blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose levels

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Finding Relief

Learning how to effectively cope with stress is necessary for healthy stress management.

Try some of these strategies to help you improve the way you respond to your stress.

Take charge of the stress you can control. Circumvent stress that is unnecessary. Know your limits, manage your time and avoid situations that may raise your stress level.

Keep your surroundings serene. Reduce clutter and stay organized.

Change your perspective. Being upset or distressed over a situation can make it more stressful. Reframe the stressor in a more positive manner to reduce negative feelings.

Let go of things that are out of your control. Trying to control every situation, at all times, is impossible. Acknowledge the stressors you cannot change and accept things as they are.

Practice relaxation. Find an activity you enjoy and make it part of your routine. Read a book, go to a yoga class, learn to meditate, listen to music, pick a hobby…the opportunities are endless!

Create healthy behaviors. Improving your physical health through exercise, good nutrition, improving sleep, avoiding alcohol, tobacco and other drugs can help improve your defenses against stress

Devote time to reading. Plan to spend 30 minutes before bed to read a book or your favorite magazine.

Breathe deeply. Practice proper breathing 20 minutes per day. Proper breathing or “belly breathing” requires you to breathe down into your diaphragm. You should feel you abdomen expand as you inhale and contract as you exhale.

Meditate. Taking time out to meditate can be a great way to relax. Plan to meditate for 15 minutes each morning. Download a meditation app for help getting started.

Go outside. Take a 10 minute walk each day on your lunch break for quick stress relief.

Find a hobby or craft. Spend an hour on your day off creating something. Consider drawing, painting, knitting, scrapbooking, songwriting, etc.

Find your own relaxing activity. Relaxing is a subjective activity—everyone has different preferences and perceptions of what is helpful.