Our Whole Hearts
A new book, called "The Heart Speaks," and authored by practicing cardiologist Mimi Guarneri, MD, confirms my belief that we can develop heart disease, and literally die, from a broken heart.
This week the book is profiled at Web MD in an article titled "The Heart Speaks (Are You Listening?). The author shares her personal story of losing her mom to a heart attack when she was eight years old; her mother was 40. She writes, "My father's subsequent death from heart disease at 50, almost a decade later, was surely hastened by this tragedy in our family. Heart disease, with its layers of grief and guilt, stress and love, had blasted a hole through the center of my own family."
Dr. Guarneri's book explores the relatively new area of psychoneuroimmunology, or PNI, which is the exploration of the relationship between our emotions, nervous systems, and our immunity.
Science has been aware for many years of the "mind-body" connection. We see this when measure the heart rate and blood pressure response of subjects who are exposed to a situation that triggers such strong emotions as anger or sorrow. We have also studied individual's ability to control these same physical measures using meditation and biofeedback.
The author's research discusses the new technology that allows researchers to watch the interaction between the mind and heart in real time, called functional MRI. This view into the mind-body connection should give us information about our "whole" heart, meaning all of the things that affect its health. As this information expands those of us in medicine who have believed for years that people can die of a broken heart and that post-traumatic stress disorder can cause coronary artery disease will, I believe, be proven to be correct.
For now, I'd suggest we all pay a little more attention to the stress in our daily lives. Slow down, hear the birds and the spring peepers, and find it in your whole heart to forgive yourself and those you love of their transgressions. Be peaceful.
Laurie
The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.
Mahatma Gandhi
Related Topics: Coffee May Up Heart Risks For Some, WebMD Video: How Microbubbles Can Help the Heart
Technorati Tags: broken heart, stress, mindbodyconnection
This week the book is profiled at Web MD in an article titled "The Heart Speaks (Are You Listening?). The author shares her personal story of losing her mom to a heart attack when she was eight years old; her mother was 40. She writes, "My father's subsequent death from heart disease at 50, almost a decade later, was surely hastened by this tragedy in our family. Heart disease, with its layers of grief and guilt, stress and love, had blasted a hole through the center of my own family."
Dr. Guarneri's book explores the relatively new area of psychoneuroimmunology, or PNI, which is the exploration of the relationship between our emotions, nervous systems, and our immunity.
Science has been aware for many years of the "mind-body" connection. We see this when measure the heart rate and blood pressure response of subjects who are exposed to a situation that triggers such strong emotions as anger or sorrow. We have also studied individual's ability to control these same physical measures using meditation and biofeedback.
The author's research discusses the new technology that allows researchers to watch the interaction between the mind and heart in real time, called functional MRI. This view into the mind-body connection should give us information about our "whole" heart, meaning all of the things that affect its health. As this information expands those of us in medicine who have believed for years that people can die of a broken heart and that post-traumatic stress disorder can cause coronary artery disease will, I believe, be proven to be correct.
For now, I'd suggest we all pay a little more attention to the stress in our daily lives. Slow down, hear the birds and the spring peepers, and find it in your whole heart to forgive yourself and those you love of their transgressions. Be peaceful.
Laurie
The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.
Mahatma Gandhi
Related Topics: Coffee May Up Heart Risks For Some, WebMD Video: How Microbubbles Can Help the Heart
Technorati Tags: broken heart, stress, mindbodyconnection
11 Comments:
My father-in-law has been diagnoses with a vegetation on his heart valve, we are looking for any and all information that we can about this. The doctors tell us that if it comes loose it may cause him to have a stroke. We are very concerned about this because he has had poor health for the last year.
Hi Amy,
For answers to specific questions, please visit our Laurie Anderson's Heart Failure/Heart Disease board.
Thank you.
My mother-in-law was diagnosed 3 weeks ago with COPD and CHF, if she continues to drink alcohol,how high are the risks of a heart attack or respirtory failure?
I was looking at my 6yr (boy) old childs echocardiogram (2005 sept 09) report that I had received from his pulmonogist office just recently and I never knew about the actual results his echocardio. I was told it was normal. I would like to know if maybe you may be able to explain to me what does it mean by "mild tricuspid insufficiency, possiblity of a PFO w/left to right shunt and there is trivial mitral insufficiency. I have another child(girl-10yrs)who also has PFO with left to right shunt. Is that possibly normal for 2 children in the same family to have Patent Foramen Ovale? Please send me some information that will explain everything if you are not able to answer anything for me. I would appreciate it very much.
please I am still waiting for some kind of response about my 2 children that I had written about a while back in Feb sometime at 2137 hours. I was talking about PFO, mild tricuspid and trivial mitral. Please help. I am not getting no answers for none of their doctors as well. I am at the end of my wits.
My brother's girlfriend was just diagnosed that she has a 2.5 centimeter hole in her heart. She was 2month pregnant and her doctor advised her to have an abortion. So she had an abortion. She was told that she can never have a baby. Now she's going to have her heart evaluated with catheterization. Is it true that she can't have a baby?
PFO: Patent Foramen Ovale. At birth we all have this. As babies, PFO's are natural and allow blood flow between the left and right Atriums. There is a distinct purpose for this ~ However, as we grow, PFO's become "sealed" and absolutely no blood should flow between the two chambers. Why? Because if un-oxygenated blood flows into the L. Atrium, (then to L.Ventricle and on out), you have an obvious problem. The L.Ventricle should send only Oxygenated blood to the body, and PFO's are sending CO2 directly into the mix. Also, if you have a PFO as an teen, adult, etc., "high-effort stress" - such as "Val Salvo" tasks (for example, trying to open a stubborn jar, bending over to do certain tasks, torking lug nuts off a tire, jacking a car up manually, etc.) may cause a "burst" of CO2 - forcing the PFO open and allowing this heavy CO2 dose into the L. Atrium.
Interestingly enough, Dr. Paul Cheney (one of the world's foremost experts/scientist on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) has discovered a correlation of PFO's to CFS, as well as diastolic heart dysfunction. I've attended his last lecture in Ft.Worth, Texas. The lecture is available on a 2 DVD set or video cassette. It is named, "CFS: The Heart of the Matter" and is about a 3-4 hour lecture. Included in the lecture topics is some information about PFO's as well as an interesting video clip of a patient's PFO as it is "forced open" via a procedure in which one can actually see the rush of blood into the right atrium! Anyway, you can go to our website at www.dfwcfids.org and nose around for the aforementioned lecture. Click on the link and you'll see a breakdown of the lecture topics. PFO is mentioned twice in the breakdown of topics, I believe. Cost is around $15 and might be worth it to gather more "intell" on the subject. Good luck!
Oh, and one more thing I forgot to mention ~
PS: Regarding the previous post, I am not a doctor and have no idea on PFO's and pregnancy. Dr. Cheney talks about surgical possibilities to correct PFO's in the aforementioned lecture, but does not recommend it in the majority of cases. Refer to his lecture on DVD to hear it straight from the horses mouth. :-)
Today I had a epidural shot in my lower back near the 4 and 5. I was very nervous as I seem to be when I go to any doctor even a dentist. I take bennicar for hypertension, my blood pressure was 130/72 but the nurse said my heart rate was high and ask me if it always is high. It was 91 and went to 117 as he began the procedure. I am not over weight, I'm active, I walk and workout. is this still a red flag for heart disease?
My husband is 34 years old and was diagnosed almost 2 years ago with Cardiomyopathy and currently takes coreg for this however he has pretty much had constant chest pain since. Some days are worse then others, he hurts all over, migraines,shortness of breath, numbness in arms and legs. He has had some kind of breathing test done which I beleived showed he had 70% lung function and so far we have not followed up on this to have more test. We feel like doctors think because he is so young that its not serious but we know that he should not be feeling this awful for such a long time. Heart doctor states that Cardiomyopathy does not cause constant chest pain but no one seems to care to find out what is really going on and my husband gets aggravated and won't go to the doctor like he should because doctors think if they run one test and it doesn't jump up and slap them in the face what is going on then you are fine. He thinks they don't beleive him because he is so young. We have been married for 15 years and I know how active he was and he is obessed with working whether at home or on the job but now all he can do is barely make it through the day at work and then lay down afterwards. I believe this is also causing him to become depressed because he loves working outside and has tons of things he needs to do but knows he just can't physically get up and do things like he use to.
I don't know how he makes himself go to work like he does because he is a Roofer and co-owns his business and this is even more stress considering his health.
Can anyone shed some light on what may the cause of the way he feels if the cardiomyopathy isn't what is bringing him down this bad?
I am 17 and have chf the doc dont new what to do any addvic
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