Chronic stress and hypertension: Most people know that chronic stress is bad for your health. But what many people don’t realize is that one of the side effects of chronic stress is hypertension- which can lead to heart disease, stroke, and other serious health problems.
Chronic stress can increase the risk of developing hypertension, and this is because stress can cause the heart to beat faster and raise blood pressure. There are many different chronic stress causes, including job stress, money problems, and difficult relationships, and discrimination can also be a source of stress. Researchers are still trying to understand how chronic stress affects hypertension, but it can seriously impact health.
Table of Contents
What are chronic stress and hypertension?
Chronic stress is defined as stress that lasts for an extended period- typically more than six months. This can be caused by various things, such as job insecurity, relationship problems, or financial difficulties. When you’re under chronic stress, your body is in a constant state of “fight or flight,” which means that your sympathetic nervous system is constantly activated. This can lead to several different problems, such as high blood pressure, heart damage, and an increased risk of stroke.
On the other hand, hypertension is defined as abnormally high blood pressure, which can be caused by many different things, including chronic stress. When you have hypertension, your heart has to work harder to pump blood throughout your body, leading to a variety of health problems over time.
Effects of chronic stress
Work-related stress, relationship stress, poor socioeconomic status (SES), and, more recently, race-related prejudice are all being studied as consequences of chronic stress. The amount of evidence varies, and many concerns remain about the processes involved and susceptibility and protective variables that may be essential in evaluating the influence of chronic stress on hypertension.
Work-related stress and hypertension
Work-related stress or occupational stress can have a powerful impact on health. The most widely studied model of occupational stress is the job strain model, which focuses on two characteristics of the work environment: job demands and decision latitude. According to this model, high demand and low control, referred to as high strain, produce the most stress. High job strain has been associated with increased ambulatory BP at work, at home, and during sleep and increased left ventricular mass.
The occupational stress job strain model is a widely studied and influential explanatory framework for understanding the relationship between work environments, health behaviors (such as blood pressure), and physical well-being outcomes such as left ventricular mass. This research has found that those with high demand/low control jobs – such as doctors or nurses who must treat many patients under tight deadlines without much room to make decisions about their treatment plans–therefore experience higher rates of ambulatory BP while at home during sleep hours compared than others.
However, recent studies suggest that the job strain model may not be as explanatory as initially thought. For instance, one study found that when accounting for other sources of stress such as family demands, the relationship between job strain and health outcomes was no longer statistically significant. As a result, while the job strain model remains a helpful framework for understanding how work stress can impact health, it is not the only factor to consider.
Overcommitment to work can lead to high blood pressure. Work-related stress can also lead to unhealthy behaviors, such as poor nutrition and lack of exercise. If you’re constantly under stress, your cortisol levels will remain high, leading to health problems, including headaches, digestive issues, sleep problems, weight gain, and anxiety. If you find yourself constantly stressed out, it’s essential to take a step back and reassess your priorities.
So what can we do about it? First, we need to be mindful of the impact that work-related stress can have on our health and make an effort to live a healthy lifestyle. Second, we need to find ways to manage our stress at work. This may involve talking to our boss about our workload, taking breaks during the day, or finding an outlet for our stress outside of work.
Make sure you’re taking care of yourself both physically and mentally. Taking some time for yourself each day, even if it’s just for a few minutes, can help reduce your stress levels and improve your overall health. We can minimize the harmful effects of work-related stress on our health by taking these steps.
Relationships, chronic stress and hypertension
Relationship stress may also contribute to hypertension, although the evidence is not as strong as work-related stress. It is crucial to have strong social relationships to help reduce the harmful effects of stress. Social isolation can be a significant source of stress and linked to cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality.
Loneliness, which is feeling disconnected from others, has also been linked to cardiovascular function and reactivity to laboratory stress.
Although the effects of loneliness on hypertension risk have not yet been studied, loneliness likely contributes to an increased risk for hypertension. In addition, social support has been shown to buffer the effects of stress on blood pressure. Therefore, maintaining strong social relationships is critical to reducing the risk for hypertension.
Marriage is a critical connection in people’s lives. A robust and supportive marriage has been linked to better health outcomes than being single. Other forms of support, like having close friends or being part of a supportive community, don’t entirely compensate for the negative impacts of being alone. Relationships, even good ones, maybe a source of conflict. And stress from unhappy or strained marriages has been linked to poor cardiovascular outcomes.
It’s not just the quality of our relationships that matters, but also the quantity. A meta-analysis of over 300,000 adults found that those with the most social relationships had a 50% lower risk of death than those with the fewest social connections. And for every additional social relationship, the risk of death decreased by about 7%. Therefore, it’s essential to have close relationships and an extensive social network.
While the evidence is not as strong for relationship stress as for work-related stress, it is still essential to maintain strong social relationships. Relationship stress can lead to unhealthy behaviors and directly impact our physical health. Therefore, we need to find ways to manage our stress in our relationships. This may involve talking to our partner about our stressors, taking breaks from our relationship, or finding an outlet for our stress outside of our relationship. We can reduce the harmful effects of relationship stress on our health by taking these steps.
Socioeconomic status, chronic stress and hypertension
There is a well-established link between socioeconomic status (SES) and the risk of hypertension, cardiovascular illness, and death. Low SES is associated with factors that can increase the risk of these health problems, including poorer health behaviors, increased exposure to stress, and fewer resources to cope with stress. This link has been repeatedly shown in epidemiological investigations, making it clear that SES is a significant determinant of health. While there is no easy solution to this problem, it is vital to be aware of the link between SES and health so that we can take steps to improve the health of those who are most at risk.
Racial discrimination, chronic stress and hypertension
Racism is a stressor that can lead to hypertension, and African Americans have a disproportionately greater prevalence of hypertension than whites in the United States. Several studies have shown that African Americans have higher cardiovascular reactivity to race-related laboratory stressors than to neutral activities or non-race-related stressors. These findings suggest that racial prejudice may be one of the causes of this disparity.
African Americans experience high levels of stress in their everyday lives due to the possibility of being subjected to racial discrimination. This chronic stress can take a toll on their physical and mental health, including increasing their risk for hypertension. Reducing racial prejudice and discrimination is essential for improving the health of African Americans and reducing disparities in hypertension.
The mechanism of chronic stress and hypertension link
When the body is faced with a stressor, whether it be psychological or physical, the sympathetic nervous system is activated. This causes the release of catecholamines, which increases heart rate, cardiac output, and blood pressure.
While this response is beneficial when encountering a short-term stressor, it can lead to hypertension if the stress remains after the threat has passed. This is where the cardiovascular reactivity theory comes into play. According to this theory, those with excessive cardiovascular reactions to acute stresses are more likely to develop hypertension. Therefore, managing stress in a healthy way is key to preventing hypertension.
It’s long been understood that stress can harm our mental and physical health. And one of the ways that stress manifests is through rumination, a sort of inward-focused thinking that can prevent us from moving on from a stressful experience. Now, new research suggests that rumination might also be a factor in delaying the recovery of blood pressure after a stressful event.
So what exactly is rumination? It’s a counterproductive way of coping with stress that involves fixating on the origins and effects of a bad mood. This can lead to negative emotions like despair, anxiety, and rage, which only serve to exacerbate the stress response. In contrast, other cognitive coping methods like problem-solving or reappraisal are fundamentally different from ruminating because they don’t focus on the past or dwell on negative emotions.
The evidence suggests that this disordered thinking pattern characteristic of rumination affects mood and blood pressure. So, if you find yourself stuck in a cycle of rumination after a stressful experience, it might be helpful to try some other coping mechanisms instead. Problem-solving or reappraisal are good options that can help you move on from the stressor and get your blood pressure back to normal.
Managing chronic stress and hypertension
There are several ways to manage stress healthily. You can do things yourself, such as relaxation techniques or exercise, and other methods may require professional help, such as therapy or medication. But managing stress is key to preventing hypertension. Reducing racial prejudice and discrimination is also essential for improving the health of African Americans and reducing disparities in hypertension.
There are several things that you can do to manage chronic stress and hypertension:
- Relaxation techniques: There are many relaxation techniques that you can try to help you manage stress. Examples include deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, and meditation.
- Exercise: Getting regular exercise is a great way to manage stress. It reduces stress hormones, but it also helps improve your overall mood and sense of well-being.
- Therapy: If you struggle to cope with stress, therapy can be helpful. A therapist can help you understand and manage your stress healthily.
- Medication: In some cases, medication may be necessary to manage chronic stress and hypertension. If you’re struggling to control your blood pressure, talk to your doctor about medication options.
- Reduce racial prejudice and discrimination: Reducing racial prejudice and discrimination is essential for improving the health of African Americans and reducing disparities in hypertension. This can be done through education, awareness, and understanding.
If you’re struggling to manage chronic stress and hypertension, talk to your doctor about treatment options. There are many ways to manage stress healthily, and your doctor can help you find the best option for you.
Conclusion
Chronic stress can harm our health, both mental and physical. One of the ways that stress manifests is through rumination, a sort of inward-focused thinking that can prevent us from moving on from a stressful experience. Now, new research suggests that rumination might also be a factor in delaying the recovery of blood pressure after a stressful event.
There are several ways to manage chronic stress and hypertension. Relaxation techniques, exercise, therapy, and medication can help manage stress healthily. Reducing racial prejudice and discrimination is also essential for improving the health of African Americans and reducing disparities in hypertension. If you’re struggling to manage chronic stress and hypertension, talk to your doctor about treatment options.
Resources
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2909167/
https://www.webmd.com/hypertension-high-blood-pressure/features/managing-chronic-stress#1
https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health-topics/hypertension