Stress is a Killer

Friday, November 19, 2010 by Stephen Sinatra
How you handle stress can be a matter of life and death because when you get fired up emotionally, anything can happen. Stress Can be Dangerous

You see, your feelings can light a fuse inside your body that causes an immediate and deadly explosion. Both heart attacks and strokes can be the result of excess stress and stress also can trigger a cascade of harmful chemical changes that become deadly over time. Before you know it, you could be dealing with a host of health concerns, most likely to include cardiovascular problems, and you won’t know why.

This serious heart risk factor was driven home for me when I was 13 years old and my paternal grandmother died from a massive stroke. I remember asking my father what had caused her stroke. He explained that the oil burner in my grandmother’s house had started smoking and she became emotionally upset about it. Within a few minutes she became confused. Then she collapsed to the floor.

The same thing can happen to us if we don’t deal with stressors effectively. But if you can recognize your emotional issues and deal with them, you’ll become less prone to angina, irregular heartbeat, heart attack and stroke

In this blog, as well as in my monthly newsletter, I often share tips on how to reduce stress.  Your doctor or holistic practitioner should also be able to help.

And for additional information on stress and cardiovascular problems, visit www.drsinatra.com.

Comments for Stress is a Killer

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Friday, December 10, 2010 by Jack:
Good Afternoon Dr. Sinatra, I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving holiday with family and friends! Mark Minncola PH D suggested I contact you regarding my cardiac situation as he feels that the traditional cardiologist's at Boston Medical Center are mis-diagnosing my case, not on the ball, and felt you would be more in touch with my unique situation? Please allow me to provide you with a bit of background relating to my recent cardio escapades! Quite unexpectedly and out of the blue Dr. Sinatra, I suffered a heart attack this past Easter Sunday morning. Bottom line I'm now the proud recipient of two "stent" insertions in my left descending and right descending coronary arteries. The cause of my attach? My left descending coronary artery was found to be 100% with the right artery being 99% blocked, yikes! You know Dr. Sinatra except for some random stiffness in my neck and feeling more tired more then usual during my cardio work outs 4-5 days prior to Easter Sunday I had no symptoms (that I knew of) that I would associate with impending heart problems (shortness of breath,chest pains, numbness, nada!)! My procedure was performed at the Boston Medical Center and ironically they referred to me as the patient that shouldn't be there! That was nice to hear but.......scary, scary, unsettling stuff! Bottom line high cholesterol and "family history" caught up with me per the squadron of physicians I've met with over the course of the past few months. I entered Boston Medical Center's cardio rehabilitation program after just 2-3 weeks following my Easter Sunday surprise initially 3 but subsequently 2 days per week supplemented by weight training workouts at the "Y" (just like before my event) albeit with lighter amounts of weight of course. I wrapped up my "rehab" program in late August and I'm now back to my usual workout routine but again I haven't pushed the amount of weight I'm lifting to what it was prior to the attack. I've actually received some comments from my primary care physical recommending that I DON'T weight train as it places excessive strain on the heart? This contradicted the accolades I received from the cardio rehab staff who applauded my workout routine? Talk about the state of our health care system......I have more stories relating to communication of my medical records, lackluster advise from physicians (one cardiologist advised me I suffered my attack because I'm an American male living an American lifestyle?), again unsettling stuff! For what it's worth my Dad did suffer from a silent heart attack when he was just 47 but never went "under the knife" as far as surgeries, etc (he passed in 2007 of Alzheimer's related causes). He actually bounced back into his normal routine quite nicely! I hope I'm as fortunate as he was. I think the most unsettling part of my recent ordeal, besides the whole life & death mortality issue, is the fact that I felt I was living a relatively healthy life style prior to my "event" as far as work out and eating habits go. My blood pressure was 118/80, my weight was at 175 (I'm just under 6 feet tall) and my cholesterol while high, wasn't off the charts (total cholesterol 224, HDL 72, LDL 143, Triglycerides 46). Two days following my cardiac event an EKG showed my cardio ejection fraction rate was a relatively healthy 50%. I'm not sure what the current percentage is but the doc's have assured me that they feel it's normal. As far as medications. currently I'm taking the following prescription drugs based on my cardiologists recommendations..... Plavix - 75 mg - (I have a follow up appointment in three months to discuss the possible discontinuance of this medication) Crestor - 20 mg Aspirin - 85mg - (just cut down from 325 mg this past Tuesday) Metoprolol - 25 mg - (I was advised I'd be on this for life to lessen the chances of a 2nd cardiac event on Tuesday 11/23) Lorazepam (occasional) - 0.5 mg I met with Dr. Minncola two weeks ago regarding my general state of health (under his guidance last spring I had made revisions to my diet relating in a weight loss of 15 pounds from 190 to 175 pounds but I've noticed my weight slowly creeping upwards again so I booked a follow up appointment with him) and his opinion on the cardio follow up prescribed by The Boston Medical Center staff as far as medications and exercise routines? I'm being treated like an 85 year old old guy patient with a weak heart and the route of "heart problems" isn't the heart itself but the plumbing leading to it! He went on to further explain my cholesterol/clogged arteries aren't related to animal fat substances but primarily due to excessive calcium build up in my system including of course my arteries? He has advised me to pretty much eliminate dairy products from my diet on a going forward basis. He doesn't feel the current medications being prescribed are addressing my cardio issues effectively. He was very impressed by your "natural", common sense, practices and procedures relating to metabolic cardiology (I just joined your website and ordered your book off of Amazon this morning!) and suggested I contact you to see if you'd be open to evaluating my case and providing me with your take on my situation. So now that you've taken the time to read my "new testament" sized medical ramblings, do you take on new patients Dr. Sinatra and if not do you know of anyone with talents and expertise similar to yours that does? I live right outside of Boston in Quincy, Massachusetts and I have Blue Cross Blue Shield coverage through the Anthem network. If my typing is in excess and you imagine what it's like to speak with me live, LOL! Any response or thoughts would be greatly appreciated!