7 minute read
research suggests social connection helps prevent heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes
researchers from the united kingdom and china have revealed biological evidence that social relationships impact our health.
broken heart syndrome: what it is, why it happens and how to heal
a broken heart isn't just an ache you feel from losing a loved one or experiencing a significant stressful life event—it's a very real phenomena people can prepare themselves for before it happens.
since heart attacks and broken heart syndrome present the same, and both can be brought on by stress, many may believe that the two are one in the same. however, that’s not the case and the proof is in the diagnostics.
getty images
broken heart syndrome, otherwise known as takotsubo cardiomyopathy or takotsubo cardiomyopathy, or heartbreak syndrome may seem like an invention out of a grimm’s fairytale, but the very real condition affects as many as two per cent of people who visit the emergency room experiencing symptoms of a traditional heart attack, primarily females.
the reason the syndrome pops up in diagnostics when people seek out care for a heart attack is because the signs of broken heart syndrome are eerily similar.
dr. whitney coppolino, a cardiologist at mass general hospital in boston, has devoted her career to heart health, specifically women’s heart health. her expertise and research in the field have led her to an interest in spreading awareness of the rare broken heart syndrome and all that it entails.
“broken heart syndrome is on the relatively rare side of things when it comes to an actual disease entity,” she said. “however, it is much more common in women. it affects women a great deal more than it affects men.”
signs of broken heart syndrome
it can be a bit of a challenge figuring out whether someone is experiencing a typical heart attack or a real broken heart based on symptoms alone. the “not subtle” symptoms, as dr. coppolino puts it, are impossible to ignore because of how severe they are. people who experience broken heart syndrome will likely develop chest pain and discomfort, shortness of breath, and heart palpitations that alert them to something being very wrong with one of the most important organs in the body.
related stories
advertisement
other symptoms that a person may experience when dealing with broken heart syndrome include:
- a feeling of pressure on the chest, or as if something is sitting on the chest, making it difficult to breathe
- pain that radiates down the left arm or up into the jaw
- nausea and vomiting
“those are the things that can persist throughout the acute presentation,” said dr. coppolino, also noting that during recovery from broken heart syndrome, a person may also experience the classic signs of another heart condition, heart failure.
“shortness of breath, weight gain in that, because the heart’s not pumping forward, people will retain fluid, and that can show up as weight gain that’s sort of out of the blue. swelling also in your ankles, swelling in your legs,” she said.
emotional and psychological stressors driving a very real broken heart
the cause of broken heart syndrome comes down to significant emotional stress or trauma. since everyone experiences stress in various ways, the event that sets off a broken heart can be anything, according to dr. coppolino.
“what matters most is how whatever this event is is perceived by the individual undergoing it because it has to be a pretty impactful level of stress, right?” she said. “so, it has to really be like a broken heart. we see it in response to loss of family members, we do see it in response to relationships ending. it’s anything that induces that fight or flight response in an individual.”
advertisement
during that fight-or-flight response, the body produces stress hormones known as catecholamines that are designed to help the body get through the tough times.
when those hormones are released in large amounts to help someone get through losing someone, or experiencing a breakup, or other significant emotionally and psychologically stressful events, it drives physical changes to the heart muscle that bear very real consequences.
“it (the heart) will have this very distinctive look where the base part of the heart is squeezing very vigorously, but the apical part of the heart is almost ballooning out,” said dr. coppolino.
essentially, the hormones released by the body during times of severe and significant stress change the structure of the heart, causing it to function at about half its standard capacity.
distinguishing broken heart syndrome from heart attacks and panic attacks
since heart attacks and broken heart syndrome present the same, and both can be brought on by stress, many may believe that the two are one in the same. however, that’s not the case and the proof is in the diagnostics.
“the first thing emergency rooms are going to do, they’re going to check an ekg and generally there will be some signs of a heart attack. lab tests that we often do also point towards heart attack,” said dr. coppolino.
advertisement
she notes that at that time, all signs point to heart attack. but upon further testing, they are able to differentiate between the two for one significant reason.
“they’ll get a coronary angiogram and interestingly enough, the coronary angiogram will show that there is no sign of a blocked coronary artery.”
that’s when they’ll notice the structural changes that take place that make broken heart syndrome a very real, and very different condition than a heart attack.
other mental health events, such as panic attacks, can also mimic heart attack symptoms. but broken heart syndrome takes that emotional response and amplifies it to the point of physical damage.
“panic attacks are slightly different in that they can also mimic heart attacks, but when a patient shows up in an er, if they’re having a panic attack, their ekg is not going to look abnormal,” dr. coppolino said. “their labs are not going to be abnormal, so that’s where the divide is and when you go down this stress-induced heart attack route, you start to see real physical problems.”
can you die from a broken heart?
almost every person knows what it feels like to have their heart broken in one way or another. still, for those that experience real heartbreak syndrome, where the stress overtakes them and drives dangerous structural changes to the heart, the consequences can be dire.
advertisement
“your heart’s job is to pump your blood forward and to keep it going,” said dr. coppolino. “all of a sudden, it’s not doing that. everything’s going to be backing up. fluid backs up in the lungs. blood pressures can tank, so it can have some pretty serious repercussions.”
while the majority of people who develop the syndrome make a full recovery in a matter of months, others may not be so lucky. according to data, anywhere between two to 8.7 per cent of people can die from broken heart syndrome, and others can experience long-term effects that hinder the function of their heart, including:
- reduced heart function and impairment
- scarring of the heart muscle
- increased risk for future heart complications
- formation of blood clots in the chambers of the heart
dr. coppolino notes that while severe consequences and death can occur, just like an emotional-only broken heart, recovering is common in due time.
“that is really the small percentage of people,” she said. “the vast majority get better.”
coping with broken heart syndrome
predicting when you’ll go through a horrendously stressful event in your life is next to impossible, and so being prepared for broken heart syndrome is a challenge. the trick is acknowledging what a person can do before the terrible thing happens so that they’re better equipped to handle it when it does.
advertisement
“it starts to speak to this mind-body connection,” said dr. coppolino. “as a cardiologist, i’m constantly talking to my patients about physical optimization and what they can do to reduce their risk factors physically, like cholesterol, blood pressure, sugar, all that stuff. but in reality, we really should be focusing, as well, on how we can improve our psychological health.”
she notes that when people can develop ways to reduce stress and empower themselves with a healthy mind, they can reduce their risk of broken heart syndrome. those things can include:
- developing supportive social networks
- practicing mindfulness or meditation
- exercising regularly
it’s also about having these in place before they experience potentially harmful life events, because “if you’re not a regular meditator or you don’t think about mindfulness and then something bad happens, that’s not going to be the time where you’re looking to gain a new skill.”
this is especially true if a person has already experienced broken heart syndrome in the past, because having it once increases the likelihood of having it again.
“once it has happened, they have to be extra cautious going forward and making sure they have these techniques in place to help them avoid a bad reaction to anything that could come their way,” she said.
advertisement
these coping mechanisms are useful in any toolkit, whether one has experienced previous heartbreak or not. and because you can’t plan for the events that will break your heart, it’s essential to your emotional and physical health that you can handle it as best as possible. according to dr. coppolino, while it may not be easy, it will be worth it.
“it’s not so easy to do, but i think if people can pay a little attention to this in their day-to-day, then when something really bad comes along, they might be a little bit better equipped to weather the storm.”
share story
