Goals For The New Year: Resolve To Be Kind To Your Heart!
With the pandemic looming over our lives, the past year has been a challenging one. As we look forward to the New year, it is important that we also acknowledge the trials of the past year. Our lifestyles have undergone a drastic change; working from home has become the new normal. Most of the avenues for relaxation and fun like meeting friends and family, travel or dining out have been put on the back burner. With work from home, the divide between work and home got blurred; the meetings often went past office times. Despite the long hours, the fear of our work not being noticed and the opportunities that we are missing continued to rear its ugly head leading to stress. To add to it, the coffee break at work or the social interaction at the office was missing, often making us feel lonely and disconnected. Not only was there stress from work, balancing work and home added new complexities. With schools not being operational, caring for children or caring for elderly with no support due to the pandemic resulted in increased stress. We often take stress and all the challenges in our stride as we move forward, however we are unaware or often ignore the impact that stress can have on our heart.
According to the Indian Heart Association, more heart attacks and strokes occur on Monday morning at the start of the work week than any other day of the week! Stress can also lead to an increase in inflammatory hormones, such as cortisol and epinephrine in the blood. These contribute to cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) by promoting thrombosis (blood clot) in the context of atherosclerosis - build-up of plaque inside the arteries. CVDs are a group of disorders of the heart and blood vessels that include coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, rheumatic heart disease and other conditions.
Many people find themselves working overtime and multi-tasking to accomplish targets that help them meet their professional or personal goals. A recent study by the World Health Organization concludes that working 55 or more hours per week is associated with an estimated 17% higher risk of dying from ischemic heart disease, compared to working 35-40 hours a week. This doesn’t imply that we shouldn’t focus on our ambitions or goals, but we should understand the impact of stress and start taking proactive measures to care for our heart.
As per a study by Saffolalife (2019), 65% of people in top cities, who suffer from stress are at risk of heart disease. Symptoms of stress include a change in sleeping habits, mood swings, racing heart, anger or fear, and changing appetite patterns. Although we may not be able to completely eliminate stress from our lives, we can be more conscious of its impact and make small changes to care for our heart.
We have many responsibilities like supporting the family financially, caring for children and managing their curricular, extra-curricular activities, daily cooking, chores, attending family gatherings and social events, the list goes on. It is important to strike a balance and prioritise ourselves. Many people find conversations around self-care intriguing, but self-care is often perceived as an indulgence - going on long holidays, having a spa-day, etc. We need to shift self-care conversations from indulgence to an everyday routine. It is time to take a step back and be kinder to ourselves.
Caring does not mean big gestures; it can also include small and sustained habits that can go a long way in reducing stress and keeping our hearts healthy. It is important to be conscious of our day-to-day choices, while it may be okay every once in a while, to indulge in your favourite meals or desserts or binge watch shows, but remember to care for your health and your heart on other days. Try to eat meals on time, manage your food portions, and add raw fruits and vegetables to your meals. Incorporate simple and easy to do exercises in your daily routine.
Schedule timely health check-ups that help us understand our bodies better and take the necessary steps to proactively care for our hearts. After all a healthy heart is required for a healthy body. So this coming year, resolve to be kind to your heart. Set your goals and aim for the highest, but don’t put your heart last on the list this New Year.
