It's common to hear people talk about a “broken heart” when they're talking about their emotions. But broken heart syndrome is real and can happen after sudden emotional or physical stressors affect you. The good news is that it's a temporary condition that doesn't cause any permanent heart damage.
People who have or had anxiety or depression may have a higher risk of broken heart syndrome.
Some people describe it as a dull ache, others as piercing, while still others experience it as a crushing sensation. The pain can last for a few seconds and then subside, or it can be chronic, hanging over your days and depleting you like just like the pain, say, of a back injury or a migraine.
The most common signs and symptoms of broken heart syndrome are angina (chest pain) and shortness of breath. You can experience these things even if you have no history of heart disease. Arrhythmias (abnormal heartbeats) or cardiogenic shock also may occur with broken heart syndrome.
Broken heart syndrome, also known as stress cardiomyopathy or takotsubo syndrome, occurs when a person experiences sudden acute stress that can rapidly weaken the heart muscle.
Studies suggest that the high levels of cortisol from long-term stress can increase blood cholesterol, triglycerides, blood sugar, and blood pressure. These are common risk factors for heart disease. This stress can also cause changes that promote the buildup of plaque deposits in the arteries.
One study claims it takes around three months (11 weeks to be precise) for a person to feel more positive about their break-up. As I said, though, heartbreak is not a science. Personally, it took me six months before I felt ready to move on.
Uncontrollable reactive thoughts. Inability to make healthy occupational or lifestyle choices. Dissociative symptoms. Feelings of depression, shame, hopelessness, or despair.
These negative emotions are influenced by hormones — with increases in the stress hormones cortisol, adrenaline and noradrenaline, and reductions in happy hormones serotonin and oxytocin within the body. These "heartbreak hormones" may also cause the physical symptoms that lead people to feel pain.
When we feel heartache, for example, we are experiencing a blend of emotional stress and the stress-induced sensations in our chest—muscle tightness, increased heart rate, abnormal stomach activity and shortness of breath.
Broken heart symptoms, such as chest tightness and shortness of breath, can seem like a heart attack. The problem happens when psychological distress triggers sudden weakness of the heart muscle. It can be caused by sudden shock or acute anxiety.
Along with the emotional baggage it carries, extreme sadness can cause distinctive physical sensations in the chest: tight muscles, a pounding heart, rapid breathing, and even a churning stomach. As you can see on the body map, survey respondents pinpointed the chest as a major spot for the manifestation of sadness.
Stressful life events such as a breakup or divorce can sometimes trigger prolonged and severe emotional distress. Experiencing depressive and other symptoms following the end of a relationship is sometimes diagnosed as an adjustment disorder with depressed mood, also sometimes referred to as situational depression.
It is possible, real, and valid to experience PTSD after an abusive relationship. Living in a toxic relationship can take an extreme toll on mental health, and the negative effects of that relationship often last far after a break up.
In terms of physical pain, women averaged 4.21 versus men's 3.75. While breakups hit women the hardest emotionally and physically, women tend to recover more fully and come out emotionally stronger. Men, on the other hand, never full recover -- they simply move on.
But heartbreak isn't just melodrama. It's one of the most painful life experiences we have and we need to take it seriously for our mental and physical health.” When Williams's husband left her after 25 years, she felt “imperilled”.
feel isolated — disinterested in the company of family and friends, or withdrawing from usual daily activities. feel overwhelmed — unable to concentrate or make decisions. be moody — feeling low or depression; feeling burnt out; emotional outbursts of uncontrollable anger, fear, helplessness or crying.
Broken Woman Syndrome can be described as a woman who has unresolved issues with the men in her life (father, grandfather, brother, uncle, former lover, etc.), and finds herself going from relationship to relationship in hopes of escaping her brokenness.
Emotional shock is a reaction that you may have to an unexpected event or traumatic incident that upsets you and makes it hard for you to function.
They are denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance, according to Mental-Health-Matters.
Staying silent can also help you feel empowered. You're taking charge and showing your ex that you're capable of and willing to live life without them. Whether you're the one who was hurt or the one who ended it, cutting off communication after a breakup puts you in control.
Cassie Ainsworth : Do you know what hurts the most about a broken heart? Not being able to remember how you felt before. Try and keep that feeling. Because, it it goes... you'll never get it back.
Stress can cause a heart attack, sudden cardiac death, heart failure, or arrhythmias (abnormal heart rhythms) in persons who may not even know they have heart disease.