American Heart Month and the Mind/Body Connection

Feb 2

February is all about hearts - literally and figuratively. American Heart Month was established in order to bring awareness to heart disease, the leading cause of death for both men and women in America (American Heart Association, 2024). This month highlights living a healthy lifestyle, being active, and risk factors including anxiety and depression.

The Mind Body Connection

While we all know it's important for our bodies and hearts to have a healthy diet, limit things like alcohol and fatty foods, and exercise regularly, one often neglected piece is the impact mental health has on physical health. Have you ever had stomachaches when anxious about something coming up? What about migraines after particularly emotional days? Our emotions affect our appetite, causing emotional-eating or lack of appetite, as well as impacting our ability to get restful sleep. Mental health has a direct correlation to our physical body - American Heart Month is a great reminder of that.

Impact on Heart Health

The mind and body may be talked about as two separate entities, but research shows they are not only connected, but have great influence on each other. This is specifically true regarding heart health - the American Heart Association shows that depression and anxiety increased the risk of heart attack or stroke by 35% (2023). It’s time to start taking mental health seriously.

Research shows the impact of stress on the heart (American Heart Association, 2023):

Long term stress increases negative behaviors impacting health - like smoking
Untreated stress leads to higher amounts of plaque in arteries
High cortisol (the stress hormone) correlates to increased risk factors for heart disease

CBT Supports Heart Health

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a natural fit for addressing the mind-body connection as the guiding principle of CBT is that thoughts and emotions impact behavior - and much of our behavior impacts our health. CBT focuses on practical changes that directly affect lifestyle, all of which can improve heart health:

Mindfulness

The practice of mindfulness, or grounding, is all about decreasing stress - making it a great habit to add in if you are focusing on heart health this month. Mindfulness meditation, spending dedicated time to silence and breathwork, is an easy and effective way to start your day. Or you can try going on a mindful walk– instead of scrolling and walking, walk in silence noticing your surroundings, how your body feels and being present.

Heart Healthy Coping Skills

Coping skills are simply activities we do to help decrease stress and increase emotional regulation. Healthy lifestyle changes like focusing on healthy, whole foods, getting a good night’s sleep, journaling for stress relief, spending time with your pets - all of these decrease stress which lead to increased heart health.

Identifying and Changing Negative Thought Patterns

Our thoughts and perceptions directly impact our emotions which in turn impact our behavior and choices. Learning to notice unhealthy thoughts like negative self-talk which focuses only on how things could go wrong, overgeneralizing, and spiraling. All of these cause the body to tense, blood pressure to rise and increase stress. Noticing negative thought patterns and shifting them to more helpful positive thoughts, hope and self-confidence can directly impact physical health.

Committing to Healthy Lifestyle Change

Let this month be the start of positive habits that not only make you feel better physically and you will soon notice how much better you feel emotionally. Habit stacking is the practice of adding in a new habit to something you already do such as practicing mindfulness while you are brushing your teeth or doing focused journalling immediately after your morning shower. Here are some ideas on how to add in your new healthy behaviors

Calf raises or squats while brushing your teeth
Bringing a water bottle with you to stay hydrated
Listening to a meditation
Mindful walks while walking the dog
Adding in new vegetables to your homemade dinner
Deep breathing while getting into bed

Learn More About CBT Practices

CBT is an evidenced-based approach to therapy, full of practical solutions to stress, anxiety and depression. If you are struggling with your mental health, having more bad days than good ones or want to address your heart health risk factors - reach out to one of our highly trained CBT practitioners who can help you develop healthy lifestyle changes that not only impact your mental health, but have lasting change on your physical health.

CBTDenver