Getting to the “heart” of your relationship!

Did you know that happily married patients who have a cardiac event have better outcomes than unhappily married patients?  It’s true. Just having a good relationship with your significant other can positively impact so many areas of your life, including how long you live after having a heart attack.  A good marriage can also decrease blood pressure and angina episodes and decrease the chance of having a second heart attack.  One researcher found that having a good marriage accurately predicts four-year survival rates in patients with congestive heart failure.   There are lots of possible reasons for the positive impact a healthy relationship has.  It could be because of increased emotional support and closeness from your loved one.  It could be the support in making lifestyle changes that a partner can provide. It could even be help in adhering to treatment plans following the adverse event.  One thing is for sure, having a healthy, supportive relationship with a significant other is good for your heart.

One study tried to determine if specifically targeting the couple relationship would help cardiac patients make lifestyle changes.  It worked.  Patients who received treatment as couples were better able to sustain their increased exercise and activity levels.  Even more surprisingly, however, those who had good relationships at the beginning of the study didn’t need the couples treatment.  They were able to sustain their positive changes in exercise and activity even with only individual treatment.  It was the patients whose relationships were struggling to start with who needed the couple intervention in order to help them access the supportive potential in their relationship and stick with their goals.

The quality of your relationship affects not just heart health, but your immune system, stress hormones, and healing.  In one study, the more escalated and hurtful the fighting among newlyweds, the higher the stress hormones and more depressed the immune system was for up to 24 hours after the fight.  In another study, vacuum pumps were used to create small blisters on volunteers who were then asked to fight with their spouses.  The length of time it took for the blister to heal was directly related to the nastiness of the fight.

It’s clear from these examples that healthy relationships are good for our health.  So what if your relationship is not quite as positive and supportive as you would like it to be?  Don’t despair!  There is a lot you can do to improve your relationship.  You can practice good communication skills like reflective listening; you can reduce destructive patterns in conflict (even strong couples have conflict!); and you can learn to effectively compromise.  Look for future posts on these and other topics.  If that’s not enough, I’m trained to help couples make real, positive changes to their relationships and would love to help you.  Contact me today!

References

Bertoni, A., Donato, S., Graffigna, G., Barello, S., & Parise, M. (2015). Engaged patients, engaged partnerships: singles and partners dealing with an acute cardiac event. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 20(5), 505-517. doi:10.1080/13548506.2014.969746

Coyne, J. C., Rohrbaugh, M. J., Shoham, V., Sonnega, J. S., Nicklas, J. M., & Cranford, J. A. (2001). Prognostic importance of marital quality for survival of congestive heart failure. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF CARDIOLOGY, (5). 526.

Johnson, S. (2008). Hold me tight : seven conversations for a lifetime of love. New York : Little, Brown & Co. 2008.

Sher, T., Braun, L., Domas, A., Bellg, A., Baucom, D. H., & Houle, T. T. (2014). The Partners for Life Program: A Couples Approach to Cardiac Risk Reduction. Family Process, 53(1), 131-149. doi:10.1111/famp.12061