Clinical Psychology Advice

Psychobiological risk for heart disease

Psychobiological Risk for Heart Disease

These are heart complications that are caused by human behaviours, either as an action or reaction. Basing on the causal organism or situations, the prescriptions involve a complex mechanism which might be hindered by the re-occurrence of the cause. A clear-cut example of the two modes of heart diseases is the coronary artery (acquired) and the congenital heart defect (inborn). The bone of contention is the relationship between the mind and the cardiovascular system, and its effect on the heart condition. Another approach is the mode of treatment: how (technology), when (stage of treatment) and the place of treatment (home or hospital).

How the Cardiovascular System Works

The heart’s work is to pump blood. It is the medium between the oxygenation and distribution of blood throughout all body tissues. This is facilitated by four valves (Tricuspid, mitral, pulmonary and aorta) which rhythmically opens and closes to prevent backflow. In this case, any change in emotions or body physiology might prompt the heart to increase or reduce the rate of blood pumping, affecting the heartbeat in the process. If the circulatory system is narrowed due to lifestyle or biological infections, the heart’s rate will be irregular which might cause complications. Lifestyle diseases cause deposition of fats along the circulatory system, making it narrow. A good example is atherosclerosis, which is caused by unhealthy eating and lack of exercise.

Causes of Psychobiological Heart Diseases

• Depression
This is a feeling of sadness and downheartedness caused by human or natural errors that have a direct impact on a person. Stress takes up a significant percentage of the causal factors of depression, with physical abuse, some medication and genetic disorder taking up the other percentage. The effects of such conditions are tiredness, shock, anger among others. These symptoms increase the breathing rate, raising the blood pressure.

• Drug abuse
Smoking of cigarettes and marijuana poses a risk of contracting a heart disease. It aids in the formation of plaque, a layer of sticky deposit, in the blood vessels which limits the amount of blood in circulation. Also, excessive consumption of the alcohol might damage the heart muscles.

• Unhealthy Diet
Excessive eating of fatty foods causes an increase in the cholesterol level in the blood. It is deposited on the arteries thereby causing irregular pumping of blood. This is a direct link to heart complications. Fast foods, deep fried, candies, sugary meals, processed food, soft drinks and margarine are some of the foods experts’ advice against.

• Obesity
Overweight can be due to poor eating habits or hereditary. With such body mass, the pressure exerted on the circulatory system is immense. Narrowing of blood vessels due to fatty deposits increases the risk of acquiring a heart disease. Besides heart attack, obesity can cause some damages to the respiratory system

Common Heart Diseases

• Birth Defection (Congenital Heart Defect)
After birth, the infant’s heart, which usually has a hole between the two sides, should be sealed and if not (due to genetic reasons or pregnancy complications) the condition generates into a heart complication. Common symptoms are a bluish or greyish skin colour, swelling of eyes, legs and abdomen, and irregular breathing in babies. Others are muscle weakness and poor weight gain.

• Heart Infections (Endocarditis)
This is an infection that affects the inner surface of the heart separating the chambers and the valves. Symptoms include high fever, swollen legs, rashes on the skin, general body weakness, and difficulty in breathing.

• The Heart Valve Disease
The work of the valves is to regulate the flow of blood to and from the heart. They close to prevent backflow and open to allow blood to be pumped into the furthest tissue in the body. If the valves leaks (regurgitation), narrows (stenosis) or is weak (prolapse) then the victim might suffer heart complications. The conditions vary based on the type of valve, but in general, the symptoms include general body fatigue, difficulty and irregular heartbeats, swollen ankle and sometimes fainting.

Remedies for Psychobiological Heart Diseases

This is a chronic disease, and since the contemporary living exposes human beings to these diseases, prevention and curative measures should be observed to curtain the vice.

Prevention Mechanisms
• Drinking and smoking should be minimized or stopped altogether. Excessive and daily consumption limits usage of the mental capacity and increases sugar levels and ethanol in the bloodstream.
• Reduction of stress and stress-related activities. This will involve living within means, plan for everything and have an open mind when it comes to opinion. There are games that also help overcome stress such us the Tai Chi, Yoga and Qi Gong.
• Regular body exercises for at least 30 minutes in a day. This helps to break down excess fats in the body. More so, it is a collective remedy for nearly all heart conditions save for heart arrhythmia.
• Observe a balanced diet. Foods with saturated fats and a lot of salts should be avoided.
• Ensure that conditions that bring about lifestyle diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure are avoided. If affected, ask the doctor for some lessons on do-it-yourself ways to minimize it. Standard blood pressure stands at 120mmHg systolic and 80mmHg diastolic.
• Control body weight to cut out chances of diseases like obesity. A standard Body Mass Index stands less than 25 while the waist should not exceed 35 inches.
• Constantly check the body cholesterol level at least once in 5 years. The optimum level is 130mg/dL for a healthy person. For those in danger, 100mg/dL should be the maximum. For people who have already suffered a heart attack, the baseline is 70mg/Dl.
• If accessible, take some diet supplements pills.
• Cleanliness should be observed at all times and have enough sleep.

Curative Measures

The type of medicine a doctor will prescribe is reliant on the stage of the disease. This entails an examination, both a laboratory (X-ray, blood test and heart diagnose) and oral to ascertain the extent to which the condition has lived. The echocardiogram test determines the thickness of the heart muscles and the type of heart failure (systolic or diastolic). Drugs prescribed include beta-blocks, water pills, loop diuretics, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers.
In advanced cases, a heart transplant or a surgery can be administered. Transplants are a last resort if all the other methods have failed. However medical examination must be commissioned to ensure that both the donor and recipient are compatible. The surgery involves implanting devices that assist the heart pump better. They include the left ventricular assist devices, coronary artery bypass and angioplasty.

Support for Heart Attack Patients

This is a service that helps people living with this condition to live a smooth life. Most health facilities with cardiovascular centres have rehabilitation centres for such patients. This goes a long way in recovery. Some societies have support groups, which is a mixture and counsellors and victims. It helps especially the psychobiological heart conditions to deal with the stress. These support groups act as reference points and help in reminding the patients on the importance of medical check-ups.