Heart Centered

On American Heart Month and National Wear Red Day, taking care of our hearts so we can continue to lead with them...

Via my camera roll from the Malcolm Hotel in Canmore, CA

This started our as a different kind of post- one about how the passage of time has put me more in touch with my heart, wearing away the protective shield, the guardedness, exposing it in ways once terrifying, but now, life-affirming. I think one of the most important things I’ve learned along the way is that ironically, there is great strength in vulnerability. When we allow ourselves to be truly seen, we are able to more fully connect, linking us to big, broad world of reciprocal support, nourishment and service to each other. And that’s some seriously good life fuel.

But in order to continue to reap the benefits of leading with heart, we have to make sure we are taking good care it. So after a conversation this week with Samantha Macleod of the American Heart Association’s Heart of the Hamptons, I thought I would shift gears and share what I learned so we can continue to, well, love.

First, cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the leading cause of death for women in this country and in most developed areas of the world. From this important article on prevention for women:

“In the United States alone, more than one half million women die of CVD each year, exceeding the number of deaths in men and the next 7 causes of death in women combined.”

What’s more, once we reach menopause, our risk of CVD increases with our waning estrogen, which provides a protective effect against CVD during our reproductive years. Add that to the fact that many of us, after years of taking care of everyone else, aren’t always in tune with our own body shifts and symptoms, and may not even notice some of the insidious warning signs (which can be hard to distinguish when SO much is changing all at once).

It’s also worth noting (as if we need more to be pissed about) that we are behind when it comes to understanding women’s health issues, because 1- until 1993, there was no requirement that women or minorities be included in NIH trials (we were all just treated as little men), and, 2- only slightly more than 10% of the NIH budget (which totaled $47.3 billion last year) is allocated to women’s health research, despite the fact that women make up half the population. From this National Academies article: An analysis…finds that just 8.8 percent of NIH grant spending from 2013 to 2023 focused on women’s health research, and funding for women’s health research has decreased as a share of overall NIH funding, despite steady increases in the agency’s budget.” I’m resisting the urge to insert an exploding head emoji here, but suffice it to say that it’s a topic that deserves much more attention (and FUNDING).

Since there’s no quick fix to close that gap, we need to look out for each other, and empower ourselves with information so that we can recognize the signs of CDV and advocate for ourselves to get the care we need.

Let’s start with the basics- what is CVD? Most of us think heart attack, but we are also talking about stroke, deep vein thrombosis, arrhythmia, valve disease, and coronary artery disease, among other scary sounding things. The good news is that knowing that risk factors, signs and symptoms can go a long way toward early treatment, prevention, and keeping us thriving.

Since most of us here are women of a certain age, it’s important to know that menopause and declining levels of estrogen can cause changes and symptoms that impact cardiovascular health including:

• Hot flashes and night sweats

• Depression

• Sleep issues and disturbances

• Increased body fat around the organs

• Increased cholesterol levels

• Stiffening or weakening of the blood vessels

• Increased risk of metabolic syndrome (3 or more of):

  • high blood glucose

  • low levels of HDL cholesterol

  • high levels of triglycerides

  • high blood pressure

  • increased waist circumference

It’s also important to know your numbers, including your blood pressure, body mass index (BMI), cholesterol and triglycerides levels, and blood glucose (blood sugar). Make sure you are getting these blood tests at your annual physical, treating any conditions, and monitoring any changes from year to year.

Don’t ignore the warning signs for heart attack and stroke- trust your intuition and get medical attention when things feel off. Most heart attacks start slowly, with mild pain and discomfort. Women are more likely than men to experience more common symptoms like shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting, and back or jaw pain.

Heart attack symptoms include:

• Chest discomfort, like a discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or goes away and comes back. This can feel like a squeezing sensation, an uncomfortable pressure, fullness, or pain.

• Shortness of breath (which may happen with or without chest discomfort).

• Discomfort in other areas of the upper body, like pain or discomfort in one or both arms, back, neck, jaw or stomach.

• Other signs may include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness.

Symptoms of stroke include:

• Sudden weakness or numbness in the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body.

• Sudden confusion, or trouble speaking or understanding.

• Sudden trouble seeing in one of both eyes.

• Sudden trouble walking, dizziness or loss of balance of coordination.

• Sudden severe headache with no known cause.

• Remember the acronym FAST to recognize/respond to sudden warning signs:

  • Face dropping

  • Arm weakness

  • Speech difficulty

  • Time to call 911

Awareness is key, and while we can’t control everything, we can make lifestyle choices to enhance our health and the overall quality of our lives. You can probably guess what this list looks like, but for good measure, here goes:

• Move your body every single day.

• Work on getting quality sleep (I know, I know, this can be a particular challenge for us peri/menopausal women, and deserves its own article).

• Don’t smoke. Enough said.

• Reduce alcohol intake (the latest studies suggest we should probably not drink at all, but I do enjoy a cocktail, so I’m more in the sober-ish/moderation camp on this one).

• Eat a nutrient-rich diet and avoid ultra-processed foods.

• Reduce stress (might I suggest the Insight Timer app for those of us who are meditation-challenged, and also, making time to nurture the relationships that nourish us).

• Know your numbers as mentioned above and arm yourself with information so you can get the tests you need and can engage in meaningful conversation with your health care provider.

I’m not a doctor (Juris Doctor doesn’t count here!), but I do think that awareness is often at least half the battle. There are so many physiological changes happening as we move into midlife and beyond, and it’s important to stay tuned in to all of it so that we can prevent the preventable and treat all the rest. For more information you can visit the American Heart Association’s website, and if you donate today, every $$ will be matched 5X to help support life-saving research.

Let’s take good care of our hearts so we can continue to lead with them…♥️

Dina xx

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Thank you so much for being here, and in the spirit of all things heart today, please hit the ♥️ if enjoyed this piece! I learned a lot while writing it, and I hope it shed some light for you too. Sending love to all- have a fabulous weekend, and while you’re probably already dressed (I intended to have this out much earlier!), maybe add a little red to your Friday night look!

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