Regardless of where you are in life, stress can impact your daily life. Sources of stress look different for everyone, but stress can create a strain on your body. Stress commonly causes mental health disorders and trouble sleeping, but that isn’t everything stress affects. Stress can also manifest itself in physical health problems that can greatly impact your vascular health.
How Stress Impacts Vascular Health
When you experience stress, your body releases chemicals throughout your body in a “fight-or-flight” response to what your body sees as a danger. The most common chemicals that affect you while you are stressed are adrenaline and cortisol.
Adrenaline is used to give you a rush of energy to help you handle the problem before you. Your heart starts pumping faster from the increase in adrenaline, which can cause your blood pressure to rise.
Cortisol affects your blood sugar levels to provide your brain with more fuel to problem solve throughout a stressful situation. Cortisol also diverts efforts from nonessential processes like digestion or reproductive systems towards improving your brain function and body healing processes.
Occasionally experiencing these chemical changes in your body is normal, but when you experience chronic stress, which is stress that lasts for multiple weeks or months, it can have a lasting impact on your vascular health.
After an extended period of your heart pumping at a higher rate from adrenaline, your veins can become strained and struggle to keep your blood pumping properly. A common symptom of elevated cortisol levels is weight gain from “stress eating”, which can increase the pressure on your veins and cause blood to pool in your legs.
When your high blood pressure and weight changes are left untreated, it can continue to create tension throughout the walls and valves of your veins and cause the formation of varicose veins. As varicose veins worsen from being left untreated, your veins can become more painful and swollen, increasing your risk of developing venous disease or deep vein thrombosis (DVT).
How to Lower Stress
Managing your stress levels can feel like an impossible task, but there are methods you can use to try alleviating the tension. Each method aims to relax your mind and body to help you work through stress with clarity. These methods are not supposed to remove stress completely, so for the best results, make sure to set realistic expectations.
Relaxation Time
When you are stressed, taking time to relax can seem impossible because you have other things to do or think about. Sometimes you may even feel guilty about taking time to relax when there are other things going on in your life. Although it is important to work on whatever issue is causing you stress, you cannot start to tackle a problem until you clear your head.
Relaxation time looks different for everyone based on your hobbies and interests. Any activity that allows you to take time for yourself could count towards relaxation time, such as:
- Journaling
- Meditation
- Yoga
- Painting
- Knitting or crocheting
- Putting a puzzle together
- Listening to music
- Spend time in nature
- Going for a walk
Any amount of time you can take to relax can help reduce stress, even if it’s only 10 minutes out of your day.
Prioritize Healthy Habits
It can be easy to fall into bad habits like staying up late, eating junk food, or sitting around when you have a lot on your plate. As you start to make plans to tackle your stress, take time to evaluate your current habits and see how you can refocus on healthier habits instead. For example, here are some guidelines to help you build healthy habits:
- Get plenty of sleep: Stress can make it hard to fall asleep with your mind racing. Most adults need 7-9 hours of sleep to feel rested and help them function the next day. Take time to unwind before bed by reducing your screen time, creating dim lighting, and clearing away any distractions an hour before bed.
- Make changes to your diet: Many people eat food that is more convenient when they are stressed because they don’t have to handle the stress of cooking with fast food. Due to the high amount of unhealthy fat and processed carbs in most fast foods, they can leave you feeling bloated or weighted down, which does not help you feel motivated to handle what is causing your stress.
- Get your body moving: Incorporating regular exercise into your routine can help give you time away from your worrying thoughts, as you can focus on your workout instead. Exercises like yoga can help you focus on your mental health as well as having health benefits by combining exercise with mindfulness.
Connect with Friends and Family
It is a common misconception for people to feel like other people cannot understand their stress, but in truth you are not alone. Friends and family can help relieve your stress by being there for you to listen or provide comfort. In some cases, the people closest to you may have experienced a similar situation where they can provide advice or insight if you want it.
You do not even have to talk about what is stressing you, as simply talking to another person about anything can help your body regulate stress. If relationships are the source of your stress, take time to reflect on the relationship and seek out connections that are better for your mental health.
Talk to a Professional
If you are having trouble using methods like we have reviewed above, consider talking to a professional about what is going on and make a plan to manage your stress. Make sure to reach out to a counselor if you begin to feel overwhelmed by your stress. Therapists can help you tackle your stress by getting down to the root causes and helping you learn new coping mechanisms.
Venous Disease Treatment Options
After you begin the process of managing your stress, it’s time to start taking care of your venous disease. There are numerous ways a doctor can help you treat venous disease to improve your quality of life that range from medications to procedures. Potential treatments your doctor may suggest include:
- Blood Thinners: Medications like aspirin can help thin your blood to prevent new clots from forming. Some medications can also help dissolve existing blood clots. Taking aspirin daily can have negative side effects, so don’t take aspirin daily without first consulting your doctor.
- Compression Socks: By gradually applying pressure across your legs, compression socks help push blood back up your legs to improve circulation and prevent your legs from swelling.
- Inferior Vena Cava (IVC) Filters: A small, wiry device placed using a catheter to prevent a blood clot from entering your lungs and causing a pulmonary embolism.
- Sclerotherapy: A minimally invasive procedure where a sclerosant is injected directly into veins affected by varicose or spider veins to cause the affected vein to collapse and absorb into your body.
- Vein Ligation and Stripping: A surgical procedure where a vein affected by a varicose vein has the blood supply ligated (cut off) and the affected vein is stripped (removed) through the incision.
In addition to the treatment plan your doctor prescribes, you will also be recommended lifestyle changes. Your doctor will likely recommend diet changes, regular exercise, and reducing unhealthy habits like smoking or alcohol usage. These lifestyle changes can be beneficial for both your vascular health and stress levels, as they reduce tension on your veins and lower your blood pressure while giving you an outlet to relieve stress. Before trying any new activity, talk to your doctor to make sure it is the best option to achieve your goals.
Treatment with Michigan Vascular
At Michigan Vascular Center, we’re committed to providing the highest quality care and support for our patients based on sound principles of vascular disease treatment. If you believe you are at risk of vascular disease, let us help determine the cause and develop a treatment plan for you.
Contact us today to learn more about our services and how we can help you treat your blocked arteries.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can occasional stress cause long-term vascular issues?
Occasional stress is a part of regular life and is unlikely to create long-term vascular issues on its own. Frequent stress or periods of chronic stress are the common causes of vascular problems over time, as they lead to harmful habits that contribute to poor circulation and increased risk of blood clots.
What are the first signs that stress is affecting my vascular health?
Early signs that stress is affecting your health include persistent fatigue, frequent headaches, racing heartbeat during stressful situations, high blood pressure, difficulty sleeping, anxiety, or muscle tension. As chronic stress continues and begins to affect your vascular health, you may notice visible varicose veins, leg swelling, leg pain, or leg cramping in addition to other stress-related symptoms. If you notice any of these symptoms, make sure to talk to your doctor.
Are stress-related vascular problems reversible?
Some stress-induced vascular problems are reversible, such as high blood pressure or high cholesterol. Advanced conditions like chronic venous insufficiency or peripheral artery disease cannot be completely reversed once they start to develop, but they can be treated to prevent them from getting worse and to manage symptoms. Talk to your doctor about treatment options to manage your vascular problems and prevent additional issues.
How do genetics influence the link between stress and vascular disease?
Genetics can play a significant role in how your body handles stress and your predisposition to vascular disease. If you have a family history of vascular disease, you may have a higher risk of developing it.
Can stress-related conditions like anxiety or depression contribute to vascular disease?
Chronic anxiety or depression can indirectly contribute to vascular disease by increasing stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol. These hormones create inflammation and high blood pressure, but anxiety and depression can be managed through therapy, medication, or lifestyle changes. Make sure to talk to your healthcare provider to determine the best course of action for you.
