Heartbreak Hotel

Today is Valentine's Day and most will be spending time with that special someone.  I know I will be spending time with my soon to be wife and will be enjoying my last Valentine's Day as a "single" man.  While many of us will be enjoying the lovey dovey stuff that goes with Valentine's Day, there will be some that participate in "Single's Awareness Day" and others will be eating raw cookie dough and ice cream trying to mend a broken heart.  I sincerely hope that each and every one of my readers has a wonderful Valentine's day, but if you do decide to check into the Heartbreak Hotel this Valentine's Day, don't allow your emotions to consume you.  Heartbreak can be a devastating process and can even cause death if taken to the extreme.  In my experiences, I have seen a dog mourn itself to death after the loss of a companion.  I have seen elderly couples that seemingly couldn't live without each other because after one spouse passed, the other died witin a few weeks.  Was it grief, stress, or some other psychological process that we don't understand that drove them to death?  We may never know, but it is not impossible to think that they suffered from Broken Heart Syndrome.  That is right your broken heart can not only affect your psychological state, but it can also affect your physical state as well. 

Broken Heart Syndrome, also known as Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy, is a stress induced cardiomyopathy that can mimic a heart attack through a temporary enlargement of the heart in response to a huge surge of stress hormones.  The article (Heartbreak Can Take a Physical Toll) that this post is based on is an excellent story of one woman's journey through heartbreak.  She experienced broken heart syndrome after her husband of seven years left her alone and broken hearted.  Her symptoms were unlike any other.  She didn't eat for days and when she did eat, she would simply vomit it all back up.  She lost 60 pounds and could barely muster up the physical or emotional strength to get out of bed in the mornings.  Her story is one that ended well after months of counseling and therapy, which is the case with most patients that suffer from broken heart syndrome.  After the heart break is gone, the physical landscape of the heart returns to its normal state.  Although broken heart syndrome may seem rare it is thought to account for about two percent of patients that present with suspected acute coronary symptoms and mainly affects post-menopausal women.

So for anyone who has a broken heart this Valentine's Day, remember that life goes on and that there is a silver lining to every situation that we are presented with.  It may take some time to recover from the heartbreak, but things will get better.

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

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Heartbreak Can Take a Physical Toll

Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine

If you ever have chest pain please do not ignore it. Chest pain can be an indication that there is something wrong with the heart and should be evaluated by a physician.