When My Heart Broke, My Body Felt It Too
Welcome to Sacred Musings, a space where I share reflections from the heart on love, life, caregiving, and the lessons that shape us into who we are. My hope is that these words bring comfort, perspective, and inspiration to anyone walking their own path of healing and growth.
I never realized until recently how closely the heart and emotions are tied together, not just metaphorically, but physically. When my heart was broken, it wasn’t just my spirit that felt heavy. My chest actually ached, my breath felt shallow, and there were moments I wondered if something was seriously wrong. Later, I discovered there’s a name for this: stress-induced cardiomyopathy, or “broken heart syndrome.”
A Wake-Up Call
Doctors describe broken heart syndrome (also called Takotsubo cardiomyopathy) as a sudden weakening of the heart muscle that mimics a heart attack. It happens most often in women, particularly after menopause, and it’s triggered by intense stress or grief. Symptoms like chest pain, shortness of breath, or dizziness can be frightening. And while recovery is possible, the risks are very real (Ghadri et al., 2018).
That knowledge shook me. For the first time, I understood that unprocessed grief and heartbreak could literally endanger my life.
The Long Shadow of Stress
Even beyond the immediate risks, I’ve learned that heartbreak doesn’t just fade away quietly. Prolonged distress can raise blood pressure, disrupt blood sugar, and increase inflammation in the body, all of which raise the risk of chronic diseases like diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease (Lichtman et al., 2014).
It made sense to me then, why after a difficult loss, some people age faster or develop health problems they never had before. I thought back to women I had known, like family friends who never recovered from betrayal or loss, and how their health declined afterward. My own childhood memories of watching a beloved family friend “waste away” from heartbreak now felt validated: science was catching up to the intuition I had as a little girl.
Why Connection Matters
During my own healing, one of the most powerful buffers was connection. Spending time with my mom, my son, and close friends reminded me that love is not just romantic it’s woven through community. Research echoes this: strong social ties are linked to a 50% greater chance of survival, on par with quitting smoking or treating high blood pressure (Holt-Lunstad, Smith, & Layton, 2010).
Isolation, I realized, is as dangerous as any other risk factor.
Protecting the Heart Daily
Because of my experiences, I’ve built what I call a “heart protection plan.” It’s not about being perfect but about stacking small, science-backed habits that add up to resilience:
Movement: I run five to six days a week and strength train twice weekly. Exercise isn’t just for fitness; it lowers blood pressure, improves mood, and reduces the risk of diabetes and heart disease (World Health Organization, 2020).
Nutrition: I lean on patterns like the Mediterranean diet, shown to reduce cardiovascular events (Estruch et al., 2013), and the DASH diet, proven to lower blood pressure (Sacks et al., 2001).
Sleep: Protecting 7–9 hours a night has become non-negotiable. The American Heart Association now recognizes sleep as essential to cardiovascular health (St-Onge et al., 2022).
Stress & Mood Care: I journal, meditate, and reach out when I feel low. The USPSTF recommends screening and treatment for depression because it so strongly impacts long-term health (USPSTF, 2016).
Tobacco-Free Living: I don’t smoke, and I encourage others to quit; tobacco remains one of the strongest risk factors for cardiovascular disease (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2020).
Choosing Healing, Every Day
The truth is: heartbreak is unavoidable in life. But chronic disease doesn’t have to be. What I’ve come to understand through personal pain, nursing practice, and research is that protecting the heart means caring for the body and soul at once.
Heartbreak can be devastating, but it doesn’t have to be the end of the story. With support, healthy routines, and attention to both science and spirit, it can become the start of a stronger, more resilient life.
Key Takeaways
Seek urgent care for chest pain
Exercise 150 min/week
Mediterranean/DASH diet reduces chronic disease risk
References
Estruch, R., Ros, E., Salas-Salvadó, J., Covas, M. I., Corella, D., Arós, F., … Martínez-González, M. Á. (2013). Primary prevention of cardiovascular disease with a Mediterranean diet. New England Journal of Medicine, 368(14), 1279-1290.
Ghadri, J. R., Wittstein, I. S., Prasad, A., Sharkey, S., Dote, K., & Templin, C. (2018). International expert consensus document on Takotsubo syndrome (Part I & II). European Heart Journal, 39(22), 2032-2046.
Holt-Lunstad, J., Smith, T. B., & Layton, J. B. (2010). Social relationships and mortality risk: A meta-analytic review. PLoS Medicine, 7(7), e1000316.
Lichtman, J. H., Froelicher, E. S., Blumenthal, J. A., Carney, R. M., Doering, L. V., Frasure-Smith, N., … Wulsin, L. (2014). Depression as a risk factor for poor prognosis among patients with acute coronary syndrome. Circulation, 129(12), 1350-1369.
Sacks, F. M., Svetkey, L. P., Vollmer, W. M., Appel, L. J., Bray, G. A., Harsha, D., … Lin, P. H. (2001). Effects on blood pressure of reduced dietary sodium and the DASH diet. New England Journal of Medicine, 344(1), 3-10.
St-Onge, M. P., Grandner, M. A., Brown, D., Conroy, M. B., Jean-Louis, G., Coons, M., & Bhatt, D. L. (2022). Sleep duration and quality: Impact on lifestyle behaviors and cardiometabolic health. Circulation, 145(7), e160-e174.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2020). Smoking cessation: A report of the Surgeon General. CDC.
U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF). (2016). Screening for depression in adults: Recommendation statement. JAMA, 315(4), 380-387.
World Health Organization (WHO). (2020). WHO guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour.
Sacred Musings is my space to reflect on life, love, and the spiritual lessons that come with being human. Thank you for walking this path with me.
