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Stress , Anxiety and How They Effect Breathing
Everyone experiences stress and anxiety in life but add to that the symptoms of Pulmonary Hypertension and you might find yourself exasperated trying to deal with them together. Have you experienced lower oxygen saturation or feeling like you are having a harder time breathing when you are under stress and anxious? What do you do when this happens? Have you found helpful relaxation methods or other ways to help yourself when anxiety and breathing start to battle each other?
Thank you @carol-alexander for suggesting this topic!
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3 Replies
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You are correct, Colleen; as usual life causes stress so add in PH and other things and it can get overwhelming. Stress definitely does affect not only my breathing but many of my PH symptoms. When you’re having difficulties with breathing ,that makes you anxious, then you get even more anxious and it can all spiral out quickly if steps aren’t taken to help try and reduce your stressors or limit them, at least!
I like to start off my morning with a little “ ME “ time as I wake up and read my morning devotional with my hot tea or coffee, etc..This tends to set the tone for my day, but as y’all know, the day can often go downhill from there.
I do take meds for anxiety as needed but I like to use other methods to help. I’ve found short guided meditations as well as the adapted Yoga that @brittany-foster shared with us in a previous post on exercise. The guided meditations can be found on YouTube as well and offers quick and simple sessions to longer sessions, it just depends what you’re looking for.
This post makes me laugh at an appointment I had with my PH Doc several years ago, when he looked at my Hubby and Daughter ( she was a young teen ) , and said . “ Don’t stress her “, I told him good luck with that, haha!
I also like to be outdoors when I get the chance to hear nature and feel the air ( on a nice day ) can really help me as well. Sleep/ Rest is another thing, if I don’t get enough rest for my body , stress tends to effect me even more so learn to listen to your body.
Carol @carol-alexander this article may be of interest to you.
https://www.cardiosmart.org/~/media/Documents/Fact%20Sheets/en/zp3796.ashx -
That is a great article on how to control stress that@jenc shared. Thanks Jen! I was laughing at your appointment experience when your doctor told your family not to stress you! I remember going to the doctor for myself shortly after my son had his transplant and was asked if I’m under any stress. “My son just had a heart and double lung transplant…so um, yeah!” All you can do is laugh, and laughter is good for us all!
You shared lot’s of good tips as usual Jen. Thank you and maintain that “ME Time” because it is so important!
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I know the feeling, it’s like ummm yes…I’m under a tad of stress! Laughter is definitely good for us all! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, I plan on keeping my morning “ ME “ time! I think that’s important for us as patients and even more so for you caregivers!
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