Evolving Magazine

Journey to Wholeness​

​

A Healthy Heart

By Jude LaClaire, Ph.D.

          ​

​

For many decades of my career, I have been interested in the interrelationship of all
aspects of health. In a society in which so many things are compartmentalized, separated from
other aspects of our lives. We go to doctors with many different specialties, to stores which
specialize in certain products, and in school, we study many different subjects, seemingly
unrelated to each other. Perhaps it would be helpful to think more about the interconnectedness
and relationship of the different aspects of our lives.

A recent article linked our level of well-being with our cardiovascular health. This study
published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, with more than 121,000 participants,
found the relationship between heart health and our sense of well-being. They also found a link
to healthier lifestyles and lower levels of inflammation. The study asked people questions about
such issues as friendship, health, finances, general happiness and satisfaction with family to
develop an index to measure well-being.

The study looked at different aspects of heart health and examined a long list of healthy
lifestyle factors. They found that people with a higher well-being tended to have healthier
behaviors. They also had lower levels of inflammation. We know inflammation is the root cause
of many chronic health conditions. They found that the risk for heart attack fell by 21% and the
risk of stroke by 14% with each increase in a person’s well-being score.

Dr. Julia Boehm, an associate professor of psychology at Chapman University in Orange,
California, found the study unique and helpful. Her own research has linked optimism and life
satisfaction to improved cardiovascular health. She suggests that happier, more optimistic people
tend to have healthier biological function and engage in healthier behaviors.

This leaves us with the question, ‘How can we find healthy levels of well-being, feel
more optimistic and happier meeting all of the challenges of daily life?” It is the daily question
for each of us. In thinking of different times of one’s life, as we move through life’s ages and
stages, we encounter different obstacles. How can we be resilient during these times?
The research on resilient children gives us insight into what people of all ages may need
in times of stress, even trauma. The first key is to find and facilitate supportive relationships.

One of the most difficult issues for many people of any age is to ask for help. I know I have
struggled with this issue, as do many I work with. I learned some years ago in working with
frightening dreams to “call on all the help” I needed and to “take all the time” I needed to change
the scary dream to a powerful one. This has become a template for all of life’s difficulties. If we
can learn, and teach others, to ask for help, to get support, we have a valuable tool in finding that
sense of well-being.

The second key is building a sense of self-efficacy and perceived control. Eleanor
Roosevelt said, “You do the thing you think you cannot do.” When you ask for help, you have
support to try to move forward, take the chance, do the job. When we make the effort, we often
do not fail. This gives us a sense of confidence and control.

We can then practice what we have learned, perhaps finding more satisfaction and
success. If we think of obstacles as paths to learning, we will feel energized and, our sense of
well-being will increase.

As we learn, we can help others which also helps to build a sense of competency and to
create relationships. I have often gone to work in the morning feeling very discouraged, less
competent or internally oriented, and find that, as I help others, my mood changes, brightens, and
becomes more positive. Again, an aspect of relationships helps us to move past negativity.

​

I have a quote on my desk which reads, “I’ve done so much with so little for so long, now
I can do anything with nothing.” I try to help others find their sense of competency, happiness
and well-being. In doing so I develop my own. So many people I know have been through great
challenges, trauma and stress. As we face those challenges, ask for help, and keep trying, we will
find that greater sense of well-being and happiness. We will be healthier, make better choices and
have much healthier hearts.

​