When we talk about high blood pressure, we often talk about the physical causes, like diet, and the physical effects, like its impact on heart health. What gets a little less attention is the relationship between this physical condition and your mental state. You might know high blood pressure is associated with stress and anxiety, but do you know how it interacts with depression?
Well, scientists have done research into that very question, and their results seem to suggest that if you have depression, you’re more likely to develop high blood pressure – and if you have high blood pressure, depression can make it harder to control (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3716493/).
Of course, saying high blood pressure and depression often occur together isn’t the same as saying one is causing the other, and even if it is, it doesn’t explain why that relationship exists. There are a few theories about this, from some connection in the hormones and neurotransmitters working on your brain that could impact both conditions to the way your blood flows to the brain. Equally – if not more – likely is the effect of depression on lifestyle.
Depression can make it hard to take care of even the most basic tasks. You might struggle to get out of bed or to make sure you eat properly. It can be hard to maintain an exercise routine. Good exercise, diet and sleep are all things you need to keep your blood pressure at a healthy level. They’re also some of the first things your doctor will likely tell you to change if you’re diagnosed with hypertension and need to bring it back down.
Therefore, if you’re going to bring your blood pressure under control, you may also need to treat depression symptoms. That may mean medication or therapy, or some combination of both. That will hopefully give you the tools and mindset you need to tackle the lifestyle aspects of hypertension.
Luckily, the fact that depression and hypertension are linked suggests it may be possible to improve both by just treating one. Alleviate the depression, and your blood pressure may improve. Once your physical health gets better, it’s likely your depression is also going to be easier to fight.
It may not be immediately obvious that high blood pressure impacts the mind as well as the body, but accepting that may improve treatment.
