DOES DIVORCE AND OTHER STRESSFUL LIFE EVENTS CAUSE ILL HEALTH?

You may have heard the story of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitts high profile divorce. Some time ago in 2017 Vanity Fair magazine wrote an article about the stress of divorce that caused Angelina to develop physical health problems including Bell’s Palsy.

Over the last few years the link between Alzheimer’s and stressful life events has been cited. Studies presented at the annual Alzheimer’s International Conference in London have confirmed that difficult life events, including the breakdown of a marriage, can cause the brain to age by at least four years.

Emotional consequences of relationship breakdown commonly associated with loss and change include anxiety, depression, sleeplessness and grief, which are then exacerbated by financial concerns and having to deal with ongoing practical matters to do with children.

The Journal of Marriage and Family has reported that divorced middle-aged men and women are at greater risk of developing cardiovascular disease, compared with married people of the same age.

This of course should not come as a surprise. We already know that prolonged stress exposes the body to continuously heightened levels of the stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol which have a detrimental effect on health. The same reasons cited as common to ill-health effects of workplace stress.

So is there a quick resolution? Well yes there is, one that is not so arduous and costly as hours of counselling. Havening helps to let go of unresolved and unwanted emotions linked to stressful/adverse life events; divorce most definitely fits this bill although as its so common it has been normalised and minimised. Here are some of the emotions that might be experienced after divorce which can be temporary or go on for years.

Each one of these emotions, if they endure on, cause toxicity in the system by way of stress hormones over spilling our stress bucket. The result is dis-ease seemingly triggered by the inhaling or ingestion of allergens.