Sweet Heart – Affairs of the Heart

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heart health

What, actually, is the definition of “heart”? Technically, it is a hollow muscular organ of vertebrate animals, that by its rhythmic contraction acts as a forceful pump maintaining the circulation of the blood. But get out a dictionary and it’s defined as a lot more:

  • The graphic symbol doodled and represented from the time we’re old enough to get crayons in our hands
  • A suit of playing cards that can get people in trouble if they bet on them showing up in a five-card flush
  • A personality, as in such a cold heart
  • A generous disposition, such as a person with heart
  • Our innermost character or feelings… a man after my own heart
  • Grabbing your chest as in be still my heart
  • This being Valentines, let’s not forget love and affection, such as won her heart

It’s even an idiom wonder:

Cross my heart. Whole hearted. Sick at heart. Have a heart. Have your heart set on. Even artichoke hearts.  Get the idea?

But let’s get to the heart we should be most concerned with.

Your Most Significant Other

Our hearts are what pump life into us. But they can also take it away. The fact is, heart disease is now our No. 1 killer with more women dying of it than men. Enough said.

Jeez, the Jargon

More than a muscle, the heart is a puzzle, a complex whirling bedlam of interconnected parts that all depend on each other. It’s hard, or nearly impossible for us to understand everything that’s involved. Its physiology alone, can sound like scary gibberish:

  • Ventricles
  • Pericardium
  • Myocardium
  • Endocardium
  • Arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia (ARVD)
  • Angioplasty
  • Atherosclerosis
  • Pericarditis
  • Saphenous vein
  • Tachycardia
  • Mitral stenosis
  • Superior and inferior venae cavae
  • Sinoatrial node

And you thought antidisestablishmentarianism was a tough one.

The Tic, Tic, Tic of Your Ticker

There are some things about your heart that can be explained in plain English. They’re actually pretty informative and even fascinating.

  • A human heart is roughly the size of a large fist
  • Your heart pumps 60-80 times a minute, 100,000 times a day and 3 billion times over the course of a lifetime
  • The heart weighs between 10 to 12 ounces in men and 8 to 10 ounces in women
  • The heart pumps blood to almost all of the body’s 75 trillion cells. Only the corneas receive no blood supply
  • A kitchen faucet would need to be turned on all the way for at least 45 years to equal the amount of blood pumped by the heart in an average lifetime
  • Because the heart has its own electrical impulse, it can continue to beat even when separated from the body, as long as it has an adequate supply of oxygen
  • Every day, the heart creates enough energy to drive a truck 20 miles. In a lifetime, that is equivalent to driving to the moon and back
  • Some heavy snorers may have a condition called obtrusive sleep apnea (OSA), which can negatively affect the heart
  • Christiaan Barnard (November 1922 – September 2001), was a South African cardiac surgeon who performed the world’s first successful human-to-human heart transplant
  • French physician Rene Laennec (1781-1826) invented the stethoscope when he felt it was inappropriate to place his ear on his large-buxom female patients’ chests in order to listen to their hearts. We couldn’t resist adding this one.

Heart and Soul

What’s to love about feeling out of whack all over? Anxiety. Fatigue. Sleep problems.

What’s going on? Usually you attribute these things to something else, when in fact, it could be that your hormones are out of balance. Which can make your whole life feel out of balance. Hormones can become unbalanced anytime throughout your life regardless of age or sex. But here’s something you’ll love; at Denver Hormone Health, Dr. Stephan A. Goldstein can get you going full speed again. With his unparalleled experience and expertise in the field of Hormone Replacement, he knows just what to do. Simple tests will tell him what’s really going on, and from there, he creates a treatment tailored exactly to resolve your problems. Give yourself the valentine of feeling your best and call for an appointment now.

One visit and you’ll know his heart’s in the right place.

Sweet Heart – Once Upon a Time

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Once there was a guy named Valentinus who supposedly helped a young blind girl see. Just before being executed for some probably heinous crime or another (or not), he sent a note to her, signed “From your Valentine.”  This was February 14, 270 A.D. There was another theory relating to February 14, as the day of romance and love. It has been said that St. Valentine’s Day was the day on which the birds, returning in the very early spring, chose their mates. (Spring was often thought to begin in the middle of February in 14th-century Europe.) Where was Hallmark then?

Not Just an Organ, an Icon

While “heart” normally makes people think of the thump, thump, thump of their ticker and the job of keeping it thumping, the heart is a star, featured in songs, television and on the big screen. As an example, in the TV series, Once Upon a Time, (a modernized fairy-tale, complete with Snow White, Robin Hood, Aladdin, Captain Hook and even Rumpelstiltskin), the Evil Queen can reach into someone’s body, rip out their heart and crush it to death. Which, is on the kind of creepy side. On the other hand, the heart goes hand in hand with love. Getting struck by Cupid’s arrow may very well take your breath away and make your heart go pitter-patter. No wonder it’s become such a pop icon.

The Price We Pay for Love

The Beatles insisted finances and fondness were unrelated. “I don’t care too much for money,” they sang. “for money can’t buy me love.”

But money can buy a heapful of cards and candy, and even cushy little teddy bears with big red hearts emblazoned on their chests. The amount spent on this holiday is actually enough to make you grab your heart and say, “are you kidding?” In 2016, Valentine’s Day sales soared to an all-time record $18.9 billion, which represents an 8.5% increase from 2014, when Americans spent $17.3 billion. So, who’s shelling out most of these big bucks? When it comes to Millennials, they pull out all the financial stops, spending an average of $290 on their special Valentines. Talk about sealed with a kiss.

Gotta Love It

This zealousness for passion kind of goes on in other ways, too. Apparently, there is such a thing as the most romantic city in the US, and it is ranked by how much each city’s spending increases on Valentine’s Day gifts during the first half of February. Tucson took the huge chocolate heart with a 68% percent jump in spending, and Portland bottomed the list as the least romantic city with a mere 15% increase in spending. (Maybe the rain and crummy weather kept them from getting out to shop.) And as a one-up on plushy teddy bears, it’s no secret that we love our pets, and that we spend more than we’d ever like to admit on making their life as comfy as possible. This includes spending $700 million on Valentine’s Day gifts for them. What a woof!

A Labor of Love

For all the love in the air this month, you should be floating. So why do you feel like you’ve been hit by a train reeling off its track? We’ve got a simple answer to that one: unbalanced hormones. When they are in proper balance, hormones help the body thrive, which makes you feel great. But even small problems with hormones can cause serious and potentially life-altering symptoms. Oh, brother. But the answer to that is with Stephen A. Goldstein, M.D, F.A.C.S. at Denver Hormone Health. No one in the Denver area knows more about, or is more experienced in the field of Hormone Replacement. With simple tests, he can tell exactly what your problem is, then compounds a uniquely tailored treatment to make you feel your absolute best. Call for an appointment now. You’ll be glad you did.

Cross our hearts.

I resolve… to be good to myself.

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EVERYONE NEEDS SOMEONE TO LOVE.

The idea of loving oneself is a foreign concept to most. Many of us go through life receiving negative messages from parents, so-called friends, partners, or even the media. And we buy into it, our self-esteem plummeting.  When we accept these messages, we become focused on our own imperfections. We often feel we have to change the world for good things to happen. Maybe we just need to adjust our thinking. We don’t have to seek permission or approval to be ourselves. We just have to recognize and accept that like everyone else, we deserve to take up space on this planet just as who we are right now. Human. A good one. A smart one. A caring one. One worth love. Especially from ourselves.

DUMP WHAT’S DUMB

Just say “no”.

And no, we’re not referring to smoking, drugs or alcohol. We’re talking about saying “no” to all the things you feel pressured into saying “yes” to, ridiculous as they may be.

– Of course, you’ll drive the entire block to school even if it means going back and forth a dozen times

-Without question you’ll give your signed paycheck to someone begging on the street

-You’d be happy to give your 14-year-old driving lessons. (In your new sports car)

-Absolutely you’ll give someone your clothes and jewelry or whatever that they say they wish they had that’s yours

-Stay late at work?

-Cover for someone else’s work? Bring it on.

-Work weekends? So, I don’t go to my kid’s soccer game.

-Make a 10-tier wedding cake for your best friend’s daughter’s wedding to save her money? Sure.

“No problem. Be happy to. Just ask.”

You get the picture.

From now on, when someone asks you to do whatever you don’t want to, look them in the eye, bite your tongue and give their requests a resounding “You’ve got to be kidding!”

TOSS GUILT IN THE GARBAGE

Take control of the ball, dunk shot the dribble and think “Me, me, me…” (you can do it…practice in the mirror if you have to. The words will come out of your mouth.) So, what are a few “me” treats?

  • Let dust balls have their day.
  • Get a massage.
  • Have girls’ night out.
  • Have guys’ night out.
  • Tell the kids to get out when you need your own time-out.
  • Ignore stupid texts.
  • Ignore all texts if you want to.
  • Demand peace.
  • And quiet when needed.
  • Take the last piece of the triple layer chocolate cake no matter who begs for it.

That’s it, you’ve got it, keep it going…”me, me, me…”

If Guilt starts hounding you, send him packing and make him pay for his own ticket.

(And don’t even think of offering to drive him to the airport.) You won’t believe how good it feels to say good-bye.

I RESOLVE TO PUT ME AT THE TOP OF MY LIST

2016. Even if it was a good year, there were times it sent you on a health loop. A dizzying one; headaches, trouble sleeping, fatigue, aches and pains, stomach problems, even depression. There were times you worried there might be something wrong with you that was more serious. But did you look into them? We’ll guess…no? Will 2017 be the same? Not if you make a determined resolution starting right now to see Dr. Stephen A. Goldstein, M.D., F.A.C.S at Denver Hormone Health. It could be that unbalanced hormones are the culprit in how you feel. No one in the Denver area is more experience and qualified in hormone replacement therapy. And its Dr. Goldstein’s sole purpose to make your feel your very best. He really listens to you. Then with a few simple tests, he can tell which hormones could be taking you down. From there, he creates a unique therapy treatment to turn things around and get rid of what might be some physical garbage.

So, start the year right, and call now.

It the best thing you could do.

Just for you.