Is Playoff Stress Sending You to the Doctor?

This blog post is written by BIDMC contributor and former sports journalist, Gary Gillis.

Now that the Red Sox have made it to the World Series, have you noticed a higher incidence of sweaty palms, racing heart or moodiness?  The pressure is building for both players and fans. So, what kind of toll does this stress take on our bodies?  

“Well, there is data out there that shows perhaps 60 to 80 percent of visits to a physician are related to stress,” explained Aditi Nerurkar, MD, Assistant Medical Director at the Cheng and Tsui Center for Integrative Care at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

“But I’m not sure that we will find a direct correlation between the Red Sox being in the playoffs and fans being in a doctor’s office.”

“It is absolutely true that chronic stress can lead to serious health issues,” Dr. Nerurkar continued.  “Your risk of heart disease increases. We know that depression, anxiety and insomnia can be related to chronic stress. Chronic stress can be related to the pressures of work or trying to find a job. It might be a situation at home. We also know that many people are not aware of the connection between stress and other health risks so they don’t necessarily discuss the stress they are feeling with a health professional.”

So, how are diehards supposed to manage their stress? At BIDMC’s Cheng and Tsui Center for Integrative Care, the goal is to use both modern medicine and integrative therapies from around the world to help patients get well, live well and stay well.

“One area that interests me is the use of mind-body therapies (MBT) such as yoga, meditation, tai chi and deep-breathing exercises,” said Dr. Nerurkar. “Those are just a few of the practices that are increasingly in use and prescribed by physicians.”

It does sound a little better than holding your breath every time the ball leaves the pitcher’s hand. But understand it’s not easy.

"What’s simple may not be easy," said Dr. Nerurkar. “We’re all guilty of that, including myself. I practice yoga but there are times when I am on the yoga mat, and my mind is racing thinking about what I need to do tomorrow or what I have to buy at the grocery store. That’s why they call it yoga practice, right? The more we do it, the better we get at putting ourselves in the right frame of mind.”

Dr. Nerurkar didn’t grow up in New England and was spared much of the insecurity and angst that long-time Red Sox fans were forced to live with. But she was around for the last few forgettable seasons and framed quite nicely what might be the best strategy going forward.

“If you think about what the expectations were for this team coming into this season I would suggest taking a deep breath and just saying ‘thank you,’” Dr. Nerurkar said. “I call it practicing gratitude.”