Does Your Spouse’s Stress Level Affect Your Health?

Your spouse’s health undoubtedly impacts yours.

If you’re married you probably know by now that your spouse’s health has a great impact on your own. I am sure we have all dealt with sick husbands that act like babies from time to time, but when you have a partnership, everything from chronic stress to serious ailments affects both parties, even when the issues originate with only one.

According to a study of done by the University of Michigan, chronic stress that occurs for more than a year can adversely affect married couples and lead to things like weight gain, depression, anxiety, and marital problems. Any time one person suffers from a health issue it creates a vacuum that the other person has to fill. As we know, stress can cause a variety of health issues, so its very important for couples to openly communicate with each other, especially during times of high stress.

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When you choose to marry someone, you are deciding at that moment to take on life as a team. As with any team, when one player falls short another has to pick up the slack. Throughout the years, this power dynamic will shift back and forth, but with proper communication, it will only make you stronger. It is important however to do the following things:

-Encourage each other regarding health and fitness goals.

-Be honest with each other about how you feel about yourselves, especially on bad days.

-Explain your stress levels to your partner so they can better understand what you are dealing with.

-If you are dealing with a serious health issue, be even more understanding of your partner’s situation.

-If your partner is sick, don’t be afraid to reach out to other people for support, especially people who have gone through similar situations.

There is no right way to deal with issues in a marriage, but if you can at least pinpoint when one of you are stressed and make an effort to be more understanding, you are headed in the right direction.

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