Positive Emotions Can Actually Harm You: Here’s How
While happiness can benefit your health in many ways, excessive joy can actually be harmful to your health.
“There are cases of people who have suffered heart attacks when receiving very pleasant news but who have not been channeled in a calm way,” Isabel Suárez, a psychologist with over 25 years of experience and the head of wellness for I-M.I.N.D., said in an email to The Epoch Times.
The University Hospital Zurich established an international registry in 2011 to document cases of Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, also known as the “happy heart syndrome.” The condition can be triggered by extreme emotional states, as demonstrated by recorded instances where a person developed stress-induced cardiomyopathy after a positive emotional event, such as winning several jackpots at a casino.
Happiness Is Good for Your Health
Promotes Greater Longevity
A study from 2016 analyzed the General Social Survey-National Death Index dataset, which is used in social sciences research. The study found that among the American adult population, happiness is associated with longer lives, independent of factors such as marital status, socioeconomic situation, and religion.
The study involved over 31,000 participants who were categorized into three groups based on their level of happiness: a very happy group, a pretty happy group, and a not-too-happy group. During the follow-up period, the pretty happy group had a 6 percent higher risk of death than the very happy group, while the not-too-happy group had a 14 percent higher risk.
Lowers Blood Pressure
A 2006 study published in Psychosomatic Medicine observed 2,564 Mexican Americans aged 65 or older. The results suggested that positive emotions, such as happiness and hopefulness, may positively impact blood pressure.
The participants were divided into two groups: those taking medication to bring blood pressure down (32.8 percent) and those who were not. The results showed that positive emotions were significantly associated with lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure in the group not taking medication but only with lower diastolic blood pressure in the medication group. Diastolic blood pressure is the second number, which measures the pressure on the artery walls between heartbeats.
Interestingly, the study found that the likelihood of participants on antihypertensive medication being moved to a higher blood pressure category was reduced by 3 percent for every one-point increase in the positive emotion score. The decrease was even more significant for participants not taking medication, at 9 percent.
Acts as First Line of Defense Against Infections
Happiness can boost our immune systems. Research shows that when we are happy, our bodies produce more secretory immunoglobulin A, an antibody found in tears, saliva, and breast milk that plays an important role in the immune system’s response to infections.
In addition, happiness can reduce the level of salivary cortisol, which is often used as a measure of psychological stress. Less salivary cortisol is a good predictor of happiness. While stress can temporarily boost our immunity, prolonged exposure can weaken our immune system and even trigger autoimmune diseases like Graves’ disease and rheumatoid arthritis.
When Does Too Much Happiness Become Harmful?
“Experiencing happiness at the wrong time, pursuing it in the wrong ways, and having the wrong types of happiness, may not be adaptive and might even lead to adverse results,” Ellie Borden, a registered psychotherapist and the clinical director of Mind by Design, said in an email to The Epoch Times.
Research suggests an inverted-U-shaped relationship between happiness and health, indicating that happiness may have costs when there is an excessive amount. For example, clinical mania is characterized by persistently increased degrees of elevated positive mood. People with this emotional dysregulation may be unable to experience negative emotions, and their happiness is in “overdrive,” Borden explained. In this regard, Aristotle’s idea of the mean—between deficiencies and excesses—may help guide people toward a balanced state of bliss.
‘Happy Heart Syndrome’ Can Also Break Your Heart
Takotsubo syndrome, also known as takotsubo cardiomyopathy or stress cardiomyopathy, is a non-ischemic cardiomyopathy characterized by an abrupt and transient weakening of the heart’s main pumping chamber, which is the left ventricle. The symptoms are similar to those of a heart attack, including chest pain, shortness of breath, left ventricular dysfunction, and fainting.
Research over the years has shown that pleasant emotional stressors, such as excessive happiness, can also trigger takotsubo cardiomyopathy, which is why the condition is also called the “happy heart syndrome.”
While symptoms often disappear after a few weeks, some patients may face serious complications, including sudden cardiac arrest and death.
The condition can also come back. For example, in one study, researchers observed 136 participants, only six of whom were men. Seven women, or 5 percent of those involved in the study, experienced another nonfatal takotsubo syndrome episode three weeks to four years after the first.
Another study found that patients with takotsubo syndrome are at risk of readmission and death even after being discharged from the hospital. The study analyzed data from 61,412 patients hospitalized for takotsubo syndrome and found that 11.9 percent of them were readmitted within 30 days of discharge, and among them, 3.5 percent died in the hospital.
Extreme Happiness Can Lead to Risky Behavior
A study published in the Psychological Bulletin suggests that experiencing heightened emotions, such as extreme happiness, can reduce a people’s perception of risks and dangers. Consequently, they tend to engage in more impulsive and risky behaviors than they would on other occasions. The researchers attributed this behavior to a psychological trait known as “positive urgency,” which involves acting impulsively when experiencing strong positive emotions.
Examples of behaviors associated with positive urgency include college students’ end-of-year drinking parties and the resumption of gambling by recovering addicts in a happy mood. Such events may lead to binge drinking, drunk driving, alcohol-related incidents, and risky sexual behavior. Moreover, relapsing into gambling may lead to lifelong addiction for struggling individuals.
Extremely Happy People May Use Avoidance Coping Strategies
“Extreme happiness can sometimes lead individuals to ignore or dismiss negative emotions or experiences, which can result in avoidance coping strategies and, ultimately, long-term negative health outcomes,” Dr. Masica Jordan, a licensed clinical professional counselor and certified peer recovery specialist, said in an email to The Epoch Times.
A 2021 study published in the Journal of the Belgian Association for Psychological Science tested almost 700 people from the United States, Germany, Russia, and East Asia. Researchers found that some cheerful people may avoid experiencing negative emotions altogether. Additionally, valuing happiness was negatively associated with the well-being of American participants.
Avoidance coping strategies are passive approaches aimed at reducing or ignoring the handling of a stressful situation. However, these strategies usually leave the underlying issue unresolved, and the situation may deteriorate.
Moreover, using avoidance coping strategies can lead to many adverse health outcomes, including post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, panic attacks, and anxiety disorders. These clinical psychopathologies may have long-lasting effects.
A decade-long study involving over 1,200 participants found that avoidance coping was associated with increased chronic and acute life stressors four years later.
Effective methods to manage and reduce positive or negative stressors include practicing meditation, yoga, laughing, listening to music, receiving massages, and hugging.
The Emotional Price of Extreme Happiness
Experiencing intense happiness may not always positively impact our emotional well-being.
Dr. R.Y. Langham, a clinical psychologist and marriage therapist, warns of the unfavorable emotional impact of extreme happiness, stating, “The high that comes with extreme happiness may be followed by a crash, leaving a person feeling depleted and vulnerable.”
Research has shown that a highly positive event can make other events seem less enjoyable, as the extremely happy event sets the standard for evaluating all future events. For example, a group of college students who had previously received exceptional scores found lower but decent scores less satisfying.
In a separate study (pdf), 22 lottery winners were interviewed one year after their win. Although the initial thrill had disappeared, the participants reported experiencing more negative emotions and finding everyday amusement less fulfilling than before their win.
How Emotion Self-Regulation Can Improve Your Heart and Health
“Extreme emotions, whether positive or negative, must be balanced with self-care and healthy coping mechanisms to maintain a stable and sustainable degree of well-being,” according to Borden.
Emotion regulation is a fundamental coping skill that positively impacts psychological well-being and may lead to spiritual growth.
A cross-sectional study involving around 600 teenagers from the Bronx, New York, found a positive correlation between emotion regulation and healthier eating habits, such as increased consumption of fruits and vegetables and greater physical activity. Thus, emotional regulation may be a significant factor in shaping adolescents’ eating and weight-related behaviors.
Furthermore, emotion regulation can lead to a sense of inner peace, which can profoundly impact our physical health and overall well-being. When experiencing inner peace, we’re most likely to be free from stress, anxiety, and other taxing negative emotions that can take a toll on our health. As a result, inner peace can help promote physical health by reducing stress and anxiety, improving sleep quality, and boosting the immune system.
