Is your relationship making you sick?

We talk so much about how diet and exercise play such a large role in our health. What we often don't hear about is the importance of healthy interactions with those closest to us. There have been numerous studies done on how negative relationships take a physical toll on our health. Please realize that this does not just include spouses or partners. We can have negative relationships with friends and family as well. Even in a relationship where there is no physical abuse, the affects of negativity are far reaching and dangerous. Here are some examples of behavior that is toxic. 

• Try to control or manipulate the other
• Make the other feel bad about her/himself
• Ridicule or call names
• Dictate how the other dresses
• Do not make time for each other
• Criticize the other's friends
• Are afraid of the other's temper
• Discourage the other from being close with anyone else
• Ignore each other when one is speaking
• Are overly possessive or get jealous about ordinary behavior
• Criticize or support others in criticizing people with your gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, disability, or other personal attribute
• Control the other's money or other resources (e.g., car)
• Harm or threaten to harm children, family, pets, or objects of personal value
• Push, grab, hit, punch, or throw objects
• Use physical force or threats to prevent the other from leaving

The body responds to the stress of a bad relationship by releasing stress hormones. These hormones make blood pressure, heart rate, and blood sugar levels go up. Long-term stress can help cause a variety of health problems, including:

• Adrenal fatigue
• Obesity
• Heart disease
• High blood pressure
• Abnormal heart beats
• Menstrual problems
• Acne and other skin problems

For the sake of your health, if you are in a relationship with anyone that causes you a great amount of stress, please consider either help to rectify the problems or remove that person from your life as much as possible. Your life truly does depend on it!