We all experience guilt. Once in your life, you might have probably been impulsive, stubborn, or made mistakes. But as we grow older and mature, we learn much more in life and reflect. That’s why we might experience guilt when we look back at our past.
Some deal with guilt healthily by correcting their mistakes or trying to compensate for it by becoming a better person. However, others deal with it negatively and dwell on their guilt. They nurture the emotion too much thus making them depressed or anxious. The problem with harboring guilt is that it doesn’t just have side effects psychologically, but physically as well.
Villainous role of guilt on chronicle disease development
Guilt is related to physical health in chronic disease. A study that sought the experience of one thousand Czech people aged fifteen years and older through a survey, found that people who suffer from chronic diseases such as arthritis, back pain, cardiovascular disease, asthma, cancer, and depression or anxiety have higher feelings of guilt. Moreover, the association was strongest in cancer cases. (1)
How guilt affects biological processes
This association could be attributed to the influence of emotions on its regulatory system. Our emotions can change our biological processes, and guilt can increase cortisol levels, cardiovascular reactivity, and peripheral resistance. It can also promote higher productivity in the endocrine glands system which may increase susceptibility to inflammatory processes, thus, resulting in asthma or atherosclerosis development. On a psychological level, excessive or inappropriate guilt is a symptom of major depressive disorder. (1)
Guilt does not only influence the quality of life of people with chronic disease but, can also contribute to chronic disease development. That’s why it must be considered when assessing and treating patients with chronic diseases. Clinicians and other healthcare workers should know how to recognize signs of psychological distress and ensure that negative emotions such as guilt are part of psychotherapeutic and clinician care.
Reference:
- (1) Cerna, A., Malinakova, K., Van Dijk, J. P., Zidkova, R., & Tavel, P. (2022). Guilt, shame and their associations with chronic diseases in Czech adults. Psychology, health & medicine, 27(2), 503–512. https://doi.org/10.1080/13548506.2021.1903058
Ciele 