Open up, or check out early: Holding in your feelings could cut years from your life, shows new research from the University of Rochester.
Compared to people who shared their emotions with others, those who kept quiet were 35 percent more like to die during a 12-year study period. Cancer and cardiovascular disease rates also jumped 70 percent and 47 percent, respectively, among those who scored in the bottom quarter of a survey that measured emotional openness.
There are two potential explanations for this, explains study coauthor Benjamin Chapman, Ph.D.
1. Guys who suppress their feelings may smoke more, drink more, and engage in other unhealthy coping behaviors more regularly than emotionally open men.
2. The pent-up stress that accumulates from unexpressed emotions messes with your body's inflammation levels and immune system.
The fix? Come clean to a buddy, a psychiatrist, or anyone you feel comfortable talking with, Chapman advises. He says women often make the best confidants because guys feel their masculinity is less threatened when sharing with the fairer sex. Texting or emailing your feelings to a friend is just as helpful, and may be simpler than opening up in person, he adds.
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