CLAIM ADJUSTER
WORKPLACE STRESS AND
CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE


Custom Search

Many times during the day a claim adjuster will have an elevated blood pressure which has a major effect on the inner lining of the blood vessels.

Arteries are elastic vessels that perform a key function by transporting blood away from the heart and carry nutrients and vital oxygen.

Your arteries are made up of 3 layers.

Inner layer:

The innermost layer of your arteries is slippery like teflon so blood can easily flow through. This normally smooth layer helps protect the muscular middle layer and is the layer most vulnerable to attacks form outside sources.

Middle layer:

The middle layer of your arteries supports the entire arterial structure. This middle layer is sticky in order to hold the inner and outer layers together.


Outer layer:

The outer layer shields the artery from the rest of your body like sausage casing; it holds the artery together from the outside.





Under normal circumstances, the inner layer is lined with delicate cells, and blood runs freely. Think of the structure as a tile wall. It’s a smooth wall made up of individual tiles connected together with little gaps throughout with tight junctions holding the cells together.

Now in the arteries, that wall will stay tight unless something comes along such as the increase in blood pressure, which is the most damaging and continually pounds away at the junctions between those smooth cells. The inner wall weakens and peels away.

A large and very important part of the stress response is its direct and rapid effect on the cardiovascular system. The fight or flight response is meant to prepare your body for forceful physical activity. No matter what, your cardiovascular system had better be ready to support whatever vigorous activity you decide to take.

This means ramping up the heart rate, blood pressure and the amount of blood your heart pumps. It also means shutting down certain unneeded uses of blood (such as digestion) and redirecting that blood to a more important area, like arms and legs, where it can fuel the fighting/fleeing muscles. Redirecting blood all around the body means coordinating the dilation of some blood vessels and the narrowing of others, an effect that results in elevated blood pressure during periods of stress.

Chronic activation of the claim adjuster stress-response system increases your risk of blowing a gasket in your heart otherwise known as heart disease.

We know that elevated blood pressure can accelerate damage to the interior lining of blood vessels. These small areas of vessel damage become perfect gathering points for circulating particles of sugar, fat, and cholesterol so there they stick (and stress has already elevated each of them to serve as fuel for your expected fight/flight). What makes it worse is that your blood thickens because of the tendency of stress hormones to promote blood clotting. Thick blood is not a good thing for an adjuster if you’re simply sitting at your desk with a rapid heart rate, elevated blood pressure, and constricted blood vessels.

Over a prolonged period of time this will result in the buildup of plaque found in heart disease. (atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease/ hardening of the arteries). As the plaque becomes thicker, it blocks the artery and restricts blood flow to the muscular wall of the heart. By choking off the flow of oxygenated blood, the cells of the heart muscle progressively die and thus the stage is set for a heart attack.

Now you may be able to see why claim adjuster workplace stress and cardiovascular disease may be linked as a stress related illness.



Home Page: Claim Adjuster Workplace Stress is a Reality
Return to: Symptoms of Workplace Stress for a Claim Adjuster

Custom Search


footer for claim adjuster page