‘Wear Red Day’ stresses importance of good heart health

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - For years, many women have been putting our heart health on the back burner, and doctors said it was even more common during the pandemic.

Friday is “National Wear Red Day,” and News 4 took an up-close look at this growing problem and one group’s call to action.

“I immediately put the hours in for work and stopped doing things for myself,” said Amanda Maples, a working Nashville mom.

Like many, Maples is a busy mom juggling many responsibilities. She’s raising her teenage boys and working as a nurse and director of business development for Ascension St. Thomas Heart.

“Women do that a lot where we’ve just got to get the family through this,” Maples explained. “Get us through this, and we’ll deal with ourselves later, and so you see yourself ignore signs.”

On top of everyday stresses, Amanda also lost her home and her parent’s home in the Waverly flood.

“I found myself after the flood, ya know, immediately going into some sort of like caretaker role of what does everybody else around me need,” Maples remembered.

Executive Director of the American Heart Association in Nashville, Annie Thornhill, said the time to act is now.

“Many women have continued to prioritize taking care of others,” Thornhill said. “The people we love and for whom we are caretakers taken care of, but we’re not taking care of ourselves.”

Since COVID emerged, many have been under more stress, exercising less, not eating as well, and possibly drinking more. This pandemic puts a strain on our hearts and gives heart disease, which remains the number one killer of women, even more potency.

“It is important to stop and make sure you’re checking in with yourself,” Maples said. “Allowing yourself that time to make sure you’re not ignoring signs and symptoms and not thinking it cannot happen to you.”

You can visit the American Heart Association’s website for more on heart health and helpful resources.