Timing

Perception of time changes as we get older. For some the frenetic pace of the work years is replaced by a more leisurely pace. And yet, if the frenetic pace of modern life is considered normal the change may be problematic. For those with coronary prone Type A personalities the change may actively prolong their health life, but only if they embrace and adjust to the change and change their perception of time.

Friedman Rosenman (1974) found that time pathology was part of the coronary prone pattern they called Type A behavior. Distinction may be made between:

·        Time pressure
·        Time urgency
·        Hurry sickness

Time pressure is the perceptive that there is insufficient time to accomplish a specific task. This leads to tension and anxiety. Time urgency is the frequent experience of time pressure with the conviction that one must hurry or speed up the rate of doing things. There is always insufficient time. Impatience or inability to wait or tolerate delay is also common. Severe or chronic feelings of time urgency often lead to changes in personality and lifestyle which is known as hurry sickness. These are the three symptoms:

·        Loss of interest in life except for those things associated with goals. There is a preoccupation with numbers and a tendency to evaluate life in purely quantitative terms.
·        Racing mind syndrome which involves rapidly shifting thoughts that gradually erode ability to focus and perhaps to sleep.
·        Preoccupation with the future and rumination about the past giving little attention to the present. Positive memories are lost forever.

The relativity between time pathology and CAD may be based on:

·        The physiological reactivity to time pressure
·        Fatigue and exhaustion associated with chronic arousal
·        Loss of support systems because of prickly behavior
·        Barrenness and emptiness spawned by the chronic struggle over tasks. A joyless life. Time pathology may have its influence by triggering frustration that in turn leads to anger and hostility. It may be the emotional result that has impact on CAD.