Anxiety and Heart Disease Dr. Una McCann, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins School of MedicineDr. McCann is a psychiatrist and directs the Anxiety Disorders program at Johns Hopkins Medicine. Learn more about Dr. McCann.Anxiety and the development of heart diseaseThe association between anxiety and heart disease has not been as fully studied as the relationship between depression and heart disease. However, Dr. Una McCann, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, believes the connection is strong.“It’s my view and my personal clinical experience that anxiety disorders can play a major role in heart disease,” says Dr. McCann. “I believe that a really careful look at anxiety would reveal the ways it can severely impact heart disease, both as a contributing factor and as an obstacle in recovery.”A natural reaction to a sudden heart attack can be similar to post-traumatic stress disorder:You’re likely to be shocked by your near-death experience and extremely hesitant to do the things you used to do.You might constantly relive the life-threatening event, and avoid the activity or place associated with the heart attack.Recurring anxious thoughts may impede your ability to get re via Anxiety and Heart Disease: Johns Hopkins Women’s Cardiovascular Health Center.