After a loved one passes, don’t stay alone for the first few days. Those with heart disease, high blood pressure, or diabetes should keep taking their medication. If you feel pressure or pain in the chest, call 120 right away.

1. After a loved one passes, don’t stay alone for the first few days. Those with heart disease, high blood pressure, or diabetes should keep taking their medication. If you feel pressure or pain in the chest, call 120 right away.

Cost: There is no cost involved. Just avoid being alone during these days and keep taking your medicine as usual.

In plain terms: In the first day after losing a loved one, the risk of a heart attack is about 21.1 times higher than normal, then it drops each day afterward. For people aged 60 to 89, the rate of heart attacks or strokes within 30 days of losing a spouse roughly doubles compared to the general population, then returns to normal after a month. Those already dealing with heart disease must not skip their medication. Chest pressure, shortness of breath, or weakness in one arm or leg are clear emergency signs — call 120 immediately.

Benefit: This conclusion comes from a study of 1,985 acute heart attack patients, comparing their health status before and after the event. Out of them, 270 individuals (13.6%) had lost someone close within six months prior, and 19 lost a loved one just one day before the attack. Within 24 hours of such a loss, the risk of a heart attack rose 21.1 times (95% CI 13.1–34.1; actual range roughly 13 to 34 times). This risk then gradually decreased day by day. To put this into perspective: among people with a baseline 5% ten-year risk of heart attack, one extra case occurs for every 1,394 people who recently lost a loved one; for those with a 20% baseline risk, the figure is one extra case per 320 people. Another UK-based study compared 30,447 widowed individuals aged 60–89 with 83,588 similar controls. Within 30 days of bereavement, 0.16% of the bereaved group suffered a heart attack or stroke, versus 0.08% of controls — an IRR of 2.20 (1.52–3.15), meaning their risk was roughly 2.2 times higher. Specifically, heart attack risk was 2.14 times higher (1.20–3.81) and stroke risk 2.40 times higher (1.22–4.71). These elevated risks faded after 30 days. Over 90 days, two other conditions also showed increased risk: acute coronary syndrome (IRR 2.20, 1.12–4.29) and pulmonary embolism (IRR 2.37, 1.18–4.75). In total, 67 people in the control group experienced such events, and the heart attack risk was 2.1 times higher for bereaved individuals.

Evidence grade: A

Sources: Mostofsky E, et al. (2012). Risk of acute myocardial infarction after the death of a significant person in one's life: the Determinants of Myocardial Infarction Onset Study. Circulation. <https://doi.org/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.111.061770>; Carey IM, et al. (2014). Increased risk of acute cardiovascular events after partner bereavement: a matched cohort study. JAMA Internal Medicine. <https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2013.14558>

Notes: Practical steps are easy to follow: ask someone else to manage your medication rather than relying on memory alone. Avoid long-distance travel during this period, and do not try to cope by drinking alcohol — details on alcohol’s effects are covered in Section 2. Recognizing heart attacks and strokes, plus instructions on calling emergency services, are explained in Section 13. Both studies referenced here rely on retrospective population data, so it’s hard to determine exactly how many participants would have developed these conditions anyway. Yet both studies point to the same general trend and timeframe. For anyone unable to arrange help or who must remain alone during these days, please see point 6 in this section.