by Carolyn Thomas ♥ @HeartSisters
As I have written here earlier:
“There are few life events more stressful, in my considered opinion, than surviving a heart attack.
“Not only is the actual cardiac event a traumatic and overwhelming experience in itself, but what very few cardiologists tell us before they boot us out the hospital door is how debilitating the day-to-day angst about every subsequent bubble and twinge can actually be. Continue reading “No such thing as a “small” heart attack”
by Carolyn Thomas ♥ @HeartSisters
I’ve written quite a lot here about my own debilitating experience with depression following my heart attack.(1) I have since learned that post-heart attack depression is alarmingly common – and alarmingly under-diagnosed – among women survivors. Mayo Clinic cardiologists report that up to 65% of us experience significant symptoms of depression, yet fewer than 10% are appropriately identified.
NYU Women’s Heart Program cardiologist Dr. Nieca Goldberg says women under age 60 are particularly susceptible to depression because a heart attack is such a major psychological trauma, especially when it occurs at a younger age. Studies show, she adds, that depression is an important risk factor for adverse outcomes in cardiac event survivors:
“It’s a life-changing, stressful event. It’s a shocking experience. There are constant concerns among survivors about whether they are going to be able to return to their usual life.”
Continue reading “10 non-drug ways to treat situational depression in heart patients”
by Carolyn Thomas ♥ @HeartSisters
One of the small joys of having launched this site is discovering by happy accident the wisdom of other writers – even when they’re writing on unrelated topics not remotely connected to my favourite subject which is, of course, women and our heart health. For example, I happened upon a link to Sandra Pawula‘s lovely blog called Always Well Within. Sandra teaches mindfulness meditation, and she lives in Hawai’i (note her correct spelling).
She also has a hubby and three cats. I don’t even know this woman, but I like her already. And while scanning through her beautiful site, I was stopped cold by an article she called: “Why Sadness is the Key to True Happiness“. Continue reading “Is it post-heart attack depression – or just feeling sad?”
by Carolyn Thomas ♥ @HeartSisters
Because I’m a ridiculously early riser most days, I often find myself in the kitchen listening to those pre-dawn overseas radio broadcasts from the BBC or Deutsche Welle or Radio Australia while making my morning coffee. The latter gripped my bean-grinding attention at about 4:45 one morning recently when host Natasha Mitchell was interviewing clinical psychologist Dr. Richard Bryant.
Their conversation aired on her award-winning program on mental health issues, All In The Mind. Their topic, psychological debriefing to help Australia’s traumatized flood victims, contained many unexpected gems for those of us who have gone through other forms of traumatic events – like surviving a heart attack.
Continue reading “How expecting recovery can help heart attack survivors”
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