Dealing with Depression, Anxiety and Panic Attacks after a Heart Attack

The recovery process after a heart attack varies from person to person. How people deal with the "ups and downs" during this period is not the same for everyone.

For me, I found rediscovering an old hobby, photography, went a long way to helping me deal with depression, anxiety and panic attacks. I talk about this when I give talks at our local cardiac rehab group which is what I did just a couple of days ago at my first presentation for 2016.

Depression and anxiety after a heart attack is not uncommon and but talking about it is something people are usually reluctant to do. My raising these issues from the standpoint of someone who has been through the process usually is the stepping-stone for some present to open up and talk about what is bothering them as they start their road to recovery after their heart event.

I usually start the discussion off along the lines that it was rediscovering photography that helped me deal with many months of depression and anxiety after my heart attack and bypass surgery in 2007. I explain that at the time of my heart attack my wife was involved in looking after injured wildlife and that now, having free time on my hands, I soon started helping my wife. I go on to explain that where we live we have lots of wildlife that visit us daily and that picking up a camera and starting to take photos soon became a daily activity.

A few years ago I created a Facebook page where I could feature some of my photos where I continue to feature photos of various wildlife that visit us where we live in the Gold Coast hinterland in Queensland, Australia - https://www.facebook.com/Wildlifeinnerang/

In my talks I suggest to people that their recovery period is an opportunity for them to rediscover or pick up a hobby that maybe they have not thought about for years be it knitting, gardening, cooking, tennis, golf, swimming, etc.

Having introduced the topic at last Thursday’s talk, two people present told how cooking has become an important part of their lives and another person talked about getting involved in designing.

In my talk on Thursday I added that in addition to my photography which I am still passionately involved in, a second activity I undertake on a daily basis is walking (exercise). Not only does it help me with my diabetes (and my heart) whenever I feel “down” or an episode of depression coming, I explained to the group that simply going for a walk usually helps me deal with the issue.

Presenting at Cardiac Rehab

Honoured to have been asked by our local cardiac rehab unit to once again be part of their education programme in 2016. First session this year is in two days time.

In 2008, a year after my heart attack I was invited to give a “one-off” talk at the cardiac rehab unit on the Gold Coast. This happened not long after I had given a number of interviews for TV and our local newspaper in which I was asked about my heart event and my experience dealing with 29 cardioversions/resuscitations and having three stents for a 100% blockage to the right coronary artery and then five days later, a triple bypass for blockages on the left side of the heart.

Being asked to present to people doing cardiac rehab about how I coped with my heart attack and subsequent depression, anxiety and panic attacks was something I embraced without hesitation and was something that I can now look back on that helped me deal with these issues – to say this was cathartic would be an understatement.

After this “one-off” talk I was asked to become a “regular” part of the cardiac rehab programme and was more than happy to accept this request - this was in late 2008.

Now, going on eight years after my first talk, I will be continuing with my presentations and although the format has changed over the years, my experiences have not and sharing these with those present at each session is something I thoroughly enjoy – it is indeed gratifying seeing people in front of you nodding in agreement when you make a point or comment on an experience you have been through and it tells you that you are “connecting” and that what you are talking about is relevant.

Of particular interest is when I talk about my diabetes and my need to be aware of this and the impact of this insidious disease on the heart – you can see straight away who amongst those present also deals with diabetes by their reactions to what I am saying.

Another topic I cover is memory loss and forgetfulness, two issues I had to deal with and issues that are often brought up during one of my talks.

Probably the most significant thing about my being part of the rehab education programme is that I have had a heart attack and bypass surgery and have actually been through the cardiac rehab programme itself. Unlike the staff (except for one person I am aware of) I am the only presenter who can speak from first-hand experience and I truly believe that this is so very important when offering a rehab programme.

So as 2016 begins I look forward to giving my first talk in two day’s .

Memory Problems and Heart Disease: Postperfusion Syndrome and Vascular Dementia

Continuing on with a topic I ended 2015 on, Postperfusion “Pumphead” syndrome, memory loss and cognitive issues after open heart surgery.

I recently came across a blog on the internet called “Rehabilitate the Heart” which I felt is very relevant to those of us who have had open heart surgery and more importantly, an article that has relevance to those close to us including spouses, partners and children. 

And given this question of memory loss comes up so often in social media "heart" groups such as Facebook and in cardiac rehab programmes I feel another post on this topic is more than appropriate.

This blog not only continues on with the discussion regarding postperfusion syndrome but also introduces the question of Vascular Dementia.

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"Working in Cardiac Rehabilitation it wasn’t uncommon for a spouse or significant other to come in with the patient on the first day or early on in their rehabilitation and voice concern about the patients memory. It is common during the first three months after open heart surgery to be forgetful, to not remember little things, to be frustrated easily. However, within three months these issues should improve. There are a number of people however who have a steady decline in what we call cognitive health or  show cognitive impairment. They begin to display progress symptoms of dementia. This is very real and it is very scary, for both the patient and the caregiver.

Two common reasons for the mental decline are Pump Head and Vascular Dementia

Postperfusion syndrome, also known as “pumphead” is an impairment of cognitive symptoms attributed to Open Heart Surgery. Symptoms of postperfusion syndrome are subtle and include defects associated with attention, concentration, short term memory, fine motor function, and speed of mental and motor responses. Studies have shown a high incidence of these issues soon after surgery, but the deficits are often short lived with no permanent damage and last only a few months. It is when the symptoms persist beyond the first few months are concerning.

The symptoms of pumphead include:

·        difficulty in concentrating

·        increased depression

·        short term memory deficit

·        slower speed of mental and motor responses

“Pumphead”  refers to the state in which patients seem to linger after being hooked up to a heart-lung machine for open-heart or valve surgery.  The clinical term for pumphead is cognitive impairment after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Other symptoms include poor recall, social difficulties and personality changes. Pumphead is when after an initial recovery of mental capabilities in the first few months, the condition often worsens later and persists for years.

Cognitive training may improve memory and reasoning in patients after CABG  

Thus the new area of rehabilitation, cognitive rehabilitation, such as after an acute injury to the brain like a closed head injury or a stroke.

"A new study results confirm that older adults who undergo CABG experience postoperative cognitive decline but show that cognitive training improves memory and attention, suggesting that this training can be a useful rehabilitation tool.

Cognitive training is a “burgeoning business,” much of which involves computer-based puzzles and brain games. While there’s a lot of suggestive evidence of an association between mental stimulation and lower risk for dementia, “we need to do more science around it to find out what works and what doesn’t work,”

http://www.theheart.org/article/1454099.do 

Is it Pump Head or Vascular Dementia?

Inadequate blood flow can damage and eventually kill cells anywhere in the body. The brain has one of the body’s richest networks of blood vessels and is especially vulnerable.

In vascular dementia, changes in thinking skills sometimes occur suddenly following strokes that block major brain blood vessels. Thinking problems also may begin as mild changes that worsen gradually as a result of multiple minor strokes or other conditions that affect smaller blood vessels, leading to cumulative damage. A growing number of experts prefer the term “vascular cognitive impairment (VCI)” to “vascular dementia” because they feel it better expresses the concept that vascular thinking changes can range from mild to severe.

Vascular brain changes often coexist with changes linked to other types of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease."

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Use this link to read the entire blog: https://rehabilitateyourheart.wordpress.com/2012/10/08/memory-problems-with-heart-disease-pump-head-and-vascular-dementia/