Second Cardiac Rehab Talk for 2015

On Thursday, I gave my second talk for the year to our local cardiac rehab unit with 23 people in attendance. Whilst setting up before the presentation a lady came over smiling and to say hello and introduce herself and remind me she was the person who co-ordinated a talk I gave for Heart Foundation to her local Probus group in July, 2012.

I told her I most definitely remembered that talk where she introduced me to the crowd of over 80 people who attended that day and I told her, to this day, it was one of my most satisfying talks. Apparently her husband had a bad asthma attack in December, not a heart attack, when they discovered he had some severe blockages that required a triple bypass hence here being there today with her husband. It was good to see both of them today and to see how well her husband is doing on his road to recovery.

As usually happens, people came up to me afterwards to ask questions and one was from the wife of someone who also had bypass surgery and was having issues with concentration, reading and memory. We talked a bit about this and I mentioned something called Postperfusion syndrome (also known as Pumphead) which is not unusual for someone who has had bypass surgery. She was worried, and rightly so, that it was something out of the norm and I tried to reassure her it is not unusual and it might be a good idea for both of them to have a chat with their GP or cardiologist where she could get a better explanation. I told her I am not a doctor and am not qualified to talk more about this condition but suggested she could also bring this up with one of the wonderful staff at cardiac rehab.

Another person who himself has previously had heart issues was there today with his wife who is now dealing with the after effects of a heart event and who is in denial and has a bit of dementia. He really was looking for understanding and support as I had brought up my issues dealing with depression and anxiety after my heart attack and during my recovery. Again, I referred him to the CR staff.

Still another person asked me how long it took for me to feel '100%'. My answer was simply we are all different and we all heal at a different pace after bypass surgery. I told him that I still have issues with fatigue and lack of stamina but told him I also deal with T2 diabetes, a thyroid condition, sleep apnoea and angina and that it is not unusual two or three or even four times a week for me to have an afternoon nap.

Another person brought up the question of the need for people 'like us' who have been through the process getting into schools and talking to high school kids about what has happened to us, in many cases, as a result of poor lifestyle choices - smoking, alcohol, drugs, lack of exercise, poor diet etc. This is a topic which has always been close to my heart (pun intended) and something I wanted to see implemented by a heart support group I was involved in setting up in late 2008. Unfortunately, others in the group did not see this as a priority.

Having left that group and then becoming involved in our Heart Foundation as a volunteer speaker I was asked last year to give a talk to one of our local high schools and over 70 students were in attendance. The impact of someone who has been through process of a heart attack and bypass surgery should not be underestimated on the impressionable minds of teenagers and is why I believe it is so important for 'survivors', if they are up to it, to get involved in this sort of activity as well as sharing their experience with their family, children, grandchildren, church, social and sporting clubs and work colleagues.

All in all, the day's talk went very well and I look forward to the next one in April.

Talk given in Sep, 2011

First Cardiac Rehab Talk for 2015

Gave my first talk for the year at our cardiac rehab unit a couple of days ago. Twenty-two in attendance and Evelyn (my wife) joined in after she finished with an appointment in the same building re: her breast cancer surgery follow-up.

After my talk the floor was opened to questions and the first one that came up was about heart support groups. I did my spiel about local groups and also talked about Facebook (and SURVIVORS, one of the groups I am a member of) to some people who came up to me after the talk for more information). That was well received. Click on the name SURVIVORS and you will be taken to the group page.

SURVIVORS - should you know of anyone who may benefit from a support group online this is one on Facebook you may wish to consider. This is a closed group so all discussions, conversations, questions are private and not shared in a public way.

Another group I mentioned is Heart Attack and Stents which is also a private, closed group as is another group called Zipper Club.

There is no right or wrong group and there are plenty of places on the internet and on Facebook where people can turn to to share experiences following a heart event and to ask questions but people must always remember that members of these groups are not doctors and that medical advice should only be sought from their specialist or family doctor.

Another question that came up asked about dealing with depression and anxiety and I talked about my experiences and denial and talked about my coming around to seeing a social worker where I could vent instead of taking things out on Evelyn.

Another person brought up an issue that he was having re: sleep apnoea and the run around he was getting from specialists and doctors and his frustration (which was obvious from his voice) trying to get a CPAP machine but his not getting any help. Was able to talk about this a bit as I am going through this process at the moment via our public health system.

And another topic that was discussed dealt with rediscovering old hobbies like photography for me, being negative and the need to recognize what we might have been doing wrong that led up to our having a heart attack in the first place like diet, exercise, smoking and dealing with stress - i.e. lifestyle changes.

a photo I took of one our wildlife visitors where we live

All in all was great session today and of course I covered my 'favourite' topic re: diabetics not necessarily having the classic warning signs of symptoms leading up to and/or when having a heart attack.