Timely tips for cardiovascular disease rehab

Life after a stroke or heart attack can be complicated. Making plans to be social and active can help. So, even if you have already had a heart attack or stroke, or if you have been given a timely warning in the form of worsening angina or a mini-stroke, absorbing the advice provided in the following steps will help to boost your recovery and lessen your future risk. The vital thing is to keep active and do regular exercise, so your heart gets used to a gentle workout.

• Don't forget to involve your friends and family in your rehabilitation.
• Their emotional support can be invaluable at a time when you may be feeling anxious or depressed.
• There is evidence that it may also lower your risk of having another attack.
• A study of 600 patients at Manchester Royal Infirmary in England found that people who confided in a close friend, partner or relative after a heart attack halved their risk of another attack during the following 12 months, compared to those without such a strong bond.

• Consider joining a support group made up of people who have had heart attacks or strokes.
• Set up by patients for patients, these groups also give families the chance to meet and talk to people who have been through the same experience as them.
• Groups meet socially, arrange to take weekend walks together and learn to enjoy life again during the period of recuperation.
• Check with hospitals or clinics in your area to find one close to you.

• If you or someone close to you has been diagnosed with atherosclerosis, you may be aware that it's a disease affecting the whole body.
• Treating the immediate effects of a heart attack or stroke will not get rid of atherosclerosis, and long-term medication can control the problems the condition causes only to a limited extent.
• That is why most people who have had heart attacks are advised by their doctors to make alterations to their lifestyle that will reduce the risk of further attacks.

Many of the lifestyle changes that doctors suggest for people at risk of or recovering from a heart attack or stroke are:

• Stop smoking,
• Eat healthily,
• Increase your activity levels
• Lose weight if necessary
• Avoid stress.