Heart Failure Support Group

Heart failure is a condition that can result from any structural or functional cardiac disorder that impairs the ability of the heart to fill with or pump a sufficient amount of blood throughout the body. It is often undiagnosed due to a lack of a universally agreed definition and difficulties in diagnosis, particularly when the condition is considered "mild."

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HildaRuth 05/02/2010

I just spent 2 days in the hospital and learned a lesson that most of you probably know, EXERCISE! I felt so bad and was having such horrible fatigue and times of mental confusion..getting lost while driving. They wanted me in the hospital to check and make sure I wasn't having TIA's.
What an ordeal. I was not the best patient. Anyway everything came up negative which is good news. The one thing that the cardiologist told me that no one had bothered to tell me was that the only way to improve my quality of life was to exercise. That it was going to be very difficult for me. But I listened and am determined to take baby steps and start walking. I am glad to be home..
HildaRuth

deleted_user 05/03/2010

I sympathize. Exercise is hard enough for a lot of "healthy" people to get motivated to do and stick with. We have it even tougher. I'm glad for my local cardiac rehab program which I can go to for a while after my recent valve surgery. Because I know they're expecting me, I feel an obligation to go and do the walking and biking and whatnot. It's my motivation when I just feel too exhausted.

Maybe there's a cardiac rehab center at your local hospital and maybe they offer an inexpensive program for people in your situation. I know the one in my area has a program called "Pulse" for folks that are just looking to be healthier without paying an expensive gym membership.

Good luck to you and hope you start feeling better!
-JKD

deleted_user 05/04/2010

oh Hilda, glad you are now home. I remember when I came home from the hospital so sick and I was actually scared to walk..the nurse told me it would make me feel better, but i so afraid of hurting my heart with the exercise. but that wasnt the case at all. It does help, and on the really tough days I just dont walk as much. My husband and son bought me a treadmill so I could walk indoors in the winter.
So start slow and keep at it,but be mindful of how you feel. Know your limits and stop when your body tells you to...especially at the beginning...you will notice a difference..
..and shame on 'someone' for not giving you all the info YOU NEED to live with heart failure....
take care
marie

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