HELP FOR HEART DISEASE
A diagnosis of heart disease brings with it some intense and frightening emotions. Depression, anxiety, anger and panic can become all consuming and paralyzing.
Unfortunately, the emotional side of heart disease is rarely addressed as a part of treatment. Despite an overwhelming body of research showing the crucial role attitude plays in making treatment effective. The depression and the fear impair your ability to doctor-shop effectively and comply with treatment. Chronic stress exacerbates your condition. Depression causes your activity level to drop and takes the “fight” out of you. Anger, in particular, plays a crucial role in causing heart disease and in complicating treatment. And fear quite frankly causes you to self-sabotage.
What is a Health Psychologist?
Health psychologists use psychological methods to help people suffering from medical conditions, such as cancer, heart disease and diabetes. Health psychologists work with cardiologists and other health professionals to provide a holistic treatment that considers the patient’s attitude and behavior as a crucial part of treatment.
Most of you learned the basic skills for reading, writing and arithmetic in grade school. But how many of you know the basic skills for managing the painful emotions that come with heart disease?
As a certified health psychologist, Dr. Lightstone will teach you these skills and examine with you the dynamic interplay between emotions and heart disease. You will learn skills to modify your attitude, change your behavior and adopt healthy lifestyle practices. You will learn how to manage your stress.
A healthy lifestyle is crucial in treating heart disease. But lifestyle change means behavior change, and behavior change is difficult. Dr. Lightstone will show you techniques that help you make these changes, improving your diet and approach to exercise.
You will learn that exercise can decrease or increase problems with stress, and you will be shown how to exercise the right way, for better stress management. You will learn what foods act as natural tranquilizers and antidepressants, and what foods cause anxiety and depression. You will learn to separate the facts from the myths and plan a diet that is optimal for the management of heart disease. You will set the behavior change goals, and Dr. Lightstone will help you achieve them. And you will learn to “give meaning” to this challenging period in your life, inspiring you to find happiness and quality of life in spite of your illness.