Heart Awareness Month

February is “Heart Awareness Month”. During the course of the month, events are taking place all over the country educating the public about heart health. In looking into how I could get the film screened to reach appropriate audiences, I reconnected with some important concepts I’d found this year in a book entitled “The Heart Speaks” by Dr. Mimi Guarneri, a cardiologist and the founder & director of Scripps Center for Integrative Medicine. I’d become aware of Dr. Guarneri’s work last spring while researching programs to promote Dying to Live and came across an interview she did for public television. It rang a bell with me because of her acknowledgement of the heart as an emotional muscle and organ, which responds badly to anger, hostility, anxiety and depression. All of these emotions can be addressed in therapy and support groups, as well as with diet, exercise and meditation, along with stress reduction techniques like yoga and visualization.

It’s been 10 years since I had my surgery. My heart ailment was almost certainly genetic in origin, but the healing of my heart after surgery was strongly affected by my emotional state. Becoming fully aware of how these emotions can debilitate your heart and ruin your health is simple to understand as you follow the case studies related during Dr. Guarneri’s career. Another particularly relevant observation she makes is the role of listening and communicating with patients. The way she puts it, a patient will tell you what’s wrong with them if a doctor listens. You know what you’re feeling and you need to take the time and make the effort to relate it to your doctor.

Overcoming negative emotions is a daily, but winnable battle and one worth engaging to preserve your health. Getting in touch with your feelings sounds old hat and cheesy, but it can make all the difference in your life and to those closest to you.