Getting To The Heart OF Things...

Sitting in the reception area of a physician's office last week, I spied a magazine. Designed for patients from the most pregnant to  to the newly menopausal, it trumpeted the benefits of happiness, treats for the diabetic, and how to stay healthy despite asthma.

There is, according to one of its articles, a relationship between happiness and the likelihood of experiencing second heart attacks. The happier a person is, even after being diagnosed with heart disease and having a heart attack, the less likely an individual is to have another. The article also finds that those who take the time to write down what they are grateful for tend to be more content than others who don't.

Having leafed through dozens of magazines of the same ilk in various medical offices, I don't find this information particularly newsworthy by itself, especially when one considers that there are some profound differences between men and women with regard to heart attacks.

 Women, it seems, are more likely to die from a first heart attack than are men, and disparities continue with regard to women's care following heart attack. Differences in heart attack symptoms also complicate this scenario as well. A leading killer of women, heart disease often goes undetected until the crisis of a heart attack occurs. If the woman involved is lucky enough to live through that, she may face a shortened lifespan and the possibility of congestive heart failure or other heart-related problems in future.

Prevention, say doctors, nutritionists and fitness experts, is the best answer. Exercise, eating healthily and maintaining proper weight are essential if one is to avoid high blood pressure, and unhealthy cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

Unfortunately for me and others like me, I almost never see information regarding what a woman of my age and build should weigh and none of my doctors have ever said anything about triglyceride levels. I do know that my Body Mass Index is not what it should be at this point, but based on tests, my heart function is normal, my cholesterol is fine and I am as healthy as I can be for someone in my circumstances. I have been getting more exercise, despite the fact that running sprints in a wheelchair is not the most exciting thing a person can do.

 I will get back to the pool as the weather warms, too though I wish there were more wheelchair sports available for adults where I live. Chair yoga is nice for breathing, meditation and focus, but cardio is king, especially when one's heart health is the issue. Although the constant admonition to move everyday is important, for me, where and how I move are more so.

 Uneven or debris-strewn sidewalks pose obstacles for me that bi-pedal peers don't face. I have punctured tyres, gotten stuck in supposedly-ADA-friendly areas and always face threats from passers by, whether because their dogs nip or their kids throw  things without thinking. I have been booed and chased by children, dogs and an elderly man with dementia who mistook me for a long lost relation. People have gotten out of their cars to help push me from rain gutters in which I've become stuck despite spinning my wheels, and I've been forced to traverse uneven, grassy or broken pavements, any of which can cause a chair to tip or get stuck. All of these were in so-called ADA-compliant areas. Having the ADA is one thing, enforcing it is another. We have much work to do in this arena.

The science on happiness contains no variables for ignorance of the law or a preponderance of physical barriers that literally compromise safety and can cause life-threatening accidents for wheelchair users and others, including pedestrians and cyclists. While I am grateful to be here, and want to do everything I can to stay healthy and protect my heart, I do not always feel at home in my own neighbourhood, nor do I always feel safe "taking a walk" there or in other outdoor venues. Yet, I do, sometimes, simply because I've never been one to sit home unless ill or overtired. Fundamentally, I believe that I and others have a right to  fresh air and unfettered movement, both indoors and out. That is real freedom and will only happen when we all begin to realise that everyone should be able to move through the world to do whatever they need to do safely and without risk to their livelihood.

Until Next Time...