Assistance for a stent patient in denial

[ItalianMama]

Help! My husband had a stent fitted in Nov 2017 after low energy & breathlessness. It came out of nowhere. He is an slimish 63 yr old. Who was then put on aspirin & atorvastatin. The problem is he refuses to acknowledge he now has a heart condition. By his own admission bit the head off his gp at his annual review. I feel the cardiologist at the time didn’t emphasise the seriousness of the need for the procedure & some lifestyle changes.

His mother & probably grandfather suffered from vascular dementia

[MichaelJH Heart Star]

Hello and welcome to the forum! Denial is very hard to deal with. The brother of a friend and the husband of a clinic receptionist both had successful bypasses but were dead within a year because they resumed drinking and smoking. Your husband has CHD! The immediate problem was fixed but he was not cured. Without lifestyle changes he is at risk of blockages in other arteries and restenosis in the stent. I am afraid I cannot offer any magic bullet to overcome self denial! Good luck!

[ItalianMama in reply to MichaelJH]

Thanks, I need to do some homework!

[MichaelJH Heart Star in reply to ItalianMama]

Just a thought - it might be worth you giving the BHF nurses a call in the morning. They will have experience of this mindset!

[ItalianMama in reply to MichaelJH]

Thanks

[sos007]

It is difficult to hep people who don't want to be helped.

If you do most of the cooking in the home, consider focusing more on legumes and vegetables, but most importantly, cut back on refined carbohydrates like pasta, rice and potatoes. Sweets and sugar need to be eliminated.

Perhaps you can convince him to watch a couple of videos:

youtu.be/ZSpB-j5DL9E(Not working as expected?)

youtu.be/K3ksKkCOgTw(Not working as expected?)

youtu.be/klnYh7SZRic(Not working as expected?)

Good luck.