No meeting January 3, 2011

Due to the holidays, our next support group meeting will be held on February 14, 2011.
Details to follow.

Cardiac Rehabilitation

Cardiac rehabilitation plays an important role in the management of patients with heart disease, as well as after heart surgery. Renee Fletcher, Nurse Director of Cardiac Rehabilitaton at Methodist Hospital, will talk about how cardiac rehabilitation fits into the treatment of heart failure.

Monday, December 6, 2010
Christus Transplant Institute
2829 Babcock Road
Tower 1 - Suite 300
San Antonio, TX
5pm

Heart Medications and Common Effects

Patients with heart conditions are often on many medications for blood pressure, diabetes, and high cholesterol. Those who have undergone heart transplantation are also on immunosuppressive medications. While these medications are very effective, they can interact with each other and with over-the-counter pills. We'll discuss how and why we choose these medications to maximize their effects and limit adverse reactions.

Monday, November 1, 2010
Christus Santa Rosa Medical Center
Tower 1, Suite 300
2829 Babcock Road
San Antonio TX 78232

Please note the new time and location.

Returning to an Exercise Program

Maintaing your health through an exercise program is an integral part of cardiovascular rehabilitation. An exercise program can lead to weight loss, improved blood pressure and diabetes, decreased cholesterol, and an overall sense of well-being. This is particularly important for patients with heart disease. We will discuss ways to incorporate a regular exercise program for people with heart failure, as well as for those who have undergone surgery for heart disease.


Please join us at the next San Antonio Heart Support Group on October 6th, 2010.
All meetings are held at 6pm in the Christus Santa Rosa Medical Center Cafeteria.

Writing to your donor family

On August 4th, we will be discussing how to contact your donor family. Deb Cotter from University Transplant Center and representatives from Texas Organ Sharing Alliance will talk about the process of getting to know the donor's family.

While the process of organ donation is anonymous, transplant recipients are often curious about the person who gave them the gift of life. The donor family is informed about which organs are transplanted, but details about the recipients are not provided.

However, many transplant recipients and donor families are interested in knowing more about each other. This is an important step that many transplant recipients take, but it is a complex process to ensure that both the recipient and donor family are ready to communicate. Sometimes, the relationship continues to develop and transplant recipients meet and get to know the donor's family very well.

Please join us at 6pm on August 4th, 2010 at Christus Santa Rosa Medical Center in the cafeteria.

Online Discussion Board

Please join us at http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/saheartfailure/  to participate in an online discussion about all topics related to heart failure.

Thank you to all who attended

The first meeting of the San Antonio Heart Failure Support Group was a success!

Thank you to all who participated.

The next meeting will be held at 6pm on June 2nd.