Opening Thoughts By Stephanie Hammar, heart patient advocate
A year ago Penrose-St. Francis Health Services featured the story of my struggle with heart disease as the cover story in this magazine. Just as you were reading about how I had lost half of my heart function to a heart attack at age 42, I was back in the hospital to repair a closed stent. Although I’d been through the drill before, it was just as devastating as the first time. The difference was that I now knew much more about my illness, and I had the incredible support of the WomenHeart Support group at Penrose-St. Francis, a group we started a year ago to help women with heart disease. These incredible women helped pull me through a time that could have overcome me. While heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women, many women do not know their risk factors or their symptoms. February is National Heart Month. As 90 percent of us have at least one risk factor, I urge you to take two simple steps this month that could save your life. Get your heart health assessed and learn the warning signs of a heart attack – no matter what your age!
COVER PHOTO: ©ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/SOUBRETTE
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FREE cholesterol test, one-on-one heart coaching and more—see Page 7 and back cover for details.
bloom, formerly called flourish, is published four times annually by Penrose-St. Francis Health Services. As part of Centura Health, our mission is to nurture the health of the people in our community. The information herein is meant to complement and not replace advice provided by a licensed health care professional. For comments or to unsubscribe to this publication, please email us at bloom@centura.org. Bloom is produced by Clementine LLC of Denver, Colo. Executive Editor is Jill Woodford. 2222 North Nevada Avenue Colorado Springs, CO 80907
bloom
2 Winter 2012
A Surprising Treatment for Chronic Pain:
Exercıse When you have chronic pain, the last thing you want to do is exercise, but oftentimes, that’s exactly what you should do. “Exercise breaks up the cycle of pain,” says Roberta Breidenbach, an aquatic physical therapist with the Colorado Sports & Spine Centers. Staying active can prevent joints from getting stiff, and strengthening muscles can stabilize the body. If you have pain from arthritis, fibromyalgia, or other chronic conditions, it’s important to find an exercise you can do comfortably — and that you’ll want to keep doing. A study recently published in the Annals of Internal Medicine found that yoga for adults with chronic low back pain led to improvements in back function. Breidenbach also recommends low-impact exercises that aren’t jarring to the joints, such as water exercises. “With the buoyancy of water, you can walk without pain,” she says. “When the water is up to your armpits, that takes 75 percent of your weight off your joints.” Other low-impact activities include walking and riding a stationary bike. Whatever activity you choose, the important thing is to stay active. “Give it a fair chance,” Breidenbach says. “If you stick with it, you’ll feel the difference.”
FOR THE MAN IN YOUR LIFE
PSA Testing
SHOULD YOUR MAN BE SCREENED?
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recently recommended that There are both benefits and healthy men do not need to have regurisks to PSA testing, but the lar screenings for prostate cancer. decision is ultimately yours. This controversial recommendation, says Gary Bong, MD, a urologist with SCAN THIS Penrose-St. Francis Health Services, CODE ON YOUR was based on a study that found PSA SMARTPHONE blood tests didn’t reduce the rate of for a closer death from prostate cancer. look or go to But other longer studies have penrosestfrancis.org/psa. shown a significant benefit, Bong adds. “Early detection has helped reduce the rate of metastatic prostate cancers discovered at the time of surgery from 35 percent to 2 percent,” Bong says. “It seems obvious we’re doing something right.” However, PSA testing can yield false positives, and prostate cancer is often overtreated, Bong says. So it’s important to discuss this screening with your doctor.
Penrose-St. Francis Health Services
PHOTOS LEFT TO RIGHT: ELLEN JASKOL, ©ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/ASISEEIT, ©ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/PORCOREX, ELLEN JASKOL
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