Beckoning the Heart

Heart disease remains the leading cause of illness, disability, and death among Canadian women. Heart attack, the major medical emergency of the cardiovascular system, accounts for almost half of these deaths yearly. At present, little is known about emotional recovery in younger women after heart attack and limited therapeutic support is available to women in current models of cardiac rehabilitation. In this book, Bowers uses an innovative and therapeutic group approach, Guided Autobiography, to understand the recovery experiences of six women after heart attack. Engaged in a weekly practice of reflection, writing and group dialogue, participants began to incorporate their illness experience into their lives. Beckoning the Heart provides readers with an intimate view and analysis of the stories, emotional themes and meaning making that emerged through this transformative group experience. This book is essential reading for all women who have survived a heart attack or other cardiac event and for those people who care for them including family members, medical professionals, psychologists, and researchers.