Other suggestions

Here are some other suggestions you may like to consider:

  • Involve family and close friends. Managing heart failure effectively is often a group effort. You could suggest active outings with family and friends, based on how much your partner or relative can do. Or, you could prepare healthy meals together.
  • Encourage other family members to make changes now to reduce their own risk of heart disease or heart failure in the future. Your partner or relative may not feel so singled out or isolated.
  • Don’t be over protective of your partner or relative and do everything for them. Although people with heart failure may have certain physical limitations, they need to stay active and exercise moderately. If everything is done for them, they may feel as though their independence has been taken away or that they are a burden.

Explore this site together. This will help to empower both of you, while also providing an opportunity to discuss several aspects of their condition.

Return to Understanding your role

ESC Guidelines for Heart Failure

What patients need to know

This guide for patients from the European Society of Cardiology aims to provide an overview of the latest evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of heart failure.

In particular, it should help patients to understand the:

  • main types of heart failure
  • medicines used to treat heart failure
  • devices that may be appropriate
  • importance of rehabilitation
  • management by a multidisciplinary team
  • importance of self-care in managing your own condition

Learn more

AN ANIMATED JOURNEY THROUGH HEART FAILURE

A series of 9 simple, captivating animations explaining heart failure and its treatment.

These narrated animations explain how a healthy heart works, what happens to it in heart failure and how various treatments work to improve your health.

PATIENT AND CAREGIVERS VIDEOS

In this section you can watch, listen or read interviews with other people with heart failure and their caregivers.

VISIT OUR FACEBOOK PAGE

and share your own views and experiences with other patients, families and caregivers.

heartfailurematters.org is a European Society of Cardiology website

The heartfailurematters.org website was developed under the direction of the Heart Failure Association of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC). The ESC is a world leader in the discovery and dissemination of best practices in cardiovascular medicine. Our members and decision-makers are healthcare professionals who volunteer their time and expertise to represent professionals in the field of cardiology in Europe and beyond.

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