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Thanks to you, Michael is making the most of life after a heart attack
Participating in cardiac rehab gave Michael Smith the confidence he needed to make a full recovery.
When Michael Smith was asked about participating in Mercy Health's Cardiac Rehabilitation Program after his heart attack, it was an easy answer.
“I said, ‘I’m all about my recovery, so let’s get started,’” he recalled.
Because of your donation, Michael quickly found a benefit of cardiac rehab that he didn’t expect.
“There’s an anxiety after having a heart attack about doing something that might be hurtful to my system,” he said. “Being on a heart monitor as I was exercising and having nurses there monitoring gave me confidence that I could exert as much as I could and get a feel for what I was able to do.”
That confidence allowed him to work hard during his rehab sessions and recover more quickly than he would have without them.
“I took the approach that I was going to give it all that I got. That comfort allowed me to work harder and bring my recovery along more quickly.”
Because of donations to the Cardiac Rehab Fund, Michael was able to take advantage of rehabilitation that he otherwise may have missed.
“I might not have been able to afford it without donors like you helping me in that way,” he said.
Since his full recovery, Michael was able to return to his job, and then retire to enjoy working on renovation projects at his home.
“If I hadn’t recovered and rehabbed like I did, I might not be having as good of a retirement as I am!”