Heart Bypass: How to Prepare Your Mind, Your Emotions, and Yourself for a Successful Outcome [Hardcover]

Seymour Kessler (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1995

Providing practical and supportive advice to heart bypass patients and their families, a guide outlines the emotional impact of such surgery, describing what to expect before, during, and after bypass and explaining how take an active role in one's own recovery.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Kessler, a practicing clinical psychologist and himself a bypass patient, attempts to give prospective surgical patients the tools to meet and surpass the emotional challenges of the bypass experience. Brief descriptions of anatomy and coronary artery disease (CAD) are outlined, and some treatments of CAD are listed. The strength of Kessler's book lies in his positive, practical advice in preparing for surgery and its aftermath. Relaxation and imagery methods are highlighted, and the importance of involving the patient's spouse and family is stressed. Kessler and his wife realistically and encouragingly describe their own personal experiences in the hospital and immediately after discharge. This book should serve as a good adjunct to a more detailed factual volume about heart disease and surgery.?Janet M. Schneider, James A. Haley Veterans Hosp., Tampa, Fla.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Kessler and his wife, Hilda, are both clinical psychologists, and her contributions (excerpts from her diary during and after his hospitalization and a first-rate chapter on the spouse's perspective) add considerably to his book. Seymour underwent a triple bypass in 1990, and he personalizes his general discussion of the heart operation with his experiences and reflections. He describes presurgical discussions with physicians, surgeons, spouse, and friends, then proceeds to hospital experiences, postsurgical problems, and the return to home, business, and social activity. For each of these stages, he offers practical advice to those about to undergo the operation and also to their families, friends, and colleagues. He and Hilda both have the ability to see patients as individuals, each with his or her own fears, needs, approaches, and lifetime baggage. The opening up of the heart has both physical and emotional aspects; the Kesslers bring out not only the challenges, but also the opportunities involved. William Beatty

Product Details

• Hardcover: 188 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Pr; 1st edition (April 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312118201
• ISBN-13: 978-0312118204
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,507,602 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars An invaluable resource for any surgery!, May 2, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Heart Bypass: How to Prepare Your Mind, Your Emotions, and Yourself for a Successful Outcome (Hardcover)

This book is specifically about and for heart bypass surgery patients. However, I found it to be the most helpful book I've ever read about surgery in general, what to expect, and how to handle some of the difficulties that will probably arise, both physical and emotional. I found it after suffering through a different operation, and wished fervently that I could have had it for guidance earlier. The sub-title says it all: it really can help you prepare for a sucessful outcome of surgery.