How does Dilated Cardiomyopathy affect you?

Sorry for not being specific. I get partial answers from my doctors as far as what can I do. It's really frustrating. So I want to know the problems you face physically and emotionally with this problem?

First you should have written your age !By cardiomyopathy means it is a dilatation of the heart as a whole which is unable to pump blood in the circulation as normally it should !There are two type of cardiacmyopathy one is ecentric type and second is concentric type !In first one the is a thin muscle causing this problem and in second there is a hypertrophid muscle causing this problem !Left ventricula hypertrophy we call it !There muscle becomes so weak for contractions !patient suffers breathlessness even on slight exertion !!There are many drugs available for to minimize the problems occurring due to it !in case of CCF they give cardiac glycosides like digoxin and digitalis to make heart muscle strong to contract to pump the blood ! But this has its own limitations and should be used with 2 day holiday in taking it ! One should give diuretics mostly potassium preserving on daily base to have more urine for to keep blood volume at desired level so that heart has not to do strain to circulate the blood.High blood pressure should be controlled adequately !One more thing now a day some experimental surgery is also being done like they take thigh muscle and stich it with the weak heart muscle to have strong contraction !In your case without much information i would like to suggest only medical line of treatment to keep life going on easily !There are thousand and thousand people are suffering this !Believe that LIFE IS A GAME OF CHANCE AND CHOICE !we may not pass this wonderful way of human life again so enoy it but without hurting to any living creatures !Be 100 % vegitarian if you are not ! always YouRsmE

Hi Angie,

I'm sorry to hear about your recent diagnosis. My wife was diagnosed with DCM 7 months ago, so we were where you are now, not so long ago.

On the other hand, I'm glad that you're seeking answers. Although you are still at the mercy of how your heart responds to treatment, you substantially improve your odds by becoming an active participant in your health care.

As far as how DCM affects you, an awful lot depends on how you feel. Heart failure can range from mild (symptomless, NYHA class 1) to severe limits (NYHA class 4). My wife's case came on very slowly over time, so she adapted to many limitations, just thinking that it was a normal part of aging. (She started experiencing symptoms as a teenager, but was just diagnosed at the age of 44.)

Even if you are quite limited right now, it may be possible to improve significantly. ACE inhibitors, beta blockers, diet and exercise all play a signifcant role. If you get a chance to go to cardio rehab, to learn more about diet issues and exercise in a safe environment, I strongly recommend it. I know many heart patients, including my wife, who swear by it.

For more information, I would like to point you to the links below. There are several bulletin boards on the internet where you can ask questions and share experiences related to cardiomyopathy. We have links to all those places in the Yahoo group referenced below.