Recovery & Prevention

Recovery is a key element of keeping your heart healthy after a cardiac event, and it doesn’t end when symptoms disappear. Strengthening your heart takes time, effort and support, and we are here to guide you through every step along the road to recovery.

Cardiac Rehabilitation

The East Alabama Medical Center Cardiac Rehabilitation program is an outpatient exercise and secondary prevention program that helps speed your recovery after a heart event or procedure and educates you in lifestyle choices that build and maintain a healthy heart. The Cardiac Rehab staff of nurses, exercise physiologists and dietitians can assist you with the physician referral necessary to participate in this program.

Patient Resources:

• Heal Your Heart
• Risk Factor Education Class
• Caring for Your Heart: Living Well with Heart Failure
• Cardiac Rehab Fact Sheet
• Cardiac Rehab Benefits

There are Cardiac Rehab locations at both the EAMC main campus in Opelika, and EAMC-Lanier in Valley.

Cardiac Rehab at the EAMC main campus is located on the first floor of the hospital. Patients should enter through the Main Lobby, go through the ICU waiting room and enter the door located to the right of the elevator there. For more information, please call 334-528-1694.

Cardiac Rehab at EAMC-Lanier is located on the first floor near physical therapy. For more information, please call 334-710-0031.

Benefits of Cardiac Rehab

Prevention starts today

The best form of cardiovascular care is that which prevents issues from ever happening in the first place. Making healthy lifestyle choices and managing any existing health conditions you have can help you keep your blood pressure, cholesterol and sugar in check while lowering your overall risk for heart disease.

A healthy lifestyle includes:

• Healthy, well-balanced diet
• Exercise
• Maintaining a healthy weight
• Refraining from smoking and using other tobacco products
• Limiting the use of alcohol
• Properly managing your existing health conditions

Having your cholesterol and blood pressure regularly checked and controlled also plays a major role maintaining your heart health.

Controlling your blood pressure (hypertension)

High blood pressure is a common condition that generally develops over a long period of time, and you can have high blood pressure for years with no symptoms. High blood pressure can be easily detected, but if left uncontrolled, it can eventually cause health problems like heart disease and increase your risk of heart attack and stroke

If you have high blood pressure, our physicians may suggest lifestyle changes, such as lowering the sodium in your diet or incorporating more physical activity into your daily routine. When necessary, medication may also be prescribed.

Checking your cholesterol

Your body needs some cholesterol to function properly, but high levels of cholesterol can increase your risk of developing heart disease. While it can be inherited, high cholesterol is most commonly the result of an unhealthy lifestyle. Regular exercise, a healthy diet and if needed, medication, can help prevent or reduce high cholesterol.

If you have been diagnosed with or have a family history of high cholesterol, talk with one of our physicians about creating a personalized care plan to help manage and improve your condition.