The emotional burden of living with ischaemic heart disease: an artistic approach

A diagnosis of ischaemic heart disease may cause the individual to enter a state of emotional uncertainty. The authors aimed to provide an arts-based account of the emotional burden experienced by people with ischaemic heart disease. A secondary qualitative analysis of 35 interview with individuals with ischaemic heart disease was conducted. The results from the interview transcripts were analysed and depicted using an arts-based approach, in the form of poetry, musical lyrics and visual art. Participants described an overwhelming sense of loss following a diagnosis of ischaemic heart disease, including feeling a loss of control in their lives, loss of self, loss of agency in managing the illness and a loss of hope for the future. The emotional burden that patients carried was likened to going through a grieving process. Three poems, one song and two visual art pieces were created by the authors to depict the emotional burden experienced by the participants. Supportive interventions that apply arts-based approaches to practice could be beneficial to target the psychological needs and emotional burden of patients following diagnosis of ischaemic heart disease.