PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH

• Depression

• Anxiety

• Stress management

Antidepressant medication remains the most common choice for the treatment of depression with selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors considered the first-line option.  However, not only are antidepressants associated with side effects but the long-term effectiveness is dubious at best as patients seem to develop a resistance against it.

Exercise is therefore considered an important if not essential part of treatment even if patients are treated with pharmacological drugs. Both aerobic and mixed exercises (aerobic, strength and flexibity in combination) show large effects across all studies on individuals with major depressive disorder. The magnitude of the effect is comparable to medicinal treatment on the short-term and potentially better on the long-term.

Depression is common following acute coronary events and is associated with twofold increased risk of re-event (2nd cardiac event). Patients with ischemic heart disease (IHD) have a threefold increased depression prevalence rate. The escalating developmental nature of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) also provides serious on-going psychological challenges to pulmonary patients. The effects of exercise on the psychological health of cardiac and respiratory clients is well researched. Our programme results evidence significant reductions in depression scores of our cardiac and respiratory patients independent of the level of improvement in physical fitness they make over the 10-week intervention period.