The week had started so well. My personal angina plan was developing nicely, with great support from the local Cardiac Rehab team.

I'd even discussed starting cycling again.

I'd ordered a book on mindfulness. 

My angina pain was under control, manageable, and so I started to hope again that maybe the underlying cause of angina, coronary heart disease, could be reversed......

The exercise session had gone well.

I'd put my name forward to be trained as a trainer for the Expert Patients Programme - EPP.

It's all been so positive and yet. On Wednesday a close family friend and relative was found dead. It's shocked us all. He had been apparently fit and healthy.

We don't yet know what the cause of death was but it's quite possible that it was a heart attack. 

Right now I don't feel very much like crowing about how positive things are, or could be. Maybe I'm lucky though, angina has indicated a problem. Others don't get the warning signs.

Story so far. 8 exercise sessions endured, and enjoyed. Hope they continue. Local GPs seem to be unaware that this facility exists for chronic stable angina patients and it really is essential.

I'm on a relatively new drug, Ranolazine, and that combined with the others has reduced the number of angina events. The dosage of Ranolazine was increased last week, several weeks after the hospital wrote to the GP advising the new dosage....

Have put my name forward to be trained as a trainer for the Expert Patient Program, EPP.

Am due to meet Rehab contact on Monday to put together my own Angina Plan.

And I'm still sticking to my veggie, mostly vegan diet. I don't miss meat at all, even bacon! But oh for fish and chips from Kings in Northfields!