Coping Strategy Features in People with Coronary Heart Disease

Abstract

In today’s world the issue of life saving and improving psychological wellbeing of working age people with coronary heart disease remains important.

Coronary heart disease is an acute (chronic) heart muscle dysfunction that results from reducing myocardical perfusion with arterial blood.

Within the structure distribution of the cardiovascular system diseases among Ukrainian population, coronary heart disease is up by 33,7 percent.

Psychological features of working age people with coronary heart disease have been studied by Babych, Johnson, Cleveland, Lain, Langer, Lyskonog, Petrenko, Rossenman, Stepanova, Strokova, Shevchenko and others.

It’s known that to reduce anxiety and maintaining resistance to difficult life situations coping strategies are used by people. The choice of this or that coping strategy affects both personal life experience and objective situation complexity.

The purpose of the study is the definition of predominant coping strategies in adults with coronary heart disease. Empirical research was held on the bases of the Cardiology Department of Ivano-Frankivsk City Central Hospital. The sample (31 persons) included patients with different nosological forms of coronary heart disease (myocardical infarction, acute myocardical infarction, unstable angina, arrhythmia). The average age of examined people-58,7 years, 18 of males, 13-females.

It was found out by the method “Wais of Coping Questionnaire” (adapted Kryukov, Kuftjak) that adults with coronary heart disease in a difficult situation demand a full control over their behavior, holding back their true emotions, they often become  passive in overcoming life’s difficulties and require a significant emotional, social support. It is difficult for them to distance from everyday difficulties, they do not consider any life stressful situation as a source for personal development.

The predominance of external locus of control in patients with coronary heart disease (by J. Rotter’s diagnosis method of locus of control) indicates a tendancy to use external resources to solve problems avoiding a responsibility for decision making.

The research’s prospect is the development of psycho-corrective program of adaptive coping strategies in patients with coronary heart disease, because of the ability to respond adequately to difficult life situations it can make their life wellbeing better in general.