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World Heart Day: Heart Health and Mental Health Cannot Be Separated
MEDIA RELEASE
For Immediate Release
29 September 2026
AAMHP calls for greater recognition of the relationship between psychological wellbeing and cardiovascular health
The Australian Association of Mental Health Practitioners (AAMHP) is marking World Heart Day by encouraging Australians and health professionals to recognise that caring for the heart also means paying attention to psychological wellbeing, stress and social connection.
World Heart Day is observed globally on 29 September. The World Heart Federation’s 2026 campaign carries the message “Heart disease can hide in plain sight: Don’t miss a beat,” highlighting the continuing importance of prevention, early recognition and access to cardiovascular care.
In Australia, around 1.3 million adults are living with heart, stroke or vascular disease, and cardiovascular disease was the underlying cause of 42,300 deaths in 2024, almost one in four Australian deaths.
AAMHP Secretary Susan Sandy said World Heart Day provides an opportunity to move beyond the common tendency to treat physical and psychological health as separate conversations.
“Our bodies do not divide themselves into neat physical and mental-health departments. Prolonged stress, anxiety, depression, loneliness and social isolation can influence how people care for themselves and may also intersect directly with cardiovascular health.” [Susan Sandy]
The Heart Foundation recognises a two-way relationship between mental health and heart health. Some mental-health conditions are associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease, while experiencing a heart event or receiving a cardiovascular diagnosis can itself contribute to anxiety, depression and psychological distress.
Susan Sandy said the mental-health impact of heart disease should therefore form part of recovery and ongoing care.
“A heart attack or new cardiac diagnosis can change the way somebody experiences their body almost overnight. People may become frightened by sensations they previously ignored, worried about another event, uncertain about returning to work or exercise, or anxious about what their future now looks like.” [Susan Sandy]
“Supporting recovery means treating the cardiovascular condition, but it also means recognising the person living with it.” [Susan Sandy]
The Heart Foundation reports that depression is common among people with coronary heart disease, with major depressive disorders reported in around 15 per cent of patients following myocardial infarction or coronary artery bypass surgery. It recommends that psychological wellbeing be considered as part of cardiovascular care.
AAMHP Chair Shane Warren said prevention messages should also avoid reducing heart health to individual willpower.
“Of course movement, nutrition, sleep and reducing smoking matter. But health behaviour happens inside a life. Chronic work pressure, financial strain, loneliness, caring responsibilities and poor mental health can all make healthy choices harder to sustain. Good prevention asks not only what people should do, but what helps them actually do it.” [Shane Warren]
AAMHP encourages mental-health practitioners to remain attentive to physical health when supporting clients experiencing chronic stress, depression, anxiety or social isolation, and equally encourages practitioners working with people affected by cardiovascular disease to recognise the potential psychological consequences of diagnosis, treatment and recovery.
World Heart Day is an opportunity to remember a simple principle: Heart health is part of mental wellbeing, and mental wellbeing is part of heart health.
Neither should be treated in isolation.
Media Contact:
Shane Warren, Chair
Susan Sandy, Secretary
Philip Armstrong, CEO
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