AN ONLINE service has been launched to help Dorset women who are living with heart disease.

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) has opened its first ever virtual women’s room to create a supportive space for women living with the condition.

Despite often being stereotyped as a ‘man’s disease’, the heart disease kills 180 women every year in West Dorset and 100 in Weymouth and Portland, figures reveal.

Another 310,000 women across the South West region are living with a heart or circulatory condition.

Senior cardiac nurse at the charity Maureen Talbot said: “Coronary heart disease kills nearly three times as many women as breast cancer. Yet as a society we continue to prop up the myth that heart problems are just for men.

“Everything from TV adverts to soap plotlines show men with heart conditions. But it’s incredibly rare to hear about a woman with heart disease.”

She added: “As a result women often feel very isolated when they’re diagnosed with a heart condition. We want to shout from the rooftops that if you’re a woman living with heart disease you are not alone.

“Our women’s room can give you the ‘informational hug’ you need and introduce you to other women, just like you.”

The BHF created the online hub in response to feedback from women heart patients and wider research with more than 600 women across the UK.

The website features stories of women living with the disease and offers practical information to help women adjust to life with a heart condition, such as how to tell colleagues, family and friends, how to deal with work issues, what to do if they are worried about their finances and how to cope if they feel upset or stressed.

The online hub is available 24 hours a day and allows women with heart conditions to share their experiences and find support from other women who know what they are going through.

It also includes information and advice on heart health for all women.

For details, visit bhf.org.uk/women