Open Heart

“By the second or third week, the light bulb suddenly went on,” says Richard Sassin, pictured right, a cardiology patient who completed the nine-week intensive UCLA Health Ornish Lifestyle Medicine program and returned to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center to present a painting to Dr. Dean Ornish, pictured far left, and Dr. Samuel Daneshvar, pictured middle. “I was walking down the street when suddenly I felt that life could continue and be joyous again. I felt my heart just opening. And I went home and I painted it. I keep painting all different kinds of hearts. I made a heart for each person in my cohort. This program opened a creative door for me that was blocked. It’s been life-changing.”