Dr. Wierenga’s primary program of research focuses on improving recovery and secondary prevention for patients in outpatient cardiovascular rehabilitation following a myocardial infarction. Her research interests lie in how improving abilities to adaptively regulate emotions during a stressful period of recovery can improve symptoms of depression and anxiety in these individuals. These improvements in psychological symptoms paired with cardiovascular rehabilitation may increase the uptake and sustaining of a regular exercise program long-term. She has developed a treatment using mechanisms of emotion regulation to support recovery to improve symptoms of depression, anxiety, and physical activity. This treatment has demonstrated early efficacy in a small pilot sample, was refined and is currently being tested in a remotely accessible mobile app.
