Kathy
Congestive heart failure can have a few different causes. It can come on after a severe heart attack, it can be caused by a virus, a congenital heart defect and even severe lung disease. I may have missed some but those are the most serious. I suffered a bout a few years back due to a congenital heart defect. A person usually needs strict bed rest if there is any hope of recovery. I had to watch sodium intake, take lasix to get rid of the accompanying edema, usually a cardiac glycoside like digoxin to make the heart beat a little stronger or dobutamine in some cases . I hope I've been of some help. Good luck.