Warming Signs of Heart Attack and Stroke

What does it feel like to have a heart attack? Occasionally, heart attack occur quietly and painlessly and are not discovered until months or even years later in the course of a routine electrocardiogram or during an autopsy (a medical examination of the body after death). Such "silent" heart attacks are just as damaging to the heart muscle as an overtly dangerous because the victim rarely seeks medical attention or takes steps to ward off further episodes.

 

In most heart attacks, however, the victim knows something is wrong. Feeling one or more of the warning sign as in the table. He or she may initially think the sensation are caused by indigestion or "heartburn." Ultimately, feeling of tightness, squeezing, or pain in the middle of the chest intensify (victim report feeling as though "an elephant were sitting on my chest" or "someone hit me in the chest with a sledgehammer"). The pain may radiate down the left arm, and jaw. The victim becomes pale, sweats profusely, grows short of breath, and may vomit. It is not uncommon for victim to experiment feelings of terror or a sense of impending doom. One cardiologist said, "It is like nothing the patient has ever known before, a feeling that something cataclysmic is happening."

 

Hearth Attack	Stroke
Prolonged, oppressive pain or unusual discomfort in center of chest	Sudden, temporary Weakness or numbness of face, arm, or leg
Pain may radiate to shoulder, Arm, neck, or jaw	Temporary loss of speech, or trouble in speaking or understanding speech
Sweating may accompany pain or discomfort	Temporary dimness or loss of vision, particularly in one eye
Nausea, vomiting, and shortness of breath may also occur	An episode of double vision
	Unexplained dizziness or unsteadiness
	Change in personality, mental ability or pattern of headaches