What Does a Heart Attack Feel Like?

In the Hollywood movies, you must have seen how the actors act out a heart attack scene. They are talking or fighting and then suddenly their face wrinkles up in pain, their hand shoots up to the left side of their chest, and then they slowly crumple to the ground, blacked out. Well, in real life, the onset of heart attack is a bit different and unless a person actually experiences it, it is very difficult to clearly point out what does a heart attack feel like. A person who is about to get a heart attack for the first time, does not realize so until it is very late, hence it is important that one knows the heart attack symptoms so that medical attention can be given immediately. There are several warning signs that can help save a life. Given below are some of the symptoms of a heart attack.

Causes

It is important to know the early signs of a heart attack, but at the same time it is also important to know about heart attack causes, so that one can take steps to prevent a heart attack, because as we all know that prevention is better than cure. One major cause of having a heart attack is when the arteries that carries blood to the heart, are blocked, which in turn, prevents the free flow of blood and a blood clot forms in the artery. This blood clot stops the flow of blood to the heart and this leads to a heart attack. Mild heart attacks take place when deposits are formed in the walls of the arteries thus narrowing the pathway. This does not stop the blood from flowing, but the flow is disturbed in a sporadic way. These were the main causes of heart attack.

Symptoms

Just because people are not aware of the early signs of a heart attack, they often do not know what does a heart attack feels like, until and unless the attack reaches an extreme point. The first hour of a heart attack is termed as the 'golden hour' and this is the hour when the person shows all the signs and symptoms of a upcoming heart attack. If the person gets medical attention during this period, then nothing like it. But, just because people are not aware of these heart attack symptoms or they think that it is nothing but certain minor pain, that they realize quite late. Here are certain symptoms in men and women, that you should be aware of as it can help save a life.

• One way to know what does a cardiac arrest feel like, is by the uncomfortable pressure that is being exerted on the center of the chest. The person can feel a kind of fullness in the chest, accompanied by pain and this lasts for more than a few minutes.
• The person also undergoes excessive sweating and starts feeling dizzy.
• Pain in the neck or the arms or the back is another symptom of a heart attack. The pain might either be mild or sharp and it usually spreads from one part to another. There is one major difference in men and women, and that's the place of the pain. Very rarely has it happened that women suffer from chest pain when suffering from a heart attack. They mainly experience a pain between their shoulders.
• Lose of appetite, feeling of indigestion and heartburn. The person will also experience a pain in the stomach.
• The rate of heartbeat increases and the person also suffers from heart palpitation.
• Another symptom of oncoming heart attack is that the jaw of the person starts aching. Toothache can also indicate that the person is about to have a heart attack. Shortness of breath is another common warning sign of heart attacks.
• The person also breaks out into cold sweat and starts turning pale. They also experience this feeling of an impending doom and becomes extremely anxious.
• A person who is just about to have a heart attack suddenly starts feeling tired and fatigue. That's another warning that one has to be careful of.

These are some of the symptoms and warning signs that are mainly experienced during the 'golden hour'. Now that you know what heart attacks feel like, it will be easier for you to get medical attention immediately. Treatment administered during the 'golden hour' can save a life.