Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center or left side of the chest that lasts for more than a few minutes or that goes away and comes back. The discomfort can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain. Feeling weak, light-headed, or faint. You may also break out into a cold sweat.
Chest pain appears in many forms, ranging from a sharp stab to a dull ache. Sometimes chest pain feels crushing or burning. In certain cases, the pain travels up the neck, into the jaw, and then spreads to the back or down one or both arms. Many different problems can cause chest pain.
The chest pain is often severe, but some people may only experience minor pain, similar to indigestion. While the most common symptom in both men and women is chest pain, women are more likely to have other symptoms such as shortness of breath, feeling or being sick and back or jaw pain.
Heartburn, angina and heart attack may feel very much alike. Even experienced doctors can't always tell the difference from your medical history and a physical exam. That's why, if you go to the emergency room because of chest pain, you'll immediately have tests to rule out a heart attack.
They can be much more subtle and sometimes begin with warning pains in the chest or other symptoms days or even weeks before the actual attack. Typically, however, if you're having a heart attack, the severe pain lasts for about 15-20 minutes and then can linger for some time after.
How long can a heart attack last? Heart attack symptoms typically persist for longer than a few minutes. They may go away and come back again, or they may occur intermittently over several hours .
Pre-Heart Attack Symptoms – Female
Men may feel pain and numbness in the left arm or the side of the chest. In women, these symptoms may appear on the right side. Women may experience unexplained exhaustion, or feel drained, dizzy or nauseous. Women may feel upper back pain that travels up into their jaw.
A note from Cleveland Clinic
You may not even know you've had a silent heart attack until weeks or months after it happens. It's best to know what's normal for your body and get help when something doesn't feel right. Knowing the subtle signs of a silent heart attack can help you identify one.
Some heart attacks are sudden and intense, but others start slowly, with mild pain or discomfort. Pay attention to your body and call 911 if you experience: Chest discomfort. Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes – or it may go away and then return.
Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center or left side of the chest that lasts for more than a few minutes or that goes away and comes back. The discomfort can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain.
During a heart attack, a person may feel pain in the middle of the chest that can spread to the back, jaw or arms. The pain may also be felt in all of these places and not the chest. Sometime the pain is felt in the stomach area, where it may be taken for indigestion.
When the heart stops, the lack of oxygen-rich blood can cause death or permanent brain damage within minutes. Time is critical when you're helping an unconscious person who isn't breathing. If you see someone who's unconscious and not breathing normally, do the following: Call 911 or emergency medical help.
Heart-related pain may be felt deep in the chest, as opposed to on the surface. It may also be difficult to pinpoint an exact location of heart-related pain. Often the pain may radiate to the back, arms, throat or jaw.
How Long Do Heart Attack Symptoms Last? This varies from patient to patient. In some, the pain can be continuous while for others, it might start and stop again. These symptoms can last for a couple of minutes or several hours.
If Low Power Mode is turned on, you won't receive any high or low heart rate or irregular rhythm notifications. Learn more about Low Power Mode. Apple Watch cannot detect heart attacks. If you ever experience chest pain, pressure, tightness, or what you think is a heart attack, call emergency services immediately.
SMI warning signs
It can feel like an uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, or pain. Discomfort in other upper-body areas, such as one or both arms, the back, the neck, the jaw, or the stomach. Shortness of breath before or during chest discomfort. Breaking out in a cold sweat, or feeling nauseated or lightheaded.
Signs of a heart attack include:
- Pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach. - Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort. - Other signs such as breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness. (If you're experiencing any of these symptoms, call 9-1-1 immediately.)
A mini heart attack, also called a mild heart attack or a non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI), is when there is only partial blockage of the artery, the symptoms don't last as long as a regular heart attack, and the heart may only suffer minimal damage.
Both panic attacks and heart attacks can wake you from sleep.
Dr. Xu says the majority of patients experience somewhat typical symptoms, such as radiating chest pain, heaviness or discomfort, heart palpitations, cold sweats, and shortness of breath.
Those with an anxiety disorder have most likely experienced a panic or anxiety attack at some point in their lives. The symptoms can closely mimic heart attacks for some people—they may feel chest pain, shortness of breath and heart palpitations, or a racing heartbeat.
A heart attack may strike suddenly, but most people have warning signs and symptoms hours, days or weeks beforehand. One of the earliest warning signs of an impending heart attack is chest pain, or angina, that occurs repeatedly because of exertion and is then eased by rest.
There is nothing anyone can do to stop a heart attack when it is happening. However, there are things people can do to help avoid having a heart attack in the first place. These include eating healthy, being physically active, not smoking, and getting plenty of sleep.
The most typical symptoms, which are likely to affect both men and women, are nausea with an empty or full stomach, feeling bloated, or having an upset stomach. Periodically diminishing and then returning for a brief period, abdominal symptom before a heart attack is episodic.