Don’t Ignore Your Chest Pains

While having a cup of tea at my friend’s home, a caption had caught my eye, from an old pile of what’s supposed to be trash: Are You at Risk for Heart Attack? My curiosity took the better part of me, as I picked it up and read the rest of the page. I don’t know where it was ripped off, but it’s so good that I can’t help but share it on this blog.

Many of us dismiss chest pain as something to do with fatigue. We normally think we’re just stressed out from the long hours at work. Then, there are many people who fear heart attack. I remember seeing a movie where someone would clutch their shirt tightly, with a horrible grimace on one’s face, and a sudden thud on the floor. Someone, then, screams for help.

Chest pains can be serious, and life-threatening, if there are no preventive measures taken. There can also be other factors causing chest pains, which make it impossible to know which is which. Take for example Stable Angina, where your chest pains rises at predictable levels, depending on your activity. It can be a brisk walk or a steep climb. However, the more dangerous chest pain is also known as Unstable Angina – which needs immediate medical attention in your nearest ER.

What Diagnostics Tests can You Take to Rule out the Possibilities of a Heart Disease:

1. ECG
2. Stress Test
3. Lung Scan
4. Blood Tests ( LDH, LDH isoenzymes, CPK, CPK isoenzymes, Troponin, CBC, and blood differential )
5. Chest X-Rays
6. Blood Oxygen Levels

More complex tests will be done, depending on the initial results.

How Do You Evaluate Pain? Ask Yourself these Questions:

1. How would you describe the pain? Here are some adjectives you can use: tearing, ripping, severe, sharp, burning, stabbing, squeezing, tight, pressure-like, aching, full, heavy, crushing.

2. Do you feel pain with exertion? This suggests a fixed blockage in your heart’s arteries.

3. After physical activity or exercise, does the pain subside after rest?

4. How often do you feel pain? How long does it last: 15 to 30 minutes?

5. Do you feel your pain radiate to your jaw, neck, shoulder blades, arms? Does it change location? This can suggest angina due to insufficient amount of blood pumping in your heart.

6. Do you feel pain with deep breathing? This is normally caused by a musculoskelatal injury or a lung disease such as pneumonia, when there’s blood clot in the lungs. It can also be caused by a collapse of the lungs small area, known as pneumothorax – or pleurisy, the inflammation of the lining around the lungs.

6. Do you feel anxious with every rapid breathe?

7. Is the pain brought upon by eating? Ulcer pain burns when your stomach is empty and gallbladder pain happens after eating too much fatty meals.

When to Call for an Ambulance?

1. You are feeling too much pressure on your chest.
2. Your pain radiates to your jaw, left arm, and between your shoulder blades.
3. You experience nausea, dizziness, sweating, racing heart, and shortness of breathe.
4. You chest pain is not caused by physical activity.
5. When you feel chest pains even while resting.
6. When you have a sudden chest pain after a long trip.

There are many natural, healthy ways to control your risk for heart angina, and this includes having a healthy diet and lifestyle. You must keep watch of your blood sugar, cholesterol, and blood pressure levels. Make your heart healthy with good servings of your healthy fibers, fruits, and veggies. You must always read your food labels and make sure you get true value for your money. It is an old adage, but getting physical exercise can make your heart pumping oxygen-rich blood needed by every living cell in your body.

Chest pains are not a laughing matter that you can just ignore. It’s always best to have an emergency measure, as well as a preventive solution.

Be Prepared, Be healthy… Be Worry-Free!