An Overwhelming Feeling of Anxiety
Patients report feeling like they were experiencing a panic attack during their previous heart attack.
While both a panic attack and a heart attack may cause chest discomfort, the pain presents differently. It is common for those experiencing a panic attack to have chest discomfort that is acute or stabbing in nature and located in the center of the chest. A heart attack may cause pain in the chest that feels like pressure or squeezing. Pain from a heart attack might sometimes begin in the middle of the chest but spread to the shoulder blades, jaw, or arm.
The onset of either illness might be unexpected, but overwhelming activities trigger some heart attacks. The symptoms usually persist and worsen over time. For instance, a heart attack’s chest discomfort may start moderate but quickly escalate. Anxiety may impact your blood pressure and heart rate in ways that raise your risk of having a heart attack, even though the symptoms of a panic attack are typically not related to changes in blood supply to the heart.
Patients experiencing panic upon realizing they have a heart attack further complicate the situation. Nonetheless, they should get immediate medical assistance.
