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| Responding to a Heart Attack |
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One of the most frightening things that can happen to you is for either you or a loved one to suddenly experience severe chest pain. While such pains are often merely a symptom of indigestion or stress, at other times it can indicate the first signs of a heart attack and necessitate calling for immediate medical assistance. Most people, however, are not sufficiently educated about the nature of a heart attack or the proper response when one occurs, and thus end up panicking at the first sign of chest pains.
The first thing that you need to be able to do is to distinguish between a heart attack and other conditions that might precipitate pain in the chest. Unlike indigestion and stress related chest tightening, the chest pain caused by a heart attack usually lasts for more than a few minutes. Many heart attack sufferers experience chest pain that can last for as long as 15 minutes or more, as the arteries supplying oxygen to the heart muscle become blocked and the muscle reacts in shock. For many sufferers of an attack, warning signs appear days and even weeks prior to the actual attack, with moderate chest pain that appears in times of heavy activity.
Identifying a heart attack involves knowing the symptoms. These include not only the pain in the chest, but pain that spreads to the shoulders, the neck, and even the arms. In most cases, the pain is centered in the left arm, so any chest pain accompanied by pain in the left arm should sound immediate heart attack alarms. Finally, heart attacks are commonly accompanied by shortness of breath, intense sweating, and even fainting.
Once you have reason to believe that either yourself or another person is suffering a heart attack, your response should be immediate - beginning with an emergency call for medical assistance. Dialing 911 to obtain emergency assistance is a must, as there is no such thing as being tougher than a heart attack. If no emergency services are available in the area in which you have the attack, someone should drive you to the nearest hospital.
In the meantime, chewing an aspirin of normal strength can help to prevent any clotting of blood - unless you have an allergy or intolerance to aspirin or have been directed by your doctor to avoid it. If you have been previously prescribed nitroglycerine, now is the time to take it as it can buy you precious minutes of time until the emergency personnel arrive on the scene.
Remain on the phone with the emergency personnel as you await their arrival, as thee may be a need for immediate cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in the event that the victim is rendered unconscious. Many heart attack victims have been saved by individuals who had no CPR training but who were talked through the procedure by either the emergency dispatcher or a paramedic.
Above all, do not panic. Whether it is you suffering the attack or someone you are with, maintaining a calm and level demeanor is an important part of ensuring that you take all of the necessary steps to obtain medical assistance in a timely manner - and survive until they reach you.
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