Table of contents:
- Recognize the difference between a heart attack and a panic attack
- Cause of occurrence
- The time of its appearance
- The difference in pain in the chest
- Differences in other accompanying symptoms
When your breath is rapid, your heart beats irregularly, you feel chest pain and shortness of breath, you may think that you are having a heart attack. In fact, what you may be experiencing is a panic attack. So, then how do you know the difference between a heart attack and a panic attack so you don't misunderstand the symptoms of the two conditions? Check out the following explanation.
Recognize the difference between a heart attack and a panic attack
Panic attacks are a condition in which you experience intense anxiety and fear. This anxiety and fear even occurs without any particular reason. However, this condition then triggers your heart to beat faster, possibly until you have difficulty breathing.
Some of these signs are often mistaken for symptoms of a heart attack. This means that many people are still struggling to find the difference between a heart attack and a panic attack. Even so, maybe you can see different things from a heart attack or a panic attack from the following things.
A difference that may be quite visible from a heart attack and a panic attack is the cause of these two conditions. Panic attacks usually occur because stress hormones trigger the body's "fight or flight" response. This causes the heart to beat faster, chest pain, and shortness of breath.
Meanwhile, the cause of a heart attack is a blockage that occurs in the arteries. However, almost similar to a panic attack, the symptoms of a heart attack that appear are chest pain, a fast heartbeat, and difficulty breathing.
The difference that you can also notice from heart attacks and panic attacks is when they appear. According to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, heart attacks usually occur when the body is too tired. This means that a heart attack occurs because your heart is working too hard, for example, when you run up stairs. Especially if you are not used to it.
Meanwhile, panic attacks may appear even when you are not doing anything. In fact, panic attacks can subside on their own in just 20 minutes. In contrast, the symptoms of a heart attack will get worse over time.
Although both of these conditions cause symptoms of pain in the chest, the difference from a heart attack and a panic attack lies in the pain that is experienced. People experiencing panic attacks usually feel like they are being stabbed in the chest.
In fact, the pain you experience will be even more pronounced when you press the chest that hurts. The chest area that feels sore from a panic attack usually covers only a small area and is accompanied by feelings of anxiety.
Meanwhile, people who have a heart attack, the symptoms of chest pain they feel tend to increase over time. The pain in the chest may also extend to be felt in the neck, back, and jaw.
Heart attacks and panic attacks do have symptoms that tend to be similar, but there are certain symptoms that are different. For example, heart attacks and panic attacks have symptoms such as shortness of breath, chest pain, and a racing heart.
However, the difference between the symptoms of a heart attack and a panic attack lies in the other symptoms that may appear. When having a panic attack, apart from the aforementioned symptoms, you may also experience symptoms such as tingling hands.
Meanwhile, when having a heart attack, you may experience symptoms such as nausea and want to pass out. Therefore, it never hurts to find out more clearly about the symptoms you are experiencing.
If you experience symptoms such as shortness of breath, racing heart, or chest pain, it's better to have your condition checked by a doctor. Early detection is very important, especially if the symptoms you are experiencing turn out to be a heart attack that needs to be treated immediately by a doctor.
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