I woke up last night at 1.40am with chest pain

Bretrick

Bretrick

Well-known Member
Location
Perth Western Australia
Never had that sort of pain before.
I did wonder if it was something to do with my heart.
As I lay there thinking about what to do, my thoughts went to the parlous state of our hospitals these days.
If I was to ring an ambulance there was a very high chance that I would end up waiting outside the hospital, still in the ambulance - called ramping.
When finally taken into the hospital there was a high possibility I would end up waiting in the corridor.
So I decided to not worry about it and if I was to die then I would not know I was dead anyway.
 

Bretrick said:
Never had that sort of pain before.
I did wonder if it was something to do with my heart.
As I lay there thinking about what to do, my thoughts went to the parlous state of our hospitals these days.
If I was to ring an ambulance there was a very high chance that I would end up waiting outside the hospital, still in the ambulance - called ramping.
When finally taken into the hospital there was a high possibility I would end up waiting in the corridor.
So I decided to not worry about it and if I was to die then I would not know I was dead anyway.
Click to expand...
i think i may be having heart trouble cuz of my copd.
 

Use the 4-7-8 breathing technique to relieve stress or an anxiety attack. Do 4 cycles for now and then wait. You can do as many cycles as you want but at first, if you do too many, you may feel light headed. Wait until you're ready for another cycle.

If this helps then maybe it's just anxiety...but I agree with oldpop, get it checked out..
Do you take baby aspirin on a regular basis? I would take one now or 1/3 of a regular aspirin. Ask your doctor.
  1. Close your lips and inhale through your nose for a count of four...like 4 seconds
  2. Hold your breath for a count of seven.
  3. Exhale completely through your mouth making a whoosh sound for a count of eight.
  4. This completes one cycle. Repeat for three more cycles.
 
Bretrick said:
Never had that sort of pain before.
I did wonder if it was something to do with my heart.
As I lay there thinking about what to do, my thoughts went to the parlous state of our hospitals these days.
If I was to ring an ambulance there was a very high chance that I would end up waiting outside the hospital, still in the ambulance - called ramping.
When finally taken into the hospital there was a high possibility I would end up waiting in the corridor.
So I decided to not worry about it and if I was to die then I would not know I was dead anyway.
Click to expand...
Oh gosh are you having the same problems as us, with regard to being kept in an ambulance for hours outside the Emergency room ?.. it's terrible here as well.. everyday there are stories of critical patients being left for sometimes 24 hours..in ambulances or corridors

Anyway..I hope you;re ok today, but I have to tell you and everyone.. that I was watching Marlon Jackson being interviewed and he's now 65 years old,. In June he had a heart attack, and he was counselling everyone not to do what he did because he said it started off as Heartburn which wouldn't;t go away.., and the following day he got what he described as a Migraine in his upper back.. and still had the heartburn. On the third day the pain in his back had gone, so he didn't seek help..but thought it was strange that he hadn't eaten anything that would cause heartburn.. by day 5 he was feeling miserable.. so his wife ordered him to the ER, where they discovered he'd had a Heart Attack and he had to have 3 stents inserted.....he was telling this story because most people don't associate these symptoms with a Heart Attack.

He went on to say that he was talking to a woman whose husband had, had the same symptoms as Marlon.. and he said to his wife that he would go and work it off in the basement gym.. and while there he had another heart attack and died...

So be aware everyone.. it's not just a pain in the chest or a pain down the left arm as we're all told ..
 
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hollydolly said:
Oh gosh are you having the same problems as us, with regard to being kept in an ambulance for hours outside the Emergency room ?.. it's terrible here as well.. everyday there are stories of critical patients being left for sometimes 24 hours..in ambulances or corridors

Anyway..I hope you;re ok today, but I have to tell you and everyone.. that I was watching Marlon Jackson being interviewed and he's now 65 years old,. In June he had a heart attack, and he was counselling everyone not to do what he did because he said it started off as Heartburn which wouldn't;t go away.., and the following day he got what he described as a Migraine in his upper back.. and still had the heartburn. On the third day the pain in his back had gone, so he didn't seek help..but thought it was strange that he hadn't eaten anything that would cause heartburn.. by day 5 he was feeling miserable.. so his wife ordered him to the ER, where they discovered he'd had a Heart Attack and he had to have 3 stents inserted.....he was telling this story because most people don't associate these symptoms with a Heart Attack.

He went on to say that he was talking to a woman whose husband had, had the same symptoms as Marlon.. and he said to his wife that he would go and work it off in the basement gym.. and while there he had another heart attack and died...

So be aware everyone.. it's not just a pain in the chst or a pain down the left arm as we're all told ..
Click to expand...
Ramping is rife here in Australia. People are dying waiting to be seen.
Even those that get taken out of the ambulance can sit in a corridor for many hours.
A mother took her son to hospital and he spent 27 hours in a corridor waiting to be seen. When a nurse spoke to her and found out how long they had been waiting she fainted with grief.
 
Bretrick said:
Ramping is rife here in Australia. People are dying waiting to be seen.
Even those that get taken out of the ambulance can sit in a corridor for many hours.
A mother took her son to hospital and he spent 27 hours in a corridor waiting to be seen. When a nurse spoke to her and found out how long they had been waiting she fainted with grief.
Click to expand...
Sadly this exact thing has been happening here for years, and since Covid began has become very much worse...
 
I understand your reluctance to call an ambulance but chest pain can have serious consequences. It can mean a clot in the lungs and that is something that needs treatment. I had one at 35 years old and I was put on warfarin for a while. Never had another occurrence but if it had become worse the consequences could have been dire. A blood test will indicate a heart attack and a scan will identify a clot. If there is nothing serious happening they will send you home tout suite.
 
What are the symptoms of heart attack?

The major symptoms of a heart attack are
  • Chest pain or discomfort. 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.
  • Pain or discomfort in the jaw, neck, or back.
  • Pain or discomfort in one or both arms or shoulders.
  • Shortness of breath. This often comes along with chest discomfort, but shortness of breath also can happen before chest discomfort.
Other symptoms of a heart attack could include unusual or unexplained tiredness and nausea or vomiting. Women are more likely to have these other symptoms. Learn more about women and heart disease.

Call 9-1-1 if you notice symptoms of a heart attack.

If you notice the symptoms of a heart attack in yourself or someone else, call 9-1-1 immediately. The sooner you get to an emergency room, the sooner you can get treatment to reduce the amount of damage to the heart muscle. At the hospital, health care professionals can run tests to find out if a heart attack is happening and decide the best treatment.

Remember, the chances of surviving a heart attack are better the sooner emergency treatment begins.

What are the risk factors for heart attack?

Several health conditions, your lifestyle, and your age and family history can increase your risk for heart disease and heart attack. These are called risk factors. About half of all Americans have at least one of the three key risk factors for heart disease: high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, and smoking.

Some risk factors cannot be controlled, such as your age or family history. But you can take steps to lower your risk by changing the factors you can control.
 
Sad story. We have the same problem here in Canada. Ambulances are slow and there are horror stories in the media about people waiting for hours in the emergency room to be seen. One story relates about someone sleeping overnight and still not being seen. We have so many immigrants "flooding" this country that we are terribly short of doctors and nurses. The pandemic did not help as many nurses were forced to work double shifts. Many just left the profession.

There are many stories about folks being without a family doctor in some parts of Canada. I am lucky as I have a family doctor; same guy now for over a decade. Others are not that lucky. God help me if I have to end up in one of our local hospitals. Maybe that is why I walk outside and exercise daily and try to keep fit.

I don't want to sound like the proverbial "grumpy ole' man" but in my country so much time, energy and money is wasted in trying to figure out how to label bathrooms to please all the fringe people in our society rather than to fix the real issues like cancelled flights at the airports, lack of doctors and nurses and understaffed police departments. We are headed up that dirty creek and we don't have a paddle.
 
Bretrick said:
Never had that sort of pain before.
I did wonder if it was something to do with my heart.
As I lay there thinking about what to do, my thoughts went to the parlous state of our hospitals these days.
If I was to ring an ambulance there was a very high chance that I would end up waiting outside the hospital, still in the ambulance - called ramping.
When finally taken into the hospital there was a high possibility I would end up waiting in the corridor.
So I decided to not worry about it and if I was to die then I would not know I was dead anyway.
Click to expand...
Bretrick you think like me. I think if anything like a stroke or heart attack hits me I will die after spending hours debating. Is it really serious? Is it my imagination? Do I really want to go to the emergency room? Do I call 911 or drive myself? Oh, wait, do I feel a tad better?

Sooner or later it will go away, or it won't. lol
 
C50 said:
Bretrick you think like me. I think if anything like a stroke or heart attack hits me I will die after spending hours debating. Is it really serious? Is it my imagination? Do I really want to go to the emergency room? Do I call 911 or drive myself? Oh, wait, do I feel a tad better?

Sooner or later it will go away, or it won't. lol
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Yes, two who think alike.
Either it will pass or I will pass(away) :D
 
Bretrick, If you're willing to die without treatment it's your business. I do want to tell you though if you were having a major coronary event and lived--you could be left in really bad condition, even to the point of not being able to live on your own. That is one possibility. Another possibility if you did survive you may not be able to get some other medical procedures, repair of a hernia for example, because of your cardiac history.

Aligatorob's post about the symptoms is quite good. I'm speaking from personal experience. I'm a member of the zipper club (bypass x3) and my heart attack was serious enough to get me into the OR first thing next day. That means I bumped someone else scheduled for it. The pain I had was discomfort in the breast, left arm, and jaw. I also had nausea, cold sweats, and an overall feeling of being unwell. What I was doing and where I was having cold sweats could have been due to how I was dressed, air temp, and my physical exertion. Time between first onset of symptoms to deciding I needed to go to the ER was a bit over2 hours. That wasn't all just my deciding if I needed to, but I won't go into that now. If you'd like to know I'd do another post.

I had a friend that had lung clot pain and he went to the ER because he was just home from a stay in hospital for having 3 heart attacks in 90 min. He wasn't sure of the nature of the pain, it didn't feel that different. He did need to be hospitalized for 3 or 4 days.

I assume any hospital you go to adheres to triage principles. Doesn't mean you'd get right in, you are head of the line.

I would urge you to get it checked out. It's not just your life on the line. You can die on the spot doing anything, like your job, driving a car, cooking dinner. Doing something that your death can cause injury or death to others. Not to mention it could be something else much much less serious, but painful none the less. I wish the best for you.
 
Bretrick said:
Never had that sort of pain before.
I did wonder if it was something to do with my heart.
As I lay there thinking about what to do, my thoughts went to the parlous state of our hospitals these days.
If I was to ring an ambulance there was a very high chance that I would end up waiting outside the hospital, still in the ambulance - called ramping.
When finally taken into the hospital there was a high possibility I would end up waiting in the corridor.
So I decided to not worry about it and if I was to die then I would not know I was dead anyway.
Click to expand...



You're a lot younger than I am Bretrick, but my thoughts on the subject are pretty much the same .... and as @C50 said ..
it will pass, or it won't.
I say to myself during unknown episodes of pain and strange feelings, the very worse thing that can happen, is death.
And then I go back to sleep .... this has happened to me on occasion. And I choose to not worry about it.
Everyone to their own thoughts on this.
 
I'm sorry to hear the hospitals in Australia, England and Canada are as bad as the United States. Several years ago I took my father to the emergency room here in the U.S. with chest pains we thought was a heart attack and it was 8 hours before anyone examined him. I was somehow under the impression medical care was better in Europe and the U.K.
 
Twenty one years ago ... I woke up with a "cold spot" in my chest .... I also became nauseous . After talking on the phone to a friend, I went to the E/R, by car ... sure enough I was having a heart attack. Three stents to clear it "knock wood" been fine since.

In today's world, I too might be hesitant due to the many horror stories I hear.

When they leave patients in the ambulance .... doesn't that take an ambulance out of service ? for perhaps long periods of time ? Sounds dangerous for the remainder of the community IMO !

Best wishes too you !!
 
Tabby Ann said:
I'm sorry to hear the hospitals in Australia, England and Canada are as bad as the United States. Several years ago I took my father to the emergency room here in the U.S. with chest pains we thought was a heart attack and it was 8 hours before anyone examined him. I was somehow under the impression medical care was better in Europe and the U.K.
Click to expand...

Again, one of the "modern" horror stories.

When I went [by car] {as I said} twenty one years ago ..... I walked in , {Sunday morning} proclaimed my reason "chest pain" And you would have thought I was the king of Siam .... doctors & nurses all over me, straight to the cardio E/R , clot-buster injected .... felt much better. The next day I was asigned a cardiolgist , this is what we are going to do .... etc. Glad i did it. But as I have hinted to ... as i understand it ... things have changed ?!
 
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