What To Do When You Think You're Having A Heart Attack: 5 Steps To Take In Case Of Emergency

Every 40 seconds, an American experiences a heart attack. Heart diseases are among the leading causes of death, but can also be prevented with the right self-care. While potentially deadly, heart attacks are something you can survive, but you have to be prepared for when it happens to you. It also wouldn’t hurt to know how to help a person having a heart attack; it might just save their life.

1. Recognizing the signs of a heart attack

There are rare cases of heart attacks occurring with no warning signs — known as silent heart attacks — but most heart attacks do have symptoms. When you’re having a heart attack, you might have one or more of the following symptoms.

Chest pain, which might radiate to other surrounding areas of the body, such as the shoulders, arms, or the jaw. While stable angina is common in people who have been diagnosed with heart problems, if you’re experiencing pain while you’re resting, and if said pain lasts longer than 10 minutes, it could be a sign of a heart attack.
Shortness of breath is also a common sign of a heart attack. Note that this is also a normal occurrence when you’re performing demanding physical activities, but you can recognize this specific shortness of breath because it goes away after a few minutes of resting. When dyspnea (the medical term for shortness of breath) occurs at rest and is accompanied by other symptoms of a heart attack, you should seek medical help immediately.
Cold sweat can also signal a heart attack. Since the cause of a heart attack is usually coronary artery disease, it means that the heart isn’t receiving enough blood, and has to pump harder in order to make up for that loss. This causes the body to heat up, and it starts to sweat in order to regulate its temperature.
Dizziness can be a sign of many different medical problems, but whatever the case, it’s not normal to experience it. If dizziness is accompanied by other of the aforementioned symptoms, it’s likely that you’re having a heart attack.

2. Calling for help when you think you're having a heart attack

If you are not alone, have someone who is with you call the emergency medical services immediately. If you are accompanied by someone, ask them to stick around until medical help arrives.

It could be a mistake to have someone drive you to the nearest hospital, because you might get stuck in traffic and lose valuable minutes. Not only should an ambulance arrive faster at your location, paramedics also have the right equipment to offer medical help on the spot, and stabilize you until you reach the hospital.

3. Performing CPR

If you are around someone who is having a heart attack, performing CPR can double their chance for survival. If you don’t know how to do it, stick on the phone with the emergency medical services and ask them to guide you through the process. Place the phone on speaker mode, because you will need both hands to see this through.

Make sure that you’re in a safe place, away from traffic. Lay down the person on their back. Open the airway and check for breathing.
The first step is to perform chest compressions, about 30. To do so, place your hands on top of one another, and clasp them together. Place them in the center of the person’s chest, below the nipples. Use the heels of your hands to firmly press down on their chest. Every push should be about two inches deep, after which you have to allow the chest to rise to normal.
Rescue breaths can also help. After having performed 30 chest compressions, lift the person’s chin and tilt their head back. Pinch their nose shut, and create a vacuum between your mouth and theirs. Blow to force air inside the airways, causing their chest to rise. Repeat once more. If you notice that the chest doesn’t rise, you will need to tilt the head once again. If that doesn’t work, the person could be choking.

4. Using a defibrillator

If your heart attack occurs in a public space (such as at work, at school, or in a supermarket), you are likely to be close to a defibrillator. You can’t use a defibrillator on yourself, but you can use it to save another person’s life, in case they have a heart attack or go into sudden cardiac arrest.

You should perform CPR continuously until medical services arrive or until someone can bring a defibrillator.
Once you have a defibrillator, turn in on. Most such devices have voice commands that will guide you through the process, telling you exactly what to do.
The pads that you need to use are most likely in a sealed pack. Before using them, expose the chest of the person who needs resuscitating, making sure that you wipe all sweat from their chest. If need be, feel free to cut through their clothes.
Place the pads on the person’s chest, making sure that you have removed the backing paper. One of the pads should be placed directly below the collarbone, on the upper right side. The second pad should go below the armpit, on the left side. If you’ve placed them correctly, the long side of the second pad should be aligned with the length of the person’s body.
When placed correctly, the defibrillator should start checking the person’s heart rhythm. No one else should be touching the person the entire time. The machine will continue to give you voice instructions on how to proceed.

5. Taking medication

Unless your doctor has previously instructed you otherwise, aspirin should help you when you’re having a heart attack. Take a normal dose (which means about 325 mg), as it can prevent blood from further clotting.

Conclusion

There are situations where you the only thing you can do when you’re having a heart attack is to call an ambulance and take aspirin. If you are with someone when it occurs, ask them to stay with you and instruct them on how to perform CPR, if need be. It’s important to avoid driving yourself to the hospital. Even asking someone to drive you might be a bad idea, because it can delay the time it takes for you to receive medical help. Even if your heart is healthy, this information can help you save another person’s life.

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1. Recognizing the signs of a heart attack