Symptoms Of Heart Disease In Women

Most people think that heart disease is men’s disease, and women don’t need to worry about it. But the fact is that heart disease is a leading cause of death among women in America and other developed countries, even more than breast cancer and all other forms of cancer. Heart disease is even more a serious concern for women because women do not always experience the same heart attack symptoms as men, like the crushing chest pain radiating down the arm when the attack strikes.

Those symptoms can occur; but many a times, women experience vague or silent symptoms that they fail to recognize.  Most women often take the warning signs as general fatigue or stress. Knowing the signs of an attack is the first step a woman can take to prevent heart attack. Usually, a heart attack does not strike without warning.

That is why, it is important for every woman to recognize the signs and symptoms that a heart attack can show, so that they can take necessary action immediately, if needed. Even if one has previously suffered a heart attack, it is not necessary that the symptoms of the second attack will be the same as the first. The possible symptoms of heart attack in women include:

Heart Disease Symptoms In Women

Chest Pain

Though chest pain is considered as an obvious symptom that a person can have during heart attack, some women may not experience this symptom in the same way. In fact, like men, women may not always get chest pains during a heart attack or get it differently. For a woman, symptoms can be similar to the discomfort that one feels during bad indigestion, breathlessness or severe pain in the arm.

There can be feeling of fullness or squeezing and pain can be felt anywhere in the chest, it may not be confined to left side of the chest only. Studies reveal that more women experience atypical symptoms like fatigue, back pain and nausea in comparison to men.

Pain In The Arms And Stomach

Pain in the arms, neck, jaw and back are quite common in women as compared to men. It can be confusing as most women expect pain in the chest and left arm, not in their back and jaw as a sign of heart attack.

The pain can be sudden or gradual, and before becoming intense, it can expand and wane several times. Besides this, stomach pain can also be the sign of a heart attack, but it is often mistaken as heartburn, stomach ulcer or flu.

Fatigue

Various surveys reveal that seventy percent women experience extreme fatigue weeks or days prior to their heart attack. Usually we see fatigue as a symptom of not sleeping enough, overexertion, fighting a cold and reaction to a medicine etc.

But if you are feel tired and drowsy all the time, this unusual fatigue could be the sign of a bigger problem. Extreme fatigue could be an early sign of heart attack. It should not be ignored.

Chronic Sleep Problem

You must pay attention if you experience continuous disturbance in your regular sleep patterns and consult your physician. A study conducted by NIH shows that many women who had heart attack had experienced sleep disturbance weeks or days before their heart attack.

Lightheadedness, Nausea And Shortness Of Breath

If you experience difficulty in breathing along with nausea and lightheadedness, rush to the doctor’s office immediately as it could be a symptom of heart attack.

Sweating

Another important sign could be breaking out into a cold sweat, different from perspiration that usually occurs after exercising or due to extreme heat. Visit your doctor to check it out. Though the symptoms of heart attack are quite subtle in women, yet it can be prevented if you understand the signals that your body gives before a heart attack.

If you experience any of these symptoms, get it checked by your health care provider. Even if it is not the sign of heart attack, it is better to be alert. Once you get an attack, every minute counts. The moment you think you have an attack, call for emergency help.