Can you have a heart attack and not know it?

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-12-2013
Can you have a heart attack and not know it?
Mon, 08-19-2013 - 8:26am

Is it possible to have a heart attack and not know it?

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-11-2011
Fri, 10-25-2013 - 3:58pm

If only all heart attacks were like they are in the movies. Unfortunately, that's not how they typically go down. A heart attack isn't very complicated. Your heart, like all muscles, needs blood to function properly. Blood is carried throughout the body through blood vessels and larger arteries. When the coronary arteries that supply blood to your heart get blocked, you're likely to have a heart attack. These arteries become blocked because of a buildup of something called plaque. Plaque may build if:

  • you're overweight
  • you don't exercise
  • your diet has too much fat and cholestrol
  • you're stressed
  • you smoke
  • you drink alchol in excess
  • you have a history of HEART DISEASE in your family

These factors put you at risk for plaque buildup, called atherosclerosis, and eventually a heart attack. Once that plaque builds up, it can rupture and completely block the artery, cutting off the blood supply to your heart.

Some of the common symptoms of heart attack are:

  • sweating
  • shortness of breath
  • chest pressure
  • chest pain
  • prolonged squeezing in your chest area
  • pain shooting through arms, shoulders, back or jaw
  • nausea and vomiting

women may also experience additional symptoms when they have heart attacks, and no one is quite sure why. The symptoms include clammy skin, dizziness, a burning sensation in the chest and unexplained fatigued. About 1.2 million Americans have heart attacks each year, and it's the leading killer of both men and women. About a third of these victims die before they ever get to the hospital. This is because you can actually have a heart attack and never realize it. It's called a "silent" heart attack, and it happens more often than you might think.

Community Leader
Registered: 10-22-2001
Sun, 10-06-2013 - 9:51pm

I don't want to scare you but I had a Heart Attack five years ago.

I am lucky, I survived.

My Beloved Mom had one but unfortunately she didn't.

Educate yourself and Advocate for you own health...

I am so glad I went to the hospital.


iVillage Member
Registered: 08-25-2013
Wed, 08-28-2013 - 11:00am

A friend of mine had one while out walking with her grandchildren. She was in the state park and started feeling nausea. She asked a park ranger for a ride back to her car and he told her no and said that if he gave her a ride he would have to give everyone a ride. She did get herself and her grandchildren back home and she spent the next three days vomiting and finally her husband made her go to the hospital. It turned out she had had a heart attack. She spent 2 weeks in the ICU. She did not have the symptoms that most of us associate with a heart attack so it was really scary to find all this out.