Stress Chest Pain
Is Stress Chest Pain Serious?
Whether one has actually experienced stress chest pain or not, there are plenty of instances on TV where it occurs. Most of the time TV dramas or advertisements depict a life-threatening condition when stress chest pain occurs, usually a heart attack. There's no denying that stress can cause chest pains, and stress can cause heart attacks, but that doesn't mean that all stress chest pains signal a heart attack is occurring.
Most Don't Involve The Heart - In truth, only a small fraction of stress chest pains signal a heart attack is in progress, and most chest pains don't even involve the heart. Still, a chest pain caused by stress can mimic a heart attack at times, so is very often a scary experience. Stress can bring with it a number of symptoms, and often these symptoms are nearly identical to the symptoms which may be felt when something really is wrong. Sudden stress can cause muscles to tighten, and if it is chest muscles that are involved we're likely to feel pain. If we relax, the pain usually subsides. In fact a good test of the relative seriousness of a chest pain is to back off from what you are doing at the time and see if the pain goes away. If it does, the heart probably isn't involved, if the pain lingers, or gets worse, the heart could be involved and medical attention should be sought immediately.
People who have heart disease in the early stages often suffer from angina, a sharp pain in the chest which often accompanies strenuous exercise or a stressful situation. Angina is caused by narrowing of the coronary arteries caused by an accumulation of fatty deposits and, at times when under stress, these deposits prevent the heart from getting an adequate supply of blood and oxygen, hence the pain. Angina in itself is usually not serious, and one can have the symptom for years. Angina is however, a sign of things to come that if not addressed, could one day lead to a fatal heart attack.
A Long Time In The Making - Consider a personal experience which is typical of what many have gone through. I was one told by my doctor that I had heart disease. Not a severe condition, but more or less the beginnings. I was prescribed medicine to keep cholesterol levels in range, with the goal of preventing blockage in any of the arteries. For nearly 10 years I had occasional bouts of angina, and had other chest pains as well. Some where stress chest pains, others were from exertion. An angina attack was an occasional visitor when jogging or working out on a stair master or treadmill. During this time, tests indicated that everything seemed to be all right as far as my heart was concerned.
When Chest Stress Pain Cannot Be Ignored - Eventually however the chest pains began to be accompanied by shortness of breath and feelings of tiredness. One evening after dinner, I had an angina attack, lay down on the sofa, but the pain only got worse. After awhile it subsided, but I went to the doctor the next day, took a stress test, and 3 days later underwent heart bypass surgery. One artery was 90 percent blocked, and the pain experienced from time to time was definitely stress chest pain where the heart was directly involved.
Stress chest pain still happens occasionally. Exertion on a cold day, following a cup of coffee (caffeine), and when I have some worry on my mind can bring on chest pain, but it is from a combination of things, and periodic stress tests indicate that all is supposedly well. Still, a chest pain is nothing to be taken lightly, and if you suffer from such an incident and it doesn't go away when you back off, maybe you can be a little smarter than I was, and get help immediately rather than taking a risk. Even if there are over 4 dozen causes of chest pain that aren't attributed to the heart, it's better to be safe than sorry.