People often imagine that a heart attack always produces an intense, crushing pain. In reality, the sensation can be different from person to person.
It may feel like:
- Pressure
- Tightness
- Squeezing
- Fullness
- Burning
- Heaviness
- Aching
- Uncomfortable pressure in the center of the chest
The sensation may last several minutes or disappear and return.
Some people describe it as feeling as though something heavy is sitting on their chest.
Others may experience relatively mild discomfort.
This is why it is dangerous to dismiss chest symptoms simply because they are not extremely painful.
Where Can Heart-Related Discomfort Spread?
Heart-related discomfort can sometimes extend beyond the chest.
It may be felt in:
- One or both arms
- The shoulder
- Back
- Neck
- Jaw
- Upper abdomen
The symptoms do not have to occur in every location.
A person may experience chest pressure alone, or chest discomfort together with pain in another part of the upper body.
