52 NewZealandWoman’sWeekly
Heart
KNOWWHAT
TODO,WHO TO
CALLANDWHAT
MAY HAPPENDid you
know?
The technical name
for a heart attack
is a myocardial
infarction.Donna Fleming
HEALTH EDITORCallforhelp!
health&FAMILY
It cannot be stressed
enough how important
it is to get immediate
medical attention if
you have a heart attack.
It couldIt l save your life.W
hat would you do if
you were struck with
sudden chest pains?
While calling for urgent medical
help seems like a no-brainer,
quite often people experiencing
pain don’t ask for help straight-
away, perhaps because theythink they can tough it out or
they don’t realise how serious it
is. Others don’t want to make a
fuss in case the pain goes away.
In some cases, a person may
not be aware that they’re having
a heart attack and doesn’t know
what to do. The crucial thing
to remember is to get help as
quickly as possible.
Whether or not you survive
a heart attack, and the
consequences on your long-
term health if you do make it
through, can depend on howsoon you get treatment that
prevents heart muscles from
dying due to lack of oxygen.
HOW DO YOU KNOW
IT’S A HEART ATTACK?
Chest pain is the obvious sign
your heart is in trouble, but
symptoms can vary from
person to person.
Some people have mild pain,
while in others it’s more severe.
In some cases, the pain is not
in the chest as you’d expect,
but other areas, such as the
shoulder, neck or back.
Many heart attacks strikesuddenly, but in other cases
people have warning signs for
days or even weeks in advance.
One of the earliest warning
signs is recurrent chest pain or
pressure that comes on when
you exert yourself physically and
which is eased when you rest.
The most common symptoms
of a heart attack include:- Chest pain that can feel like
pressure, tightness, heaviness,
pain or a squeezing sensation.
It can spread to your shoulders,
arms, neck, jaw or back. - Nausea, heartburn and