Did I have a heart attack?

Hello,

I know this sounds like a silly question, but in 2016 I was 29 and went through a stressful/scary time. I remember one evening, I was sat on the couch and suddenly it felt like my heart dropped with a giant palpitation (which had been getting worse at the time). I was crazily light-headed, short on breath and barely able to walk. I went to bed early and woke up still barely able to stand. I checked my pulse and it was over 100 lying down. On sitting up, it was over 160. (FYI I was under-weight at the time and haven't changed much since)

I booked a cab to the hospital and they were shocked at my BP and pulse, so put me on an EKG, took blood tests and scanned my heart. My pulse was around 145 lying down at that time.

After they had checked everything, they said my heart was healthy, I was a little dehydrated and just stressed. I was advised to go home and rest. However, it took me about 2 months to get fully back on my feet, with lingering palpitations and breathlessness for another 6-9 months. I noticed the symptoms were at their worst before my period.

Skip forward to today. I recently finished a book which looks at the gender data gap and how heart attacks are often misdiagnosed in women and how more women die from this misdiagnosis than men. At the time, I put my faith in the doctors who said I was just stressed and needed to relax, but now when I think back, being bed-bound for nearly 2 months seemed way too excessive for just stress. I'll also never forget that awful feeling I had in my chest, though it wasn't painful, per se...Though, again, I'm unsure if pain is a hallmark sign for heart attacks in women. There were some chest pains kind of between my ribs, but the doctor said they were anxiety, which I forced myself to trust.

I still get these chest pains on occasion, and they have come back again recently whilst I've been worried about this. Anyway, I'm just wondering what everyone else thinks or if anyone has dealt with anything similar? Otherwise, my heart has seemed much better these days, with palpitations happening a little when I'm stressed, and the breathlessness barely an issue. I now know that when I get these sensations, I need to relax and look after myself, but I'd like to know if what happened to me was more serious than they made me believe, so I know how to take care of myself in future.

You did not have a heart attack.

You described perfectly what happens to somebody who is dehydrated and stressed and had a panic attack.

That's what I thought, but the effects of it lasted so long...Is that normal? My anxiety usually manifests as IBS or muscle tightness, so this one always threw me off because I was happily sat down and relaxed the moment it happened (after many weeks of stress, though).

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Twisted-Melody

That's what I thought, but the effects of it lasted so long...Is that normal? My anxiety usually manifests as IBS or muscle tightness, so this one always threw me off because I was happily sat down and relaxed the moment it happened (after many weeks of stress, though).

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Yes, it's normal under these circumstances.