You’re enjoying a relaxing evening at home when you begin to feel unusual pain in your chest. Maybe it’s just a bad case of indigestion—or is it something more serious that requires medical attention?
Time is of the essence in any true emergency situation. With heart attacks and strokes, if treatment is not provided as soon as possible, survival rates decrease rapidly. If you suspect that you may be having a heart attack or stroke, seek emergency treatment immediately in an emergency room—not a doctor’s office or urgent care center. Don’t chance it.
It’s also important not to delay care due to coronavirus fears. Our hospitals are still safe places to receive care, even during the pandemic.
Here are eight symptoms you shouldn’t disregard:
Chest Pain
You might be having a heart attack if you experience a combination of chest pressure, pain or discomfort. Other symptoms of a heart attack include:
- Pain radiating to the back, arm, neck or jaw
- Sweating
- Nausea or vomiting
Keep in mind that women can have more subtle heart attack symptoms than men.
Changes in Mental Status
Changes in mental status, like confusion or unusual behavior, is a symptom of many severe conditions. Problems such as concussion, low blood sugar, medication side effects and nutritional deficiencies can cause
these changes.
Sudden confusion is also a symptom of stroke, which can be extremely debilitating or deadly if not treated immediately. Aside from confusion, other symptoms of a stroke include:
- Weakness
- Numbness on one side
- Slurred speech
- Dizziness
- Trouble seeing
- Inability to keep your balance
If you experience these symptoms, go to the hospital. Don’t try to drive to a hospital. Rely on an ambulance instead.
Excruciating Headache
Everyone gets a mild headache once in a while. If you struggle with migraines, you may even have become accustomed to having the occasional splitting headache. However, if you’re experiencing “the worst headache you’ve ever had” or the headache appears suddenly with no known cause, then you might be having a brain hemorrhage or a stroke and should seek care immediately.
Unconsciousness of Any Duration
There are many potential causes for unconsciousness, but it can be the first sign of a severe condition, including heart problems. If the person is not breathing while unconscious, they may experience brain damage or death.
Trouble Breathing
Difficulty breathing can be a symptom of many serious conditions, including a severe case of novel coronavirus, asthma, a life-threatening allergic reaction, a blood clot in the lung or heart failure.
Severe Abdominal Pain
While everyone gets a bad stomach ache now and again, debilitating abdominal pain should be treated at an emergency room. This is particularly true if the pain is accompanied by other symptoms, like large amounts of blood in the stool or vomit, severe nausea or high fever. Your condition needs evaluation to rule out dangerous possibilities, such as appendicitis or intestinal obstruction. If you are pregnant, have had a heart attack in the past, or have recently had surgery, it’s especially important that you seek help immediately.
Fever
A fever may not be a medical emergency, but it is a core symptom of COVID-19, the disease caused by novel coronavirus. If you feel sick, stay home and call your health care provider. Most cases of coronavirus can be treated at home. However, serious coronavirus symptoms that could require immediate emergency care include:
- Trouble breathing
- Persistent pain or pressure in the chest
- New confusion or inability to wake up
- Lips or face turning blue
If you suspect that you have COVID-19 and need to receive emergency care, have a loved one notify the emergency room or 911 operator of your suspicions before you arrive at the hospital.
Suicidal Thoughts
Feeling as though you might harm yourself may not be a physical symptom, but it is a health emergency. If you’re experiencing suicidal thoughts, there are a number of different steps you can take:
- Suicide Hotline: Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255).
- Emergency Room: You can also visit your nearest emergency room.
Monitoring your mental health is especially important if you have a pre-existing mental health condition, have started taking a new medication or have recently experienced a traumatic life event.
Even if you aren’t feeling suicidal, you may be feeling overwhelmed or depressed during this time. The novel coronavirus pandemic has had a negative impact on many people’s mental health as well, but there are many things you can do to lower stress and cope with pre-existing mental illness during the pandemic.
