Panic or Heart Attack???????

[msharnoubi]

Hi everybody,

This is my first post to this group.
I have a question that I would like to know other people's opinion about.

To put it succinctly: How to tell the difference between a panic and heart attack?

To elaborate a little bit more:
When someone suffering from panic disorder is young in twenties or early thirties and he gets a panic attacks and tries to fight it cognitively, it would be easy to fight the scary thoughts like: "you are having a heart attack". I mean it would be easy to convince oneself that such a thought is not true and that at this age nobody gets a heart attack or at least it is very rare.
However, when one gets older and he enters the age when normal people are anxious about heart attacks especially if he has a disease that is linked with heart attacks or has a history of it in the family, in such a case it would be difficult to convince oneself that what one is experiencing is not a heart attack and just the good old panic attack. In such a case how can fight the thoughts of the form: "But, how can we know? How can we be sure that this is not a real heart attack?"
Would the solution be that whenever one gets such an attack, one rushes to the ER to have an ECG?


Any thoughts on this problem?

Regards

 

[Tryin]

Actually, it's hard to know the difference. If it's intense, I would probably rather see a doctor.

Do you suffer these kind of attacks?

 

[msharnoubi]

Well, I used to have panic attacks when I was much younger and am pretty over them now thank GOD but sometimes I do feel some noise coming up from the background of my consciousness that I can cope and deal with rationally. However, as I am getting older and getting into the age where heart problems are an issue, I started thinking on the best course of action to take with my mild body related anxiety when it comes. Especially that now, with the heart risk factor involved, I am not sure how to rationally fight back!

Regards