4 dangerous and easy-to-miss heart attack symptoms

Protect yourself by learning about these lesser-known heart attack symptoms.

Heart attacks present themselves in a variety of ways, but many people have no idea know how to recognize them all. Beside chest pain, it's crucial to understand other warning signs of a heart attack. The list below covers other dangerous, easy-to-miss symptoms.

The most common symptom of a heart attack is chest pain. It's common knowledge that a person will experience extreme pain and pressure in his or her chest if a heart attack is happening. A person's left arm may also feel discomfort if he or she is having a heart attack. However, what a lot of people don't realize is that heart attacks also cause discomfort in other parts of the upper body.

Anyone worried that they're experiencing a heart attack should determine whether they also have pain in their jaw, ears, neck or upper stomach. Sustained and severe discomfort in these lesser-known affected areas is often a sign that something serious is happening.

Many people ignore heart attacks at first because they mistake their symptoms for heartburn or indigestion, particularly women. However, heart attacks are often felt in the upper digestive system, where severe acid reflux or gas can also happen.

In addition to digestive problems, people suffering heart attacks can also feel nausea, severe enough to cause vomiting.

Many busy people experience fatigue daily due to their jam-packed daily lives. However, severe and sustained fatigue can also be a sign that you're experiencing a heart attack. Heart-attack-related fatigue is more severe than day-to-day tiredness. For example, it can leave you so feeling so tired that they are unable to walk for more than a short distance.

Fatigue is only a symptom to be worried about if you can't power through it, or if you're tired after relaxing or doing something that wasn't physically exerting.

Sudden memory loss or brain fogginess can also be a sign that you're having a heart attack, since the blood is no longer flowing correctly throughout the body.

When a person is experiencing a heart attack, it comes on suddenly and severely, and they might not remember what task they were trying to complete or what they were doing at the moment it happened.

Remember these easy-to-miss heart attack symptoms. Recognizing them when they happen can save lives.