# "Devil's Grip", Did You Ever Get That Pain in Your Chest?



## SeaBreeze (Nov 25, 2015)

Did you ever get that intense short-term pain in your chest that people refer to as the "Devil's Grip"?  It usually just lasts a few seconds for me, and I rarely get it.

  Just a few minutes ago I got it and it lasted a couple of minutes at least, I actually took two aspirin just for the heck of it.  I don't have any heart problems and I'm not on any medications.  It's kinda like a Charley Horse in the middle of your chest.

Anyone here ever get the Devil's Grip?


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## Ameriscot (Nov 25, 2015)

Never heard of this, but I've had chest pain occasionally.  Worried me enough to go to the doctor and I was sent to a cardiologist for tests who said my heart was fine.


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## jujube (Nov 25, 2015)

Quite often, a hiatal hernia can make you feel like you're having a heart attack.  My cardiologist says he usually refers people to a gastro when they complain of chest pains but nothing shows up on the tests.


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## fureverywhere (Nov 25, 2015)

If anyone remembers "Sanford and Son"...Every time Fred went dramatic he'd clutch his chest and tell his wife he was coming. Heart disease is common enough in our family that any chest twinge and I wonder if it's the big one.


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## QuickSilver (Nov 25, 2015)

Yes... and the pain is worse with a deep breath... it lasts only a short time..


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## tnthomas (Nov 25, 2015)

Angina?    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angina_pectoris


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## imp (Nov 25, 2015)

This reminds me of a severe stabbing pain in the side, experienced now and then while a kid, under about 12 years. It seemed to appear after running, but certainly not always, 'cause I was usually running everyday!

Most folks back then wrote off this kind of thing as "growing pains". 

Ever hear that term?    imp


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## Butterfly (Nov 26, 2015)

imp said:


> This reminds me of a severe stabbing pain in the side, experienced now and then while a kid, under about 12 years. It seemed to appear after running, but certainly not always, 'cause I was usually running everyday!
> 
> Most folks back then wrote off this kind of thing as "growing pains".
> 
> Ever hear that term?    imp



We always called that pain in your side after or while running a "stitch."

Growing pains were when a kiddo got sort of vague pains in legs or arms.


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## oldman (Nov 26, 2015)

On a flight from Los Angeles to Chicago in 1998, my 38 year-old First Officer complained about a chest pain. It lasted maybe just a few minutes and then went away. I urged him to see a doctor after we had landed at O'Hare and he answered "No". I asked him how he felt and he answered "Great." We stayed over at the Hilton, which is connected to O'Hare and had dinner together and he was perfectly OK, or so I thought. The next morning, he didn't answer my call to his room. I was hoping that he was in the shower, but I had the manager open his door and we checked on him because he was still in bed. I knew then that I wasn't going to like what we found. He was blue and cold. A gruesome sight that has never left my mind. (I am sure that he refused to see a doctor because it may have grounded him until after he had follow-up tests.) I was so grieved by this that I could not fly that day. At the company's request, I stayed in Chicago until his wife arrived later that day. United did a really good job taking care of his family. 

I'm not telling you this to scare you, or maybe I am, but the point is, age can sometimes mean nothing when it comes to this type of situation. The FAA physical is one of the hardest to get by. Pilots basically go through an autopsy, except they don't remove the organs, to be cleared to fly. I am sure that he did not have any heart problems either, but then again, he is no longer with us. I really liked this man and I flew with him often. He left behind 2 children and a really nice wife. I don't know why I am telling you all of this, but maybe I think I am trying to convey to you the message to "not let it go without seeing your doctor." I have had a heart cath done and it really is a simple procedure and removes any doubt.


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## Pappy (Nov 26, 2015)

Yes, I have had this a couple of times. One time it hurt so bad, It brought right out of my chair and lasted a minute or two. I'm glad you gave it a name, Seabreeze. It was scary at the time.


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## SeaBreeze (Nov 26, 2015)

Sorry to hear about that Officer Oldman, very sad.  It is scary when it happens Pappy, luckily not that often, hubby was keeping a close eye until the pain subsided.


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## Falcon (Nov 26, 2015)

Once in awhile, but I've learned that a good "burp" makes it go away.   (Excuse me.)


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## Butterfly (Nov 27, 2015)

I'm with Oldman on this one --  we had a 29 year old associate die of a heart attack at the last place I worked.  He had been having chest pains on and off, but dismissed it and didn't see a doctor, despite our urging.  He was a great guy and a brilliant legal writer and he was my friend.  I so wish he had gone to get it checked out -- maybe they could have averted his death.

He sure didn't look like a heart attack waiting to happen -- young, athletic (played racquetball all the time, and basketball), and a vegetarian.  He'd gotten married a few  months before and was on top of the world.

His family asked me to speak at his funeral and it was one of the hardest things I've had to do.  I wish his dad and I had dragged him kicking and screaming to the doctor, but we didn't.


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## oldman (Nov 27, 2015)

Butterfly said:


> I'm with Oldman on this one --  we had a 29 year old associate die of a heart attack at the last place I worked.  He had been having chest pains on and off, but dismissed it and didn't see a doctor, despite our urging.  He was a great guy and a brilliant legal writer and he was my friend.  I so wish he had gone to get it checked out -- maybe they could have averted his death.
> 
> He sure didn't look like a heart attack waiting to happen -- young, athletic (played racquetball all the time, and basketball), and a vegetarian.  He'd gotten married a few  months before and was on top of the world.
> 
> His family asked me to speak at his funeral and it was one of the hardest things I've had to do.  I wish his dad and I had dragged him kicking and screaming to the doctor, but we didn't.



It's tough when someone dies from a preventable cause, like having chest pains and thinking it to be only indigestion. I lost an uncle that way.

I have heard the phrase "silent heart attack." I am not sure what that is, (I will look it up later), but I also knew a lady that had a heart attack and never knew it. She was feeling tired all the time, so her doctor ordered a stress test with some kind of x-rays. After the test was over, the doctor asked her when did she have her heart attack. She told him that she didn't know what he was talking about. He told her that there was some kind of a mark or scar on the heart, meaning that at some point she had at least a small heart attack. She told him that she can't even remember ever having any chest pains. He said that maybe she had it during her sleep. Maybe this is what a silent heart attack is. I have always been told to never ignore chest pains. I have a few friends that take an 81 mgs. of aspirin tablet every day, but I've read conflicting reports of that also.


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## Butterfly (Nov 29, 2015)

My father also had scars on his heart from a "silent" heart attack.  When he had his second to the last heart attack, in the tests they discovered signs of an earlier attack of which he was not aware.


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## Butterfly (Nov 29, 2015)

I had severe chest pain when we were stationed in Alabama and went racing to the ER, only to learn that I had a gas pocket trapped up under the diaphragm.  It hurt like hell, and I'm glad I went, anyway.


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## GeorgiaXplant (Dec 3, 2015)

I have a hiatal hernia that was diagnosed after the first time this happened to me. Nothing wrong with my heart, but when it happened in the middle of the night and the pain was so bad that it scared the daylights out of me, you couldn't have convinced me NOT to go to a doctor. My heart is fine. I only have episodes from the hiatal hernia occasionally, and when I do I know exactly what it is...right after I check a mirror to make sure my skin hasn't turned pasty white and my lips blue. If that ever happens, I'll know it's a heart attack. And if that ever happens, I'll grab a paper sack and breathe in and out from it until the meat wagon comes after I've dialed 911.

I've been told that the pain from a hiatal hernia is very often mistaken for a heart attack by the person who experiences it. I can always feel it coming, and the only thing I can do is ride it out. Seems like it lasts forfreakingever, but it's less than 10-15 minutes.

Good to have it checked out because it could be Barrett's esophagus, a condition that can lead to esophageal cancer. It's not very common, I think mainly in people who suffer from GERD. So...if you have heartburn with regularity and know what foods are going to trigger GERD, then DON'T eat those foods!


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## oldman (Dec 4, 2015)

I have Barrett's Esophagus. I go to a doctor that performs an endoscopic exam on me every two years. He said that I got it from having acid reflux, which I now have under control. I drank too much coffee, so he says. I also have my throat stretched at the same time. My esophagus has a small opening, so I choke quite often. One day, maybe I won't recover when I choke and it will be all over. I have come close a few times while I was home alone and started to choke on a sandwich one time and an orange another time. The first time, I helped myself by doing the bend over an arm on the chair method, but I almost broke my ribs slamming my mid section onto the arm of the chair. The other time, I had to run next door to get help. She's an RN and knows the procedure and was aware of my issue. So, I gave her the international sign for 'choking' and she did her thing.


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