What sickness can you feel in your chest?

October 2, 2025 •

5 min read

Chest pain is a common and concerning symptom, responsible for over 6.5 million emergency room visits annually. Understanding what sickness can you feel in your chest is critical, as the sensation can range from mild indigestion to life-threatening conditions like a heart attack.

Quick Summary

A wide range of conditions can cause chest pain, including heart-related problems like angina, lung issues such as pneumonia, digestive disorders like GERD, musculoskeletal injuries, and anxiety. The cause is determined by other symptoms, timing, and characteristics of the pain.

Key Points

Diverse Origins: Chest pain can stem from heart, lung, digestive, musculoskeletal, or psychological issues, making a self-diagnosis difficult.
Heart Attack Warning Signs: Be alert for crushing chest pressure, shortness of breath, nausea, and pain radiating to the arm, back, or jaw, as these require immediate emergency care.
GERD is a Common Cause: Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a frequent cause of chest pain, often described as a burning sensation exacerbated by eating or lying down.
Anxiety Can Mimic Heart Attack: Panic attacks can cause physical chest pain symptoms that feel similar to a cardiac event, including a racing heart and shortness of breath.
Know the Triggers: Pinpointing what triggers the pain (e.g., exertion, deep breaths, eating) can offer clues, but a medical evaluation is essential for an accurate diagnosis.
Emergency Triage is Crucial: When in doubt about the cause of severe chest pain, especially if it's persistent, calling emergency services is the safest course of action.

Understanding the Complexities of Chest Pain

Chest pain is a symptom, not a diagnosis, and it can stem from numerous sources within the thoracic cavity and beyond. The perception of pain can be influenced by the proximity of different organs and the nerve pathways they share. Because many conditions present with similar symptoms, it is crucial to understand the different potential causes and seek a professional medical evaluation to determine the root cause, particularly if the pain is severe or accompanied by other alarming signs.

Heart-Related Conditions

Issues affecting the heart and blood vessels are often the most urgent causes of chest pain, requiring immediate medical attention. Distinguishing heart-related pain from other types is vital for prompt treatment.

Heart Attack (Myocardial Infarction)

During a heart attack, the blood supply to part of the heart muscle is blocked, causing chest discomfort that may feel like squeezing, fullness, or a heavy pressure. This pain can last for more than a few minutes, may go away and return, and often radiates to the arms (especially the left), jaw, neck, back, or stomach. Other symptoms include shortness of breath, a cold sweat, nausea, or lightheadedness.

Angina

Angina is a symptom of coronary artery disease, caused by reduced blood flow to the heart. It is often described as pressure, squeezing, or fullness in the chest, usually triggered by physical exertion or stress. Unlike a heart attack, angina pain typically subsides with rest or medication, but it is still a serious warning sign.

Pericarditis

This is the inflammation of the pericardium, the sac-like tissue surrounding the heart. Pericarditis often causes a sharp, stabbing chest pain that may worsen when lying down or taking a deep breath.

Aortic Dissection

A less common but life-threatening condition, this involves a tear in the inner layer of the aorta, the body's largest artery. It causes a sudden, severe, tearing or ripping pain in the chest and back.

Lung-Related Problems

Chest pain can also originate from the lungs and the surrounding structures.

Pneumonia

This lung infection can cause a sharp, stabbing chest pain that worsens when breathing deeply or coughing. It is often accompanied by other symptoms, such as fever, chills, and a productive cough with colored mucus.

Pleurisy

Inflammation of the pleura, the membrane that lines the chest cavity and covers the lungs, can cause sharp chest pain that intensifies with deep breaths or coughing.

Pulmonary Embolism

A blood clot that travels to the lungs can cause sharp, stabbing chest pain, which may worsen with deep breaths. This is a medical emergency and can be accompanied by shortness of breath, rapid heart rate, and coughing up blood.

Collapsed Lung (Pneumothorax)

A collapsed lung occurs when air leaks into the space between the lung and the chest wall. This can cause sudden, sharp chest pain and shortness of breath.

Gastrointestinal Issues

Pain from the digestive system can often be mistaken for heart problems due to the proximity of the organs.

Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD)

Commonly known as acid reflux, GERD occurs when stomach acid backs up into the esophagus, causing a burning chest sensation known as heartburn. The pain can be exacerbated by eating, particularly fatty or acidic foods, and when lying down.

Esophageal Spasms

These are abnormal muscle contractions in the esophagus, which can cause intense, squeezing chest pain that can be mistaken for a heart attack.

Gallbladder or Pancreas Problems

Gallstones or inflammation of the gallbladder (cholecystitis) or pancreas (pancreatitis) can cause severe abdominal pain that may radiate to the chest.

Musculoskeletal Causes

Sometimes, the cause of chest pain is as simple as a muscle strain or inflammation of cartilage.

Costochondritis

This is the inflammation of the cartilage that connects a rib to the breastbone. It causes sharp pain in the chest wall, which can be tender to the touch and worsen with movement or deep breathing.

Rib Fractures or Muscle Strain

An injury to the ribs or a pulled muscle in the chest can lead to localized, sharp, or aching pain. The pain is often aggravated by specific movements, coughing, or deep breathing.

Mental Health Conditions

Psychological factors, especially anxiety, can manifest as physical symptoms, including chest pain.

Panic Attack

A panic attack can cause chest pain that mimics a heart attack, accompanied by a racing heart, shortness of breath, dizziness, sweating, and a feeling of intense fear. Unlike heart-related pain, anxiety chest pain often has a sharper, more fleeting quality, can occur at rest, and typically resolves once the panic subsides.

Comparison Table: Heart vs. Non-Heart Related Chest Pain


Symptom Characteristic	Heart Attack	Non-Heart Related (e.g., GERD, anxiety, muscle strain)
Sensation	Pressure, squeezing, tightness, or fullness	Sharp, stabbing, burning, or aching
Location	Mid-chest, potentially radiating to arms, back, neck, jaw	Localized, sometimes specific to a trigger point
Duration	Lasts more than a few minutes, may come and go	Often fleeting (anxiety) or tied to specific actions (breathing, eating)
Trigger	Exertion, stress, but can occur at rest	Stress, panic, deep breaths, eating, specific movements
Relief	Nitroglycerin (if prescribed), rest may not help	Antacids (GERD), relaxation (anxiety), rest (muscle)
Accompanying Symptoms	Shortness of breath, sweating, nausea, dizziness	Rapid heartbeat, hyperventilation, anxiety, coughing

When to Seek Emergency Medical Attention

While many causes of chest pain are not life-threatening, it is always safest to err on the side of caution. Call 911 or your local emergency number immediately if you experience chest pain that is sudden, severe, or accompanied by any of the following:

Sudden crushing, squeezing, or tightening chest pain.
Pain that spreads to the arm, back, neck, or jaw.
Shortness of breath, sweating, nausea, or lightheadedness.
A rapid or irregular heartbeat.
A sudden sense of extreme weakness or fatigue.

Conclusion

Chest pain is a symptom with a wide range of potential causes, from benign muscle soreness to life-threatening cardiac events. Because the symptoms can overlap, a precise diagnosis requires a thorough evaluation by a healthcare professional. Understanding the different potential causes is an important step toward seeking appropriate care. If you are experiencing concerning symptoms, especially if it's your first time, do not hesitate to seek emergency medical attention. Your health and safety are the top priority.

For more detailed information on heart health, you can visit the American Heart Association website.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, stress and anxiety can cause physical symptoms, including chest pain. This pain is often linked to muscle tension and the 'fight-or-flight' response, which can cause a racing heart and hyperventilation, mimicking symptoms of a heart attack.

Distinguishing the source can be challenging. Heart-related pain often feels like heavy pressure and may radiate to the arm or jaw, worsening with exertion. Pain from other sources, like GERD, might have a burning quality and be triggered by food. A medical evaluation with an EKG and other tests is often necessary for an accurate diagnosis.

Costochondritis is an inflammation of the cartilage that connects your ribs to your breastbone. It is a common cause of chest wall pain that can feel sharp or aching and is often tender to the touch. The pain may worsen with deep breathing, coughing, or physical activity.

Yes, digestive issues are a very common cause of chest pain. GERD, esophageal spasms, peptic ulcers, and gallbladder problems can all cause pain that radiates to the chest, often mimicking cardiac symptoms.

You should seek immediate emergency care if you experience sudden, severe, crushing chest pain that lasts more than a few minutes, especially if accompanied by shortness of breath, sweating, nausea, or pain spreading to your arms or jaw.

A pulmonary embolism, or blood clot in the lung, can cause a sudden, sharp chest pain that may feel like a stabbing sensation, particularly when taking a deep breath. It is often accompanied by shortness of breath and a rapid heart rate.

Sharp, brief chest pain that lasts only a few seconds is less likely to be a sign of a heart attack. Heart attack pain is more commonly described as a persistent, heavy pressure. However, it is never safe to assume, and any chest pain should be evaluated by a professional if you have any concerns.