Panicking about arm pain - need talking down

[gettinginastate]

I've had a dull sort of sickly pain in my left arm since yesterday. I've rung 111 as it's just not shifting and now waiting for a call back from a clinician.

Can anyone help talk me down as I'm getting so panicked and have my two kids here and 2 tradesman. I haven't any other symptoms except slight numbness in the left hand. I'm also starting to feel sick and ill but that might be as I've not really eaten all day and the house is freezing with people coming in and out.

I'm just thinking the worst - I'm 44 and averagely healthy lifestyle - not great but not awful. I'm getting really scared and as I'm single obviously worried about the children...

Okay. If it were an emergency, 111 would have triaged you as such. Okay yes not infallible but it's a pretty good system.

Go and eat a little of whatever you can stomach. Try to drink something too. Our body sensations can get out of whack very easily when we don't eat in my experience.

Who can you ring now to get help with childcare if you need to go to hospital or the doctors?

Let the tradesmen that you're not feeling well (obviously tell them not covid symptoms) and ask them to keep half an eye out on you of you get noticeably worse.

Get settled in a cosy chair out of drafts with warm clothes and a blanket or two. Have a warm drink - make it extra milky if you can stomach it and if you normally drink your tea/coffee white.

Do you suffer from migraines? Could be one starting....

Take an aspirin or 2 aspirin and drink a 1 pint of water op. Just in case it is your heart. It will thin your blood a little if it is and won't hurt you if it isn't xxx

Firstly make yourself something to eat and drink and close yourself in one room to keep warm. Hopefully you won't have to wait too long to speak to someone.

Could you have been bitten or stung? My arm went numb after a wasp sting.
Or it could be a nerve issue if you slept in an odd position the night before.

Have you done any exercise or lifting that might have tweaked a muscle or tendon in your neck/shoulder?

You need to eat so do that.

I assume your concern is heart attack, the symptoms for women are often very different to those for men:

www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/conditions/heart-attack/women-and-heart-attacks

If you think it is likely you have pulled a muscle or trapped a nerve then you should take ibuprofen (after food) and rest it.

If you think a heart attack is possible then you should call 999.

I had arm pain like that, and it didn't help when I googled and it described a woman just like me who thought it was caused by throwing the ball for her dog (which is what I thought) but it turned out to be a heart attack. In my case though it was just a bad arm, thank goodness. So don't freak out it's probably just a sore arm.

If you start feeling any worse, don't be shy about ringing 999. Shortness of breath, dizziness, vomiting or pain in your chest are symptoms to watch out for.

If it helps though, I have a lot of inflammation in my left shoulder that shows as pain in my left arm. It also tends to get worse when I'm anemic which is really fun.

Eat something

Hope you are OK OP? x