Being diagnosed with heart failure can be devastating. However, the diagnosis doesn’t mean you can’t live well and prevent the condition from getting worse. Two essential areas that can help you accomplish this are communicating well with your doctor and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
10 Symptoms To Tell Your Doctor
1. Swelling In The Body
The right side of your heart is responsible for collecting blood from your body. If it fails, fluid can collect in the body. The accumulation of fluid can be more obvious in your ankles but tends to affect other areas over time. Eventually, you’ll notice swelling in your legs as well. It’s important to talk to your doctor before that point.
2. Unexplained Fatigue
Your heart does a lot of work to circulate blood around your body. When it’s not healthy, your heart isn’t giving you everything you need. That means you’ll feel tired more easily. If it’s getting harder for you to do physical activity then your heart failure might be getting worse.
3. Shortness Of Breath
This issue is also related to how well your heart can do its job. Having a fully functioning circulatory system is important to your respiratory system as well. The left side of the heart collects oxygen-rich blood so if it’s failing, fluid builds up in your lungs. This build-up causes shortness of breath.
4. Sudden Weight Gain
Unexplained weight gain with heart failure is typically associated with internal fluid retention. This can happen even if you don’t notice swelling in your legs or ankles.
5. A Persistent Cough
This issue is associated with the accumulated fluid in your lungs. It can be worse when you’re lying down or being active. For some people, the cough is accompanied by wheezing, which is similar to an asthmatic episode.
6. Difficulty Sleeping
Fluid build-up can make it difficult to breathe when you’re lying down. That, in turn, affects how well you sleep. While some people can still get a decent night’s sleep by sitting upright or staying at an incline, it’s not ideal for everyone.
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7. An Increased Heart Rate
As your heart struggles to carry out its duties, you may notice that your heart rate is higher than normal.
8. Stomach Pain
Unexplained stomach pain is another symptom that’s associated with fluid build-up. Though the pain may be in your stomach, the issue is