When to call 9-1-1 and when to call your care team

Clear lists to help you decide: call 9-1-1 for heart attack warning signs, or call your care team for new or changing symptoms. Plus angina vs heart attack.

5 min read · last reviewed September 28, 2026

Living with heart disease can make you notice every twinge in your chest. That is completely normal. This page helps you and your family know what to do: when to call for an ambulance right away, and when to call your care team instead.

Print it, stick it on the fridge, and share it with the people you live with.

Call 9-1-1 or your local emergency number right away

Call if you or someone with you has any of these:

• Chest discomfort: pressure, squeezing, fullness, pain, burning or heaviness. It may last more than a few minutes, or go away and come back.
• Discomfort in the upper body: neck, jaw, shoulder, one or both arms, back or upper stomach.
• Shortness of breath, with or without chest discomfort.
• Sweating or a cold sweat.
• Nausea or throwing up.
• Light-headedness or feeling faint.
• Angina that is different from usual: new, stronger, more frequent, happening at rest, or not settling with rest or your medicine the way it normally does.
• Someone collapses, does not respond, or is not breathing normally. Start CPR and ask someone to find an AED (defibrillator).

Some heart attacks start suddenly. Others start slowly with mild discomfort. Symptoms can differ from person to person. Women are more likely than men to have symptoms such as shortness of breath, nausea, or back or jaw pain, with or without chest pain. Older adults and people with diabetes may have very mild symptoms.

Your symptoms may not be the same as last time. If you're not sure, call anyway.

While you wait for help

• Stop what you are doing. Sit or lie down in whatever position is most comfortable.
• If your doctor prescribed nitroglycerin, use it as instructed. Don't take it if you have used a medicine for erectile dysfunction recently. Tell the 9-1-1 call taker instead.
• Follow the 9-1-1 call taker's instructions. They may tell you to chew aspirin (ASA) if you are not allergic to it.
• Unlock the door and turn on a light if you can, so paramedics can get in.
• Keep your medicine list handy. Paramedics will want to see it.
• Don't drive yourself to the hospital. Paramedics can check your heart and start treatment on the way.

Call your care team (the same day or soon)

These symptoms are not usually emergencies, but they need attention. Call your doctor, nurse or clinic, or your local health line. If you can't reach anyone and you're worried, go to an emergency department or call 9-1-1.

• Your usual angina is happening a bit more often, or with less activity than before.
• You feel more short of breath than usual with everyday activities.
• Swelling in your ankles or legs, or sudden weight gain over a few days.
• Dizziness, or a heartbeat that feels very fast, slow, skipping or fluttering.
• Side effects from your medicines, such as unusual bleeding or bruising, muscle pain, a lasting cough or feeling faint when you stand up.
• Redness, swelling, warmth or discharge at a wound, or where a tube went in for a stent or angiogram.
• Low mood, worry, or trouble sleeping that lasts more than two weeks.
• You run out of a heart medicine or can't afford it.

Never stop a heart medicine on your own. Call first. There is usually a solution.

Angina or heart attack: what's the difference?

Both happen when the heart muscle doesn't get enough oxygen-rich blood, and they can feel alike.

Stable angina

• Comes on with effort, stress, cold weather or a big meal.
• Follows a pattern you know.
• Usually lasts a few minutes.
• Settles with rest or the medicine your doctor prescribed.

Heart attack or unstable angina (an emergency)

• Can happen at any time, including at rest.
• Is new, stronger or different from your usual pattern.
• Lasts longer, or keeps coming back.
• Does not settle with rest or your usual medicine.

If you are not sure which one it is, treat it as an emergency and call 9-1-1.

Something you can do today: Ask your doctor to write down your personal angina plan, including what to do and when to call 9-1-1.

A word about "bothering" people

Many people wait too long because they don't want to make a fuss, or they're afraid it's a false alarm. Please don't wait. Getting help quickly can save heart muscle and save lives. Emergency teams would much rather see you and find it was nothing serious.

Something your family can do: Learn Hands-Only CPR. It takes only a few minutes to learn and could help save a life.

Questions to ask your care team

• What symptoms should make me call 9-1-1, and which ones should I call you about?
• Should I have nitroglycerin at home? How exactly should I use it?
• Who can I call after hours or on weekends?
• Are any of my medicines likely to cause side effects I should watch for?
• How can my family help in an emergency?

This article is general information, not medical advice. Talk with your health care team about your own situation. In an emergency, call 9-1-1 or your local emergency number.

In an emergency, call 9-1-1 or your local emergency number.

General information, not medical advice. It does not replace your own care team. If you think you or someone else is having a medical emergency, call 9-1-1 or your local emergency number. If you are in crisis or thinking about suicide, call or text 9-8-8 (Canada and the US).

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