this could be a number of things, some of which can be fatal. lab tests or imaging for these things are cheap, but only available at hospital and what else do you expect from random internet people than “haul your ass to hospital and ask someone irl that actually knows”

Genuinely don’t know and don’t like 911 since police are involved.

911 dispatcher in the US here

This will vary a lot from one jurisdiction to another, I can really only speak to county I work in

But while in theory every EMS call also gets a police response, probably more than half of them the only action the police take is to tell us “not responding unless requested”

And if they do respond, a lot of time they don’t do much besides sit at the end of the driveway with their lights flashing so the ambulance can find the house easier.

Things like overdoses, assaults, shootings/stabbings, psych emergencies, cardiac arrests, etc. they do of course show up to because they may actually need to do something.

And if you live in a bigger city or rougher part of the suburbs, sometimes they may even take their sweet-ass time getting to those.

And if you live in a rural area, there’s a decent chance you’re covered by some part time or regional police department, or state police/county sheriffs who are stretched way too thin covering a huge area with maybe 2 or 3 officers on duty at any one time, they’re probably not gonna show up in a hurry if at all either.

Like I said, it varies a lot, some towns in my county I can count on police being there before the ambulance (whether or not they actually do anything once they’re there in a different story) and in others the cops don’t give half a fuck unless someone is actively dying.

If you do find yourself calling 911 though, for the love of God, don’t tell them you don’t want police on your medical call, I swear that might be the most surefire way to make sure they do actually show up in a hurry. If that ends up in the notes of the call it makes the cops think you’re hiding something or I don’t know, planning to jump the EMS squad or something, some cops can be pretty panicky, paranoid weirdos like that, or sometimes just spiteful.

Sounds like a seizure. Of what kind, dunno. If it’s candy, might be diabetes.

It’s just guesswork though. Only a doctor visit will say for sure.

I had those issues before the doctor diagnosed GERD/Reflux, and prescribed medication. Now I take a Famotidine every day, twice if I’ve had something particularly spicy. I never have that problem anymore.

I finally did something about it when I aspirated in the middle of the night, like you did. It can actually give you pneumonia, which happened to me.

BTW, a banana can act as a pretty good acid treatment in a pinch., like in the middle of the night.

Also, which side you sleep on makes a difference, too. Your esophagus goes straight down the middle of your chest, until it reaches your stomach, which makes a left turn. So when you sleep on your left side, the opening to the esophagus is above the stomach, making it difficult for food to slip into it.

But if you sleep on your right side, your stomach is above the opening, and any undigested contents are up against that opening… if it’s weak, or opens, gravity draws that food into your esophagus, causing reflux.

So sleeping on your left side is preferred.

Here’s some general life advice: if your body (especially your heart) starts doing things it shouldn’t be doing you should probably talk to a doctor. You have insurance, this is what it’s for. Hit up your nearest urgent care.

Edit: I’m gonna go ahead and add this because I’ve now had two people tell me how ignorant I am of the US healthcare system: I am a disabled American in my 50s who has been dealing with serious medical problems my entire life. I understand the ‘system’ far too well. But I’m gonna state what is apparently an unpopular opinion in this community: being dead sucks a lot worse than having medical debt.

Damn… Sounds like literally you just had heart attack…

You definitely want to get that checked out

Vomit, burning, heart pain etc… Are all in the “pretty alarming” category

Really sorry you don’t have healthcare! Have you tried the NHS symptoms checker?. You don’t need to be eligible for NHS treatment to use it, you don’t even register. IME they are a bit trigger happy with saying you need to get checked out but it will hopefully give you a steer. Good luck

This was me when I had Norovirus, though the puking was preceded by firehose-level shits until I took an Imodium, after which it switched ends before deciding on some rather unpleasant alternating events

Alright. Way too many socialists in this post who don’t know how 'Murica works, god dammit. Here’s real advice:

You woke up, so you aren’t dead yet. In most cases, that’s a good sign. Give it 30 minutes. If you feel better, great! This is where I preposterously tell you to follow up with your family doctor and we both have a good chuckle.

(Edit to explain: we have no idea who our family doctor is and we haven’t been there in so long we would be considered a new patient.)

If you don’t feel better, might well give it another hour. Most of the damage from a heart attack or stroke is done in the first 30 minutes, so you’re probably not going to get any worse.

If you’re still not dead after that, you’re probably clear to make it through the weekend.

Next question is do you have sick leave? If not, congratulations, you’re fine! If you do have sick leave, go ahead and make an appointment first thing Monday. They won’t do anything, just send you for labs, maybe or just leave that part to the specialist they will refer you to.

So now it’s 6 weeks later and the specialist is calling to confirm the appointment you’re forgotten about. Do you feel better or are you out of sick leave? Congratulations, you’re fine.

Next, is your deductible over 10% of your annual income? (5% if it’s after Nov.15. You’re gonna wind up paying that whole thing for diagnostic tests this year and the actual treatment will hit you after Jan 1 and you’re double fucked.) If it is, congratulations, you’re fine!

If you reach this point, you probably are in need of medical attention and can afford it. Congratulations on getting the help you need.

Bask in the superiority of the best healthcare in the world, you European nancies!

Obviously the tone is meant to be humorous, but this is basically the reality. The only thing I’ve omitted is that you can just go to the hospital and get the treatment you need and then avoid answering unknown numbers for 7 years. I have yet to see anyone sued over medical debt.

Found the American… 🥴

I’ve had something similar other than the heart rate stuff, and like top comment says it was acid reflux. But if an irregular heart rhythm persists more than you have felt before, then absolutely go!

You have medical. Get checked out. Said the guy who hates going to doctors / hospitals. Be safe.

Sounds like heat illness. Did you sleep too hot?

Welcome to America. Where medical advice is asked to a bunch of weebs on the internet over going to the fucking hospital when you feel ill because of money concerns… I hate it here.