Do heart attacks ans strokes hurt?

Can you feel pain, is it like a cramp or something?

Terrific pain associated with both....don't mess on here if you think you have had anything like that get medical help immediately...

hmm...not sure about the heart attacks..(but I assume they are painful), but I had a stroke like 4 years ago when I was 30...~can you believe it??!!!~ ... anyways...I didn't know the signs of a stroke, and thought I was just having symptoms of a HORRIBLE hangover! I had the worst headache that you can possibly imagine, slight loss of vision in my left eye..some confusion...which at the time, I just thought is was from drinking the night before..(and I didn't even drink that much!)...now looking back, HOLY COW! Loss of vision?? HELLOOOOO....THAT doesn't happen w/ a hangover..I should have known better and sought immediate medical attention. Thank goodness, my vision has improved, not perfect, and I only suffer slight short term memory loss.
So...to answer your question, w/ the exception of a major migrane for a week or two...no other pain...

I read once that when having a heart attack you feel like your chest is riping open.

Heart attack victims will often complain of pressure or a crushing sensation in their chest--not so much a sharp or burning sensation. This isn't always the case as heart attacks are a refered pain, meaning a painful sensation doesn't actually come from the heart itself and is more often felt in places like your left arm or in your back. Stroke is different, I think. I remember hearing in class that there are no pain sensors in you're brain, so I would lean toward no pain during a stroke. I do remember that slurred speech, confusion, and sagging muscles on one side of the body are symptomatic of a stroke.

I think some people have no pain at all- people with diabetes can have heart attacks and not know it due to nerve damage. I don't know if a stroke always hurts either- especially if it is a TIA, just major confusion. My grandma had a heart attack and never felt anything more than horrible heart burn- she thought she had indigestion. He arm also did not hurt, she had pressure up into her throat. If in doubt, see a doc!

If you ever someday, experience excruciating pain in your left side of your chest or somewhere in your head, then you'll really know for sure.

This Patient Guide is written for the loved ones of heart patients who are dealing with the short-term stress that comes with a test, procedure or recent diagnosis of heart disease. It explains why support is so important to a loved one with heart disease. It also offers practical strategies on how to support a loved one while also taking care of yourself.

Strokes, if they are caused by bleeding, and not a clot, are painful. Those that are caused by a clot or embolism sometimes are reported as painful, sometimes they are not.
Heart attacks may or may not be painful, and whether or not they are doesn't have anything to do with how bad they are or aren't. Some people get horrible pain with angina, which is not a heart attack, and others have massive heart attacks and drop dead before they ever know anything is wrong.
Classically, heart attacks are described as a 'crushing chest pain, with or without radiation'. But that doesn't mean they all have that effect. Sometimes heart attacks are painful, but the pain is in the shoulder, or back, or stomach, and people don't know it's actually caused by their heart.