Warning Signs That People Tend to Miss

~The heart attacks are becoming common in the 30s, 40s and 50s

Indian singer KK, short for Krishnakumar Kunnath, died of heart attack on May 31, 2022, just hours after giving a live performance at Kolkata. He was 53 years old.

KK reportedly felt unwell while performing at a concert in Kolkata. The show began at 5 pm. After the show he returned to his hotel in Esplanade, where he complained of uneasiness. He was rushed to Calcutta Medical Research Institute (CMRI) at around 10:30 pm, where he was declared dead. Is it getting increasingly common?

KK is not the first one to die at such a young age. In recent times, Raj Kaushal, Siddharth Shukla, Puneeth Rajkumar and Mirzapur actor Brahma Mishra (who died at 36) also left fans teary-eyed with their untimely demise.

Do warning signs develop overnight?

As per reports KK felt uneasiness after reaching his hotel room post completion of his performance and soon, he collapsed. Uneasiness is one of the most common signs of heart attack, which is easy to ignore? People often misunderstand it to be the reason behind some other ailment and delay calling a doctor.

Question here is, why do people ignore these warning signs? Have these warning signs developed overnight?

People over 65 years are at a greater risk of heart attacks but in recent years, there has been a sharp rise in heart attacks among those below 50.

Several doctors and health experts blame it on lifestyle factors, which are said to be responsible behind the growing cases of heart attacks. Cases of heart attack are being seen more in the young population these days.

Is it increasingly common these days? Yes! Therefore, act in time. It is said that stitch in time saves nine – more importantly, it saves lives.

What then is the solution?

Do you want to be happier, healthier, have more influence, be a better decision-maker, and be a more effective professionally and academically? Then early awareness about warning signs can definitely help take preventive measures. Self-awareness then, is the most important muscle you need to develop. Buddha has shared the importance of self-awareness. Mindfulness is therefore an important tool that will take you to be a better self-aware person. It helps you to be aware of what’s going on in your mind, body, and environment.

Is self-awareness the key skill for growth, health, and happiness?

Self-awareness is the ability to focus on yourself and how your actions, thoughts, or emotions do or don’t align with your internal standards. If you’re highly self-aware, you can objectively evaluate yourself, manage your emotions, align your behaviour with your values, and understand correctly how others perceive you.

Put simply, those who are highly self-aware can interpret their actions, feelings, and thoughts objectively. Developing self-awareness is important because it allows an individual to assess their growth and effectiveness and change course when necessary.

I am sure KK and others who passed away in their 40s and 50s must have received body signals in the past regarding their health and emotional challenges. Either they decided to ignore or could not comprehend the seriousness of these warning signs, perhaps, because they lacked virtues of self-awareness.

Why is self-awareness important?

Looking inward: It indicates that when we look inward, we can clarify our values, thoughts, feelings, behaviours, strengths, and weaknesses. We are able to recognize the effect that we have on others. Vipassana Research Institute finds, “People with self-awareness are happier, healthier, and have better relationships. They also experience a sense of personal and social control as well as higher job satisfaction”.

Looking outward: When we look outward, we understand how people view us. People who are aware of how other people see them, are more likely to be empathetic to people with different perspectives.

What does “Awareness” mean?

I like to think of “awareness” as what you notice in life. It’s about paying attention.

It’s the details you pick up from your perception of the world. It’s your consciousness actively gathering and processing information from your environment. It’s how you experience life.

There’s lots of stuff to notice each day, each hour, and even each minute. Look up from this blog post for a moment and slowly scan the area around you. What did you notice? Which details can you describe?

What does “Self-Awareness” mean?

If “awareness” is about noticing stuff in the world, “self-awareness” is about focusing your awareness on yourself.

It’s your ability to notice your feelings, your physical sensations, your reactions, your habits, your behaviours, and your thoughts. You are aware of all those different aspects of yourself as if you were another person observing you. Another way to think of it is paying attention to your intuition, also known as your 6th sense or your gut feeling.

Or as someone I once interviewed told me, self-awareness is about being honest with yourself. We all have a self-image of how we want others to perceive us. You might view yourself as punctual, but in reality, you are often late to appointments.

Self-awareness is about focusing on the reality of your behaviour and not on the story you tell yourself about yourself.

What are the benefits of self-awareness?

1. It gives us signals about health related changes in our body
2. It decreases stress
3. It gives us a greater ability to regulate our emotions
4. It helps us build better relationships
5. It gives us the power to influence outcomes
6. It helps us to become better decision-makers It gives us more self-confidence – so, as a result, we communicate with clarity and intention
7. It allows us to understand things from multiple perspectives
8. It frees us from our assumptions and biases

How to become a more self-aware person?

Practice mindfulness

Mindfulness is a practice. It helps you to be aware of what’s going on in your mind, body, and environment. Mindful Meditation is one of a few practices that you can insert into your daily life. Practicing mindfulness is a wonderful tool for developing greater self-control.

The road to self-awareness is a journey. The most self-aware people see themselves on a quest to mastery rather than at a particular destination. As you move forward in developing your self-awareness, ask yourself regularly, “How will you move toward the best version of yourself today?”

Self-awareness means knowing your values, personality, needs, habits, emotions, strengths, weaknesses, etc. With a sense of who you are and a vision of the person you want to become, a plan for professional or personal development can be created.

How do you strengthen your wellbeing and mental fitness?

You may schedule a free session with me to see what mindful coaching can do for you. Contact me at: captainpsm@gmail.com

Be more confident and fulfilled with a MindRetreat Career Coach:

• Get matched with an expert who’s right for you.
• Have personal, 1:1 conversation about your health, career and relationships.
• Gain clarity on your next academic and career move.
• Tap into your strengths and flourish at work.