Thoughts — Mental Health Awareness

Ugh, they are just trying to get more attention!  Does that sound familiar? Wanting to prove that you are not just doing things (like dressing a certain way) or crying just for attention? Feeling embarrassed for wanting more attention? It sounds like needing attention has a bad reputation.  Why is needing attention so shamed? Why is not needing attention considered cool? It doesn’t make any sense because we are hardwired for connection and attachment, and in so many ways, seeking attention helps us connect with others. Take, for example, one of the most human experiences known to mankind: as shocking...

Literally, everybody around me, and the current trend is to go and have an education abroad. We have this notion of the west and how the quality of education is better from what we have in India.  Don't get me wrong, some of the short term courses can be really insightful as well. But intersectionality and privilege are two things that cannot be isolated from mental health. The culture and the background that a person comes from play a large role in how their mental health is affected. When we see people from marginalized communities we also see that they...

The one fun part of therapy is the conversations and discussions that come up. Recently, I had a lovely conversation with a client. They proposed the question of if we are good then don’t we all deserve good things. And this isn’t the first time I have heard this question but it is the one question that I do get asked the most. And it is one of my favourite questions, mostly because there is no right answer and it revolves around perspective and thought.  Let me break my thoughts down for you. I do believe that we are all...

It’s a tale as old as time. Shaming and humiliation has been around for decades. We all use it at home as well as in society. But what are they exactly?  Shame and humiliation are negative feelings associated with dishonour, self hate, disgrace and regret. There are 4 types of shame according to psychotherapist Burgo, which are unrequited love and rejection, unwanted exposure, disappointed expectation and exclusion.  Back in the day, public shaming was necessary in order to have a kingdom of loyal subjects, a better understanding of who was not conforming to the norms and needed to be pulled...

Quite often I’ve been told by my friends to get out and travel, and (because I have other priorities or a small budget) I would internally roll my eyes and think something along the spectrum of “I got this”, “I don't need to”, to a more wholesome “I doubt travelling would give me anything more than I need”.  I also developed an annoyance towards the repeated mention of travelling (more so, solo travelling) which is quite the trend on social media and dating profiles, to the point where they incessantly use hashtags along the lines of #travelbug #wanderlust that lead...