Depression Needs A Little More Than Social Media Sentiments

Words also often fail you during your most difficult times, when your head feels nothing and everything at the same time.

It’s sad yet heart-warming that now, everyone has been speaking of mental health. People are reiterating their support and presence to others, and emphasizing on how during difficult times we need each other, and how they are there for you and me. But, that is the thing. This concern is confined to the online space, on social media, when its presence is needed offline. If we shoved our phones aside for a while, took some time off that world and delved a little more into our real, offline lives, we’d probably hear the cries of help clearly around us, amongst people we care about. Continue reading “Depression Needs A Little More Than Social Media Sentiments”

How Therapeutic Is the Urge to Splurge

Last time I impulsively filled my online cart at an e-commerce site, I ended up buying only about four out of the twelve products that I had added. I came down to that number after looking at each of those twelve items and realizing that they have no use to me. I probably didn’t even need those four products that I bought, but I still spent my hard-earned income on them. And no, I’m not an impulsive shopper or even a shopper for that matter. Yet, I indulged in shopping just to replace a temporary negative emotion with the thrill and comfort of owning something material. And I might have done so without even realizing.

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Self-Care Has To Be Ugly

My child-hood friend struck a conversation with me on self-care the other day. He said that he devoted every Sunday to a jamming session with a couple of friends, followed by a salad lunch that he wasn’t exactly a fan of, and allowed himself an hour of video games every day. That was his way of taking care of himself, he said. He asked me what my way of self-care was, and I showed him an image I had stumbled upon on the internet. It said I had to let myself have a long soothing shower sometimes, treat myself to a wholesome spread of breakfast, read a book, write down my thoughts, and explore the city on my own. And he frowned then laughed.

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This Is How Men Tackle Depression

Men and anger go a long way – their display of aggression is almost natural to them and for people around them. It’s nothing unusual. So when that anger intensifies and joins with reckless and risky behaviour, it simply gets rolled under the rug in the name of normalcy.

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Your New Year Resolutions Are Useless

Let’s assume, two weeks before the New Year, you are in the middle of a goal that is either personal or professional. It could be something that you’ve wanted to pursue since a long time but been unable to do so because of personal inhibitions. At the back of your mind, you know the year end is approaching and it means two things – celebration and starting over on a fresh slate. And since, New Years can also take the form of imaginary bridge over which the goals and baggages can be transferred from one year to the next, your current goal also gets pushed over with a pinch of procrastination.

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You Should Eat That Cake | What is Self-Care?

Ever received a star on your palm by a teacher back in kindergarten? Then you’d also have been made to stand out of the class as punishment in your school years. Such punishments have had a part in framing your mind and personality as kids and so have rewards when you did anything praise-worthy. And, that is exactly what we have been missing as adults—the combined benefits of punishing ourselves as well as rewarding when we do something even the slightest bit good.

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Maybe, It is More Than Just Depression

Share a bottle of wine with a friend, and you’re most likely to discover this unnerving fact. Between conversations of the same old stories around jobs and random tittle-tattle, that friend’s silent suffering of depression is also likely to spill over. Alternatively, it could also be you spilling subtle hints about your depressed mental state. However, on second thought, what if it isn’t depression at all?

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