Finding Your Inner Strength When You Need It

Every now and then we get to guest on other people's shows. This episode is one we recorded live with Sentinel Assam Online recently for their Get Set Global show hosted by the brilliant Hiramoni Sarma.  There were several light-hearted moments and we spoke about our life as medics, about reliance and relationships and more besides.
Here are some of the questions from the conversation:
1.       As I understand, you both work as Psychiatrists and yet bring spirituality into your clinical work. We either have medical experts who prescribe, treat a symptom OR spiritual gurus who help with wisdom and you both are bringing both together. What made you get there and is it hard to deal with the pressure to prescribe medications when not always needed? Because sometimes people think they are treated when they are prescribed.

2.       A lot of us are extremely worried right now for our family members and friends, people are losing their close ones. Personally, also, it’s been hard to process what’s happening around. As experts in mental health, I want to understand if anything can be done to break some of those cycles of how we feel to see light. And people around those who are grieving, how can they support them in that journey.

3.       And then the caretakers who are managing the patients (can be their family member or friend), they get so tired, not getting sleep, not being able to manage their daily household routines, worried about finances– what are some of the things a person can do or hold onto some sort of wisdom that can keep their sanity and not get totally swamped by emotions/exasperation.

4.       Let’s talk for a bit about what’s happening to people’s relationships. Lockdown means some are distant from their loved ones. People were not used to working from home, being with the same people all day long which can make one feel stuck, irritated. It’s affecting people’s relationships in different dynamics. Can you explain what may be happening beneath the surface about how people are feeling in those situations?

5.       One of the most intimate relationships we experience is a relationship as couples. In relationships, people go through highs but also low points that lead to arguments, endless fights, sometimes heartbreaks and the sufferings from it. I want to understand the psychology part (what goes on beneath), what causes lows in relationships, and can we save ourselves before getting there?

6.       Talk about the role of communication in building relationships, and more importantly, how to do it effectively, even when arguing, how do we do that effectively?

7.       In most cultures, we are told that families are everything. But we can suffer from family relationships including our partners. It’s been said by best-selling authors, philosophers, gurus, thought provokers that you can love someone and still choose to say goodbye to them. You can miss a person every day and still be glad that they are no longer in our lives. For some, it’s a contradiction to the idea that you got to put up with people you love. As Psychiatrists, how do you deal with patients who come with a history of sufferings from toxic people/relations in their lives and how you deal with that?

8.       Something most of us experience in life - we are speaking to someone, enjoying the conversation and all of a sudden, they say something that hits us, our heart stops to open up and mind starts to work “did I say something wrong” and we start to see ourselves getting involved in that reaction. We have two options – “do I need to resolve this or do I let this pass.” What goes on beneath the surface when we encounter experiences like this and what are we supposed to do when we&nbsp