VOLUME 01 | ISSUE 03 | SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2019
A BI-MONTHLY DIGITAL MAGAZINE FOR E MOTIONAL W ELLNESS
VOLUME 01 | ISSUE 03 | SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2019
A BI-MONTHLY DIGITAL MAGAZINE FOR E MOTIONAL W ELLNESS
WE MAG
VOLUME O1 | ISSUE 03
SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2019
Vira Komarraju EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Jolly Vin
DESIGN
HEAD
WEQIP
PUBLISHED
BY
WE MAG takes constant and utmost care to ensure that the content is accurate, original, and complete. WE MAG & WEQIP assume no liability or responsibility for any inaccurate, inauthentic or incomplete information. The views and opinions expressed in the articles are that of its author(s) and are not necessarily the views of the publisher and editor. The published material, editorials and all other content is published in good faith and WE MAG carries no responsibility for the opinion expressed thereon. The materials and content contained in this publication are for general information only and are not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. WE MAG reserves the right to change any information without notice. WE MAG & WEQIP cannot be held responsible and shall not be liable for content of other websites, resources, external organizations and people that might be mentioned in the articles. If you have any query regarding article submission, feedback, errors & omissions, or any other comment please mail to us at info@weqip.com Any form of reproduction of any content of this digital publication without the written permission of the publisher or the editor is strictly prohibited. For more information and exclusive digital content, head over to www.weqip.com WEQIP is a trademarked organization. All rights reserved.
From The Founder's Desk
My Dear Friends,
Let me begin this time again with heartfelt gratitude - to you, our readers, our contributors and our team. 'We' and WE MAG are nothing without YOU. It is a season of festivities here in India - the colour, vibrancy and fervour we experience in this duration is nothing like any other time. Beginning with Janmashtami which celebrates the birth of Lord Krishna and Ganesh Chaturthi or Vinayaka Chathurthi which celebrates the birth of Lord Ganesha, harvest festivals like Onam, nine days & nights of Navratri culminating in Dusshera and then one of the most beautiful festivals - the festival of lights Diwali. Although I am spiritual, I do not consider myself very religious. I might not know all the rituals and rules to be followed in observing the festivities – but I am always in awe of those who dedicate a substantial amount of their time and energies in these celebrations. For me and them, these festivals are a way to express our gratitude to that Higher Power who considered us important enough to be born in the form of one of the most intelligent and empowered species – humans. These festivals are our opportunity to thank divinity for making the world go around – both literally and figuratively. And even as we are immersed in these revelries, parallelly, we do find time to complain and criticise, for envy and resentment, for aggression and sarcasm. So, let these coming two months be the time when we become a little less complaining towards God and everyone around us and be a little more appreciative of what we have. It is time we become a little more grounded, little more generous and little more grateful. Let these months be the time when it brings us joy, peace and contentment – both inner and outer in equal amounts. While we revel in these two months of festivities, may we be strengthened by our faiths and guided by our consciousness. As always, I love to hear from you. Share not only your feedback and views, but also your thoughts and ideas with me at saumya@weqip.com. Much love and with you on this journey,
Dr. Saumya Goyal
Founder - WE MAG & WEQIP
Letter From The Editor
Dear Readers,
Welcome to the third issue of WE MAG! Thank you to our readers and contributors who are joining us in our journey towards emotional wellness – one person at a time! We’ve packed this issue with pieces which stir our thoughts towards mental health. The more we talk about it, the better this world will become. Hence, I am constantly urging you to share these stories with those you know will benefit from them and come forward to share your own experience and journey. In this issue, Susanna Newsonen – The Happologist®, shares an insightful article on how self-love helps her to worry less and live more. Neuropsychiatrist Dr. Srikanth Reddy explains how teenage depression differs from adult depression. In her column ‘Nutrition For The Mind’, our nutritional mentor Jolly Vin talks about the benefits of detox for both body and mind and shares another easy recipe – ABC Detox shot, which can help kick-start your detox journey. The artists we showcase in this issue's Medium column are Devshri and Garima. Devshri’s piece ‘Not Beautiful’ cautions people from romanticising mental illness and Garima’s artwork ‘Drowning in Time’ captures the tyranny of time. Melli O'Brien – world renowned mindfulness expert - guides us on how a non-judgemental mind can connect and transform us. Krithika Akkaraju’s photo essay builds a story around ‘time structuring’, a concept of transactional analysis. Mental health benefits of gardening are illustrated by Kevin Espiritu (founder of Epic Gardening) and Lorin Nielsen. In our column ‘School Bell’ Learning Curve Life Skills Foundation’s Gayatri Natarajan and Sirisha Challapalli highlight the need for social emotional learning (SEL) in schools. Bindiya Murgai writes on 10 easy ways to practice spiritual parenting. Priyanka Nair delves on the mental health benefits of physical activity and Deepa Gandhi shares some easy tips to improve mothers’ emotional wellbeing. In this edition, Saumya ponders over the lost art of humility and the poetry column ‘Musings’ includes my poem ‘The Pensive Mind’. I encourage you to share your views and engage in discussion on these stories. If you wish to contribute an article, thought piece, viewpoint, photo essay, artwork, recipe, poem, book review – or anything related to emotional wellness, send in your work to write@weqip.com. I hope you enjoy Volume 1, Issue 3 of WE MAG and that we are able to start narratives around mental health. This is just the beginning… Happy festivities and happy reading...
Vira Komarraju
Editor - WE MAG
ON THE COVER
Yellow And Navy 3Â By Linda Woods U s e d
w i t h
p e r m i s s i o n
Linda Woods's art collections can be found on Fine Art America and on her website
W E
M A G
VOLUME 01 | ISSUE 03
C O N T E N T S Ideas
0 9
What Helps Me to Worry Less and Live More - Susanna Newsonen Teen Aid
1 6
How Teenage Depression Differs from Adult Depression - Dr. Srikanth Reddy Nutrition For The Mind
2 2
Let's Talk Detox - Jolly Vin Medium
2 9
Not Beautiful - Devshri Chandrakar
Reflection
3 1
How a Non-Judgemental Mind Connects and Transforms Us - Melli O'Brien Faces
4 1
Making Sense of Randomness - Krithika Akkaraju Inspiration
5 3
Mental Health Benefits of Gardening: Nature’s Healing Touch - Kevin Espiritu, Lorin Nielsen
W E
M A G
VOLUME 01 | ISSUE 03
C O N T E N T S School Bell
6 3
Prevention is Better than Cure: Relevance and Criticality of Social-Emotional Learning in Schools - Gayatri Natarajan, Sirisha Challapalli Perspective
7 1
10 Ways to Practice Spiritual Parenting Bindiya Murgai Medium
7 9
Drowning in Time - Garima J-Bajaj
Life Lessons
8 1
The Lost Art of Humility Dr. Saumya Goyal Insight
8 8
The Mental Health Benefits of Physical Activity - Priyanka Nair Musings
9 5
The Pensive Mind - Vira Komarraju Your Voice
9 8
Improving a Mother's Emotional Wellbeing - Deepa Gandhi
▪
▪ ▪
▪
*
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
▪
▪
▪
▪
▪ ▪
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
▪ ▪ ▪
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
▪ ▪
▪
▪ ▪ ▪
▪ ▪ ▪ ▪
▪
▪
▪
▪
▪
▪
▪
▪
WWW.WEQIP.COM
EQUIPPING WELLNESS - MIND + HEART+ SOUL
India is home to more than 1.3 billion people and over 200 million suffer from mental illness sometime during their lifetime. Unfortunately, out of these only a few ever muster the courage to talk about it and reach out for help. Why? Because mental illness is still considered a stigma, a shame, a humiliation, and a big stain on one’s personality. We have a long way to create a culture which considers mental illness for what it is – an illness. We at WEQIP are driven by the philosophy that ‘Mind is part of the body too’ and we need to take care of it as much as our body. In line with this, we are dedicated to creating platforms and driving initiatives which bring people together to acknowledge, talk about, and address the elephant in the room. ABOUT US
WEQIP™ FOCUSES ON ENHANCING WELLNESS OF MIND, HEART, AND SOUL THE TRINITY FOR HAPPINESS
Our publications are completely collaborative in nature and our stories are of people, by people, and most importantly for people. They are for those of us whose life is touched by emotional or behavioural health issue at any point in time in their life – a parent, a teacher, a manager, a child, an IT professional, an actor, a housewife, an HR executive, an artist, a friend to name a few. WEQIP Blog or WE Blog as we like to refer it to and our digital magazine WE Mag is constantly on the lookout of people who have something powerful to say about Emotional/ Behavioural Health & Wellness. We encourage experts, professionals, mental health warriors from various backgrounds to share their knowledge and experiences through these media. The ideas can take any form - art, essay, story, poem, interview, showcase, spotlight, or a straightforward article. The content becomes more enriched as we go along this collaborative journey. If you feel you have a story in you, an idea which would help others, a great practice which is worth emulating, or you are just curious to know more, please reach out to us at – write@weqip.com OUR DIGITAL PUBLICATIONS