“The symptoms of trauma can be stable, that is, ever-present. They can also be unstable, meaning that they can come and go and be triggered by stress.” – Peter A. Levine
Born and brought up in Patna, Harshita (name changed) was a quiet kid in a nuclear family of 4 members. Harshita found her peace by being confined to her studies. Being a bright student, Harshita would be clear about her goals to stand out and excel throughout her academic years. As she would sway about the tunes of music along with other co-curricular, Harshita was the perfect example of having a beautiful mind with a sparkling soul!
“I wasn’t aware of certain issues that were bothering me since my childhood.”
By the time Harshita entered her 12th standard, she started experiencing panic attacks as well as anxiety. By then, Harshita was confirmed deep within about certain issues that she might be going through. So, without waiting any longer, Harshita decided to consult a doctor with an assumption of mere breathing issues to be the reason.
“The doctor prescribed some medicines related to breathing as well as sleeping pills to me. But what intrigued me was the suggestion of seeing a mental health specialist.”
Back then, Harshita was quite overwhelmed by the thought of consulting a therapist owing back to the examples of her close ones. She had already witnessed a couple of friends and acquaintances who got addicted to the anti-depressants. This forbade her from taking a step towards the idea of medication. Nonetheless, the issues were still prevalent.
“I have a few months where I feel sad and can’t even bring myself to get out of bed, even when I want to, I can’t do anything about it. I would curl up in a ball and everything would seem like it kept getting bigger and bigger.”
Entering her college, Harshita started experiencing these cycles all over again. As soon as the Covid-19 pandemic hit globally, she ended up at home where she had time to figure out what to do.
This time, instead of facing it alone, Harshita decided to take a leap of faith, and there she was, approaching a counselor. Harshita had the sense of realisation that counseling is a long process. A couple of incompatible experiences didn’t stop her from trying to find the right counselor for herself, and we are extremely proud of her for believing so!
Harshita got in touch with Chaanan Kaur from YourDOST who had the aura of making Harshita feel heard. Harshita could finally feel the empathy shown to her by Chaanan and what followed was a deep introspection of her problem which turned out to be a trauma.
“I studied in a convent school and growing up, the environment around me was very toxic. If you treat a child as if they were untouchable, it is going to scar them for life. There will be a lot of issues that are going to stem from that.”
Harshita had a skin condition as a child. As a result, she was made to sit alone in the class by her teacher. This rooted an unknown trauma within her. Over the years, she faced a series of episodes that overall made her feel lonely. As a result, she would only focus on excelling in academics and her music. She developed a superiority complex as a defence mechanism.
“Being good at academics was a way for me to get people to accept me.”
Chaanan helped Harshita to see all these episodes and connect the dots to her trauma. Her loneliness, instability, panic attacks, as well as anxiety, had a clear reason to be prevalent now. However, the reason behind counseling was not only to introspect but also to find a suitable solution to overcome the deep-rooted trauma inside Harshita.
“Chaanan didn’t make things complicated for me but instead guided me through simple steps that could create a huge impact.”
Chaanan guided Harshita by making her jot down five things that she liked about herself. She also helped Harshita to change her way of thinking. Harshita could think of the positive things that needed to be done to get out of her bed or the house. This fueled her up to start the day instead of submitting to the depression.
“If I was doing 0 a few years ago, I’m doing 10 now.”
Harshita had finally started on her journey to a better place. She describes her journey to be the start of a beautiful future. Harshita rates her overall progress from a trauma-stricken past to a mentally stronger road with a 2.7 out of 5. Clearly, she has come a long way paving a path to a huger scope of improvement. We at YourDOST appreciate her amazing journey and guts to the betterment and wish her luck for her future endeavors.
Harshita’s Warrior Tips:
1. People go to therapists and if it doesn’t work out they leave the process. It’s a slow process and you should be patient to find the right person.
2. When you go deeper into therapy and understand it, it can really help, and that will take time.
3. Counseling helps you gain a fresh perspective.
Are you someone who has gone through a difficult phase and emerged stronger and better, with some professional help? Share your story with us to encourage thousands of others who might be struggling. Click here to submit your story.