The 24-year-old student at the Kumaraguru Institute has completed his BTech degree in EEE. Born and raised in the beautiful city of Coimbatore, Adithya shares a great relationship with his parents, especially his mother.
“We do share a generational gap, and at times we may not agree to the same things. Even when I try to explain things, as any Indian parents, they also have a hard time accepting it, but nevertheless, they are great parents who are kind and understanding.”
Adithya is an artist, an actor and a rapper as well. He also loves writing poetry, watching movies and reading books. He is a fitness enthusiast and loves his daily walks and gym time.
Adithya started facing issues from his school times which grew with him, and that pushed him to seek therapy as a young adult.
“I came to know about the YourDOST platform through my college, as they have a collaboration with the institution as their official mental health partner. Here I met Ms Deeksha Burman whom I chose to be my therapist.”
According to Adithya, Ms Deeksha was a straightforward and solution-oriented person, who was equally sympathetic and empathetic towards him. Adithya was always open to the idea of seeking help when in distress which helped him be comfortable and open up to his therapist.
“I wasn’t as happy as everyone else when I finished school as I sensed a tinge of immaturity in my demeanour. I was not able to equip myself in social situations, because, you know, I was a very timid, innocent and naive person.”
Adithya observed that his social interactions were limited and even if he tried to be socially involved, he was usually mocked and taken advantage of. The people he considered to be his friends were no better than everyone else.
“I was usually taken advantage of or was made the laughing stock in social gatherings. I never understood the intentions but eventually, I became their clown which I didn’t realise at the time. I was constantly made to feel less about myself and my self-esteem was in the drain.”
As a coping mechanism, Adithya turned to food for comfort and started eating whenever he felt down. This resulted in him gaining a few extra pounds that subjected him to fat shaming in his student life. His friends thought of him as someone who didn’t care when made fun of and laughed with them for the sake of socialising.
“I was a hyper person who used to talk to everyone but wasn’t aware of the fact that people took this in the wrong way. Once a person, 3 years younger than me, insulted me for the fact that I was immature and childish. I lost self-respect at the moment and it was the breaking point for me.”
Adithya realised that he needed to talk to someone, but he couldn’t approach his parents as they were confused themselves and couldn’t understand him. The fat shaming and mocking increased when he went to college as his new group of friends were the “popular students” and were absolutely mean to him.
“The funny thing is, I didn’t know that the most popular group in college was also the most toxic group in college. Hence the fat shaming became too much. They started to say stuff about me and normalized talking bad things about your parents, which was too much for me.”
After everything, Adithya was finding it too hard to move forward as his self esteem dropped to a new low altogether and he was scared to talk to even friends. He realised that he needed therapy now more than ever and approached Ms Deeksha for help.
Ms Deeksha helped Adithya understand the advantages of practicising mindfulness and the importance of physical activity. Adithya was familiar with teh concept of physical activity but was new to mindfulness, which helped him change his thought processes.
“I understood that through mindfulness I could get to the root of my problems and analyse them better. Ms Deeksha helped me with CBT which helped me question my own thoughts. I also started journaling which was more of talking to myself and reading books helped too.”
Adithya gradually came to understand that not all thoughts that flow into his mind are worth stressing over and do not connect to reality. This helped him see his life in a more positive way and started transforming into an unbreakable version of himself.
“I’m extremely grateful for Ms Deeksha for coming into my life and opening doors of hope for me. She helped me through the stressful times in my life that helped me unveil an undiscovered version of myself.”
Adithya has been through worse and still hasn’t lost hope for a fruitful life through therapy. He rates himself a 3.5 out of 5 in terms of feeling better and envisions improvement as a tough process that has to be conquered.
We at YourDOST are proud to be a part of Adithya’s transformation into an unbreakable, beautiful version of him, like a diamond that’s been through immense pressure to turn into the most beautiful stone ever. We wish you all the best for the future!
Adithya’s Warrior Tips:
1.“Therapy is a chance to get back on your feet with self-esteem and hope.”
2.“Talking to a professional helps you get a new lease on life.”
