Arvind is a 30-year-old, curious, and passionate person who works as an assistant manager at Ather Energy.
He was born and brought up in Bangalore and spent his childhood and college years there. He comes from a Tamil household, and his family includes his parents and sister. Being part of the defence service, Arvind explains that his father used to reside on the borders for duty during his childhood.
“As a kid, I used to spend more time with my aunt and uncle as we all lived together, but when I was 15, we moved out and became a nuclear family. This change slowly made me develop an introverted personality.”
Despite his reserved nature, Arvind’s enthusiasm found expression through his interests. Arvind adds that as a kid, he was more interested in cricket and had a good group of friends to play with.
However, as he pursued a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, engaging in hands-on projects that nurtured his creativity and technical skills, his hobbies shifted toward bikes and automobiles. After college, Arvind meticulously began working on his passion towards the automotive industry and joined the automotive sector.
Although everything was going smoothly, beneath the surface, Arvind was struggling. He explains that having a busy lifestyle overwhelmed him a lot, but since he was an introvert, he didn’t prefer sharing them with his friends.
He adds that he felt he needed more than just an answer, based on personal experience. During COVID, when his previous company introduced counseling sessions for employees, Arvind tried taking the professional help and found them helpful. This mental health awareness session piqued his interest and planted the seed towards a healing journey.
When he eventually landed at Ather Energy, as it felt like a best fit for enhancing his skills and passion, he became aware of their partnership with YourDOST to provide counseling services for employees. Arvind started taking sessions with Ms Sohini Patil and Tanvi Nair.
He elaborates that his first few sessions with counselor Sohini Patil helped him gain clarity. He recollects having obsessive thoughts and anxiety in those sessions as well.
“I couldn’t even articulate what I was going through in that first session, but the counselor listened patiently and acknowledged my feelings by validating them.”
Arvind shared with her how desperately he wanted to understand the thoughts that were constantly running through his mind.
He adds that the overthinking reached a point where he couldn’t sleep properly and impacted his routine. Understanding this, Ms Sohini slowly helped him declutter his mind, and they together worked on organising his thoughts through journaling.
Arvind elaborates that the simple act of writing down what triggered his stress, when he felt overwhelmed, and how he reacted gave him a lot of reflection. When another wave of uncertainty hit Arvind as he considered his career path, he connected with Ms Tanvi.
He explains that he was going through some thoughts related to his workplace, which made him feel confused. Everything led him to emotional instability, and he found himself becoming frustrated, impulsive, and overwhelmed, often snapping at others or making decisions in haste.
“That wasn’t me. I’ve always been the calm type, but my mind didn’t feel like mine anymore. It exhausted me, and these momentary aggressions even impacted my bond with a few people.”
Eventually, with the sessions with both counselors, Arvind’s mind began settling down. He also started to notice things happening around him and within himself, and began adding them to his journals. This led to introspection and self-awareness.
“I realised I was trying to do too many things at once, like taking on 10 tasks and completing none. The sessions helped me acknowledge the overwhelming feelings, and the counselor encouraged me to set small, actionable goals. ”
This steady guidance ensured Arvind stayed grounded even during career transitions. It helped him break this cycle by teaching him how to prioritise and enabled him to tackle his situations more effectively.
He adds that he could finally carve out the mental space he’d been yearning for to think, to plan, and to breathe. This helped him free himself from the spirals of thought and solve life’s challenges proactively.
As Arvind continues to benefit from the tools therapy has given him, his thoughts are more organised, his emotions are more balanced, and his relationships are healthier. He now actively encourages others to explore therapy.
“You might not even realise how overwhelmed you are until you sit down and talk it out. I’m thankful to counselor for giving me that space. I went from not being able to frame my sentences to understanding my inner self.”
Arvind rates himself 4 out of 5, and we are glad that therapy helped him find his rhythm again, much like a complex machine finding its tune. We wish him all the best for his future endeavours.
Arvind’s Warrior Tips:
1.“Don’t wait until your emotions boil over; explore your mental state early.”
2.“Therapy isn’t a weakness; it’s a tune-up for your brain, where you can talk and gain tremendous insight into your mindset.”
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