How do we account for most soft drink advertisements showing the drink being consumed in association with friends having a great time, celebrations, music and exciting adventures? This marketing approach leverages a simple principle, first discovered and described by Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov, called classical conditioning. Pavlov was engaged in the study of digestion in […]
Reflections from an AA Meeting
“I am an alcoholic.” It is a sentence, but it is also a statement. It is the mandatory opening line for anyone speaking at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. To anyone, it may seem like a simple futile introduction, almost routine, but when I heard it, I felt the weight behind it. It was an acknowledgement […]
External Posting Essentials: Part 1 – Before You Leave
The external posting is among the most underutilised opportunities in Indian psychiatry residency training. Each year, hundreds of MD Psychiatry residents are sent to other institutions for four to twelve weeks of training in subspecialty areas their parent departments cannot offer, most commonly child and adolescent psychiatry, psychotherapy, and deaddiction medicine. Some return transformed. Many […]
The Auspicious Day
Millions of people worldwide believe certain days are auspicious and specific times in a day are auspicious. There will be millions of days that are not auspicious and billions of hours that are not auspicious if we get into this belief system. Just as I joined District Government Hospital as an Intern, I vaguely remember […]
When Help is Needed
Medical students often seek help when they or someone they know is going through a medical issue. But when it comes to mental health, they remain hesitant to approach the professionals. Sometimes it is due to stigma; sometimes it is just not knowing where to begin. Academic pressure, examinations, long study/work hours, and the demands […]
Trivia Time
– MINDS Newsletter Team
Madness as Devotion: Psychiatric Reflections on Laila Majnu
Love and madness have been closely linked in literature, folklore, and cinema for centuries. In many South Asian narratives, the “mad lover” is viewed not as ill, but as deeply devoted and spiritually pure. Laila Majnu, directed by Sajid Ali, revisits the classic tale of Layla and Majnun in a modern setting. The film follows […]
First Experience in Psychiatry
My psychiatry posting was a very enriching and eye-opening experience. Before this posting, I had a limited understanding of mental health disorders and often underestimated the importance of psychiatry as a clinical branch. During this rotation, I learned that psychiatry is not only about treating illnesses but also about understanding human behaviour, emotions, and social […]
When Words Matter Most: Breaking Bad News with Empathy
Few moments in medicine are as emotionally challenging as telling a patient that life may never be the same again. Whether informing someone about a diagnosis of schizophrenia, cancer, dementia, or a poor prognosis, breaking bad news is a task that demands not only clinical knowledge but also compassion, patience, and communication skills. Bad news […]