The Mental Compass

Culture is the system of shared belief, value, behavior, and artifacts followed by the group of people. Culture refers to lifestyle, society, customs, heritage, and social habits. Culture defines what type of lifestyle we lead. Culture identity is dynamic, evolving and multilayer processed by which an individual and group define themselves based on shared belief, value, and behavior that makes sense of belonging to an individual. It is not a fixed trait, ongoing process, interaction between personal self – perception and external society. Cultural identity influences mental health by shaping perception of an individual, seeking help, perceiving distress, and experiencing belonging that makes a person to enhance this self-esteem, and resilience. However, culture conflict, stigma or discrimination can lead to stress, anxiety, and depression. Culture identity influence mental health, that involves, Interpretation of illness:  Culture dictates whether mental health is viewed through me...

By Gurneet Kaur, Counselling Psychologist “95%… and she sat across from me, disappointed.” Not because she had failed. But because it wasn’t 98. Or 99. As a child and counseling psychologist, moments like these stay with me. A young student once walked into my room, visibly anxious, struggling to hold back tears—not over poor performance, but over scoring 95%. Her words were simple: “I could have done better.” At first glance, it sounds like ambition. But when you look closer, it often reflects something deeper—a growing inability to feel “enough,” even in success. This raises an uncomfortable but necessary question: Where are we heading, when children scoring 90% and above still feel inadequate? The Weight of Achievement Let’s acknowledge this first—as a psychologist, I genuinely applaud the effort, discipline, and consistency it takes to achieve high scores. These accomplishments deserve recognition. But here’s what we must hold alongside that truth: every child is different. Each st...

In today’s fast-paced world, emotional intelligence (EI) has emerged as a vital skill that can greatly influence a child’s development and future success. Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to recognize, understand, manage, and communicate emotions effectively. Teaching EI to children builds resilience, empathy, and healthy relationships, laying the foundation for a well-adjusted adulthood. Children naturally experience intense emotions while grappling with their surroundings, often leaving them overwhelmed and unsure how to cope.  By introducing the concept of emotional intelligence early on, parents and educators can empower children to understand and articulate their feelings. Simple activities, like reading stories that highlight different emotions, can help children identify what they are feeling and understand that emotions are a normal part of life.  Moreover, discussions around characters’ feelings can serve as a springboard for conversations about the childr...

Somewhere between neatly curated Instagram feeds and “aesthetic” desk setups, art has been reduced to something that needs to look good, feel trendy, and be share-worthy. But long before art became something to post, it was something we felt. It was messy, emotional, confusing and deeply human. “More than aesthetic” is exactly where art begins to heal. From a psychological lens, creating art is not about the final product; it is about the process. When you sit down to draw, paint, doodle, or even scribble absentmindedly, your brain quietly shifts gears. The constant chatter of thoughts slows down, and you enter a state psychologists often call “flow”, a space where you are fully present, engaged, and momentarily free from overthinking. For many people, especially those dealing with anxiety or stress, this shift can feel like a gentle exhale. What makes art uniquely powerful is that it allows expression without the pressure of words. Not everything we feel can be neatly explained. Somet...

Understanding stress, safety, and the science of emotional balance in everyday life Written By : Ms. Gurneet Kaur Jaitly Counseling Psychologist | Educator   Introduction You’ve likely heard it everywhere, “regulate your nervous system.” While widely used, the concept is often misunderstood. At its core, nervous system regulation is not about staying calm at all times, but about the ability to move through stress and return to balance. Understanding Nervous System Regulation It’s late at night. You’re tired, your eyes are heavy, and yet, your mind won’t switch off. You scroll. Pause. Scroll again. Not because you want to, but because you can’t seem to stop. The next day, you hear it again: “You need to regulate your nervous system.” It sounds simple. Almost like a solution. But at that moment, it can feel confusing, even frustrating. Because if it were that easy, wouldn’t you already be doing it? “Regulation is not about being calm all the time, it is about flexibility.” What Is Ne...

Written By : Ms. Darshana Niranjan, Psychologist Director- Mental Wellness, Githam Consulting Pvt Ltd, Bengaluru Masculinity no longer remains muted in the field of mental health, though no one discusses HIS mental health. Society's traditional definition of masculinity, including authority, Stoicism, and independence, can lead men to hide their emotions and avoid mental health treatment, leading to isolation. According to WHO- Mental health is a state of mental well-being that aids in coping with life's stresses, recognizing abilities, learning, and contributing to the community.  It is a fundamental human right and crucial for personal, community, and socio-economic development. Mental health is a complex continuum, varying in severity, distress, and outcomes across individuals. Mental disorders affect both men and women, but the strategies to cope with them differ between the genders. Men are less prone than women to experience various psychological disorders. Men are diagno...

Bengaluru was once that effortlessly cool friend we all bragged about. “Oh, you’re melting in Chennai? Aiyo paavam. Here, I need a hoodie at night.” That was the vibe. The city had a personality, pleasant, breezy, slightly unpredictable, but mostly kind. But now? Somewhere along the way, Bengaluru decided to go through a personality crisis and turned into that friend who shows up uninvited, sweaty, loud, and a little too intense. Let’s be honest, this heat is not what we signed up for. We came here for “AC weather without AC bills,” not this slow roasting experience. You wake up already tired, not because you didn’t sleep well, but because your fan spent the entire night doing “bare minimum work.” And somewhere between turning your pillow to the “cool side” for the 47th time and contemplating life choices at 3 AM, you mumble, “Eriyuthu di Maala, fan ah 12 la vai…” like it’s a genuine survival strategy. There’s something uniquely exhausting about heat that isn’t dramatic enough to comp...

Our brains are naturally wired to be aware of what's going on around us, so when we experience feelings of danger or importance, our brain works at full capacity to be conscious of those things happening around us. When we start to experience over-awareness, having too many details around us and being too critical about every social cue in our environment, this causes us to perceive ourselves, interact with others, and live our lives differently than we'd necessarily like. What is Over-awareness? Having over-awareness essentially means having a heightened level of awareness of your environment or feelings. This can include constantly having thoughts about others’ perception of you, obsessing over mistakes and conversations, and having a heightened sense of vulnerability in social and solitary situations. Although having some level of awareness is beneficial to an individual’s mental and emotional health, having an excessive amount of awareness can lead to extreme fatigue and lo...

Where there’s a feeling most of us carry without ever really stopping to look at it. It’s quiet, almost automatic in the sense that things are getting better with time. That the world is moving forward. That somehow, even if life feels messy in the moment, we are still part of something that is slowly improving. You don’t usually question it. It just sits there, shaping how you see everything. When people talk about the future, it often sounds hopeful. When they talk about the past, it feels distant, a little rougher, a little less developed. So somewhere inside, it starts to feel obvious of course we’re advancing. Of course things are improving. And when you look at the surface, it really does seem that way. Life has become faster. Easier in many ways. You don’t have to struggle for things the same way people did before. You can reach anyone, learn anything, do things that once felt impossible. The world feels more capable, more connected, more efficient. So it’s natural to call that ...