How to transform faux self-care into actual self-care – and safeguard your mental wellbeing
At 28, Dr Pooja Lakshmin dramatically altered her life: She divorced a husband of less than one year, dropped out of her psychiatry residency at Stanford University School of Medicine, and joined an orgasmic meditation cult in San Francisco that practiced healing through orgasmic meditation.
“My Indian parents were really proud of me,” she jokingly observed in an interview with The New York Times.
“When I entered medicine, my hope was to help people. Instead, I found myself dealing with patients who were homeless and the only thing I could provide them with was Zoloft.”
Dr Lakshmin was drawn to the cult by its focus on female pleasure, but after nearly two years of immersion in its spiritual practices, she felt just as disillusioned as before.
She moved back into her parents’ home near Reading, Pennsylvania and began rebuilding her life. “I turned 30 in my childhood bedroom,” she recalled. “I was depressed and almost suicidal.”
Now, Dr Lakshmin is a clinical psychiatrist in Austin, Texas who specializes in working with women including mothers; an assistant professor of psychiatry at George Washington University School of Medicine who specializes in women’s health; and an entrepreneur.
How to make faux self-care into real self-care – and protect your mental health
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Women need the tools for real self-care in order to thrive in today’s society
How to turn faux self-care into real self-care – and safeguard your mental wellbeing
Dr Pooja Lakshmin, a psychiatrist who specializes in women’s health, says you don’t need bubble baths to combat burnout. Here is what she suggests instead.
How to Transform Faux Self-Care into Real Self-Care and Protect Your Mental Health
Dr Pooja Lakshmin of the US Academy of Psychiatry suggests that changing how you take care of yourself can significantly improve quality of life. (Photo credit: iStock/fotostorm)
On March 26, 2023 at 7:23AM (Updated: 26 March, 2023 at 7:23 AM), WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook, Twitter and Email will all be active.
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At 28, Dr Pooja Lakshmin drastically transformed her life: She left a marriage of less than one year, dropped out of her psychiatry residency at Stanford University School of Medicine and joined an orgasmic meditation cult in San Francisco that practiced healing through orgasmic meditation.
“My Indian parents were really proud of me,” she quipped sarcastically in a recent interview with The New York Times.
At that time, she reported feeling “powerless”.
“When I began practicing medicine, my hope was to help people. However, what I found instead was a patient who needed housing and all they could offer me was Zoloft.”
Dr Lakshmin’s interest in women’s health was further nurtured by the cult, yet after nearly two years of joining its spiritual practices, she felt just as disillusioned as before.
She then returned to her parents’ home near Reading, Pennsylvania and began rebuilding her life. “I turned 30 in my childhood bedroom,” she recalled. “I was depressed and almost suicidal at that point.”
Now, Dr Lakshmin is a clinical psychiatrist in Austin, Texas who specializes in working with women – particularly mothers. Additionally, she holds an assistant professorship of psychiatry at George Washington University School of Medicine with a focus on women’s health, as well as being an entrepreneur.
She recently published her debut book Real Self-Care: A Transformative Program for Redefining Wellness (Crystals, Cleanses and Bubble Baths Not Included), which draws on case studies from her practice and research to explain why the traditional “self-care practices” offered to women today aren’t effective.
