In a colorful village, there lived a girl named Maya who was very sad because she lost her parents in a sad accident. But then she met a kind therapist, Dr. Meera, who taught her expressive therapy. Maya used art and music to express her feelings and slowly started feeling better. Her grandma, Nani, noticed the positive change in Maya. Dr. Meera suggested holding an art exhibition, where Maya's creations touched everyone's hearts. Maya's healing journey inspired others to try expressive therapy too. With creativity and love, Maya became a shining example of hope, showing how expressive therapy can help heal hearts Once upon a time, in a colorful village, there was a girl named Maya. She was known for her bright smile and cheerful personality. But deep down, Maya carried a heavy burden. She had lost her parents in a tragic accident, and ever since, she struggled with feelings of sadness and loneliness. Maya's grandmother, Nani, noticed her granddaughter's pain and sought help from a kind-hearted therapist named Dr. Meera. Dr. Meera specialized in expressive therapy, a special way of healing that used art, music, and storytelling to help people express their emotions. During their first session, Dr. Meera sat with Maya and handed her a box full of art supplies. "Maya, this is your magical box of emotions. Use these colors to paint what's in your heart," Dr. Meera said with a gentle smile. Maya was hesitant at first, but as she dipped her brush into the paint, she felt a release. She painted swirling clouds of blue to express her sadness and bright bursts of yellow to show her happiness. With each stroke, she began to feel a sense of relief. In the following sessions, Dr. Meera introduced Maya to different forms of expressive therapy. They sang songs together, and Maya let her emotions flow through the lyrics. They also wrote stories, and Maya found solace in the characters she created, each one reflecting a part of herself. As the weeks passed, Maya's art and music became a window into her soul. The colors and melodies conveyed her journey from grief to healing. Each canvas, each song, and each story became a stepping stone towards her recovery. Nani noticed the transformation in Maya. Her granddaughter began to share her feelings openly and sought comfort in her embrace. Maya's expressive therapy became a sanctuary, a safe place to pour out her heart without judgment. One day, Dr. Meera suggested holding an art exhibition in the village. She believed that Maya's artwork could inspire others and show them the power of expressive therapy. Nani and Maya loved the idea and started preparing for the event. The day of the exhibition arrived, and the village gathered to witness the art of healing. Maya's paintings adorned the walls, and her songs filled the air with emotions. As people admired her creations, they also learned about the magic of expressive therapy. Maya's story touched the hearts of many, and Dr. Meera's practice flourished as more people sought her guidance. Through expressive therapy, Maya not only healed her own heart but also became a beacon of hope for others. And so, in this colorful village, the art of healing through expressive therapy transformed lives, reminding everyone that creativity could mend even the deepest wounds and lead to a beautiful journey of self-discovery and recovery.

In the depths of her heart, Riya hides a secret sadness. Unraveling the mystery of her despair, she confronts the harsh reality of depression. With resilience and support, she embarks on a transformative journey, finding hope and strength amidst the shadows, proving that recovery is possible. Depression is an insidious mental health issue that can affect anyone, regardless of age, gender, or level of success. It takes many forms and is often misunderstood by those who are not directly affected by it, making it all the more challenging to diagnose and treat. Unfortunately, it’s an issue that is becoming increasingly common in today’s society, and one that many people struggle with silently, never letting anyone know the depths of their despair. Riya is one of these people. Though she is outwardly successful, diligent in her studies, and seemingly happy, in her heart she struggles with a deep sadness that she has been carrying for a long time. Even though she can’t quite pinpoint when it began or why, it has weighed her down and made life seem unbearable. At first, Riya thought that the feelings she was having were just a normal part of growing up. She was going through puberty and beginning to experience the many highs and lows that come along with that transition. She had more freedom than she had ever had before, but at the same time, there was more responsibility and expectations from her family and peers. It was a lot to take in, and Riya often felt overwhelmed. But as weeks and months went by, Riya’s feelings of sadness and exhaustion only seemed to worsen. She became increasingly withdrawn, spending more and more time in her room and less time with friends or at school. She also felt more irritable and easily overwhelmed, and found it hard to concentrate or muster up the motivation to do anything. Her grades began to suffer and she felt like she was stuck in an endless cycle of apathy and despair. Finally, after months of struggling, Riya realized that she was not just going through a normal teenage funk. She was suffering from depression, and it was something she needed to take seriously and address. She made an appointment with her doctor, and after a few sessions, she was prescribed medication to help ease her symptoms and an ongoing plan of therapy to help her manage her feelings and begin to heal. The road to recovery was long and hard and there were often days when Riya felt like she would never get better. But with the support of her family and friends, and the care of her doctor, Riya slowly began to turn a corner. The medication and therapy helped her gain insight into the triggers of her depression and allowed her to develop better coping strategies for when she felt herself slipping back into a dark place. Gradually, Riya began to find more joy in the little things and slowly rediscovered her passion for life. She went back to school and threw herself into her studies, eventually graduating with honors and moving on to college. She even found a job that she loved and began to build a career. Though she still deals with depression from time to time, Riya now has the skills and tools to manage it more effectively. She has come to realize that depression is a common experience and that she is not alone in her struggles. By talking openly about her mental health, she has found solace in knowing that her experiences are shared and not only understood, but also accepted. Riya’s story is one of resilience and hope, and a reminder that there is always light at the end of the tunnel. With the right support and care, depression can be managed and even overcome, and there is always a chance for recovery.

It was sharp 1:30 AM, a thundering knock at my door, it was so thundering that even ground floor people experienced the vibrations and the music that was coming from those vigorous knocks (by the way my habitat was on 3rd floor). I was being in a half-slept state after rigorous efforts to sleep by taking help from medication, thought maybe it is another voice which I am assuming just like the phone ringtones keep buzzing into my head from invisible cell phone at all the other times. A delay in getting up from the bed made those knocks from storms made extensively thunderous which could possibly break the door of my rented place where even keeping an electric kettle is counted as code of misconduct. The worry of forthcoming fine payment left no other option than to open the door. Just after opening the door, not to my surprise door got replaced with me. Some 300 odd colleagues were watching and/or listening the live telecast of this show. Within a fraction of second my thoughts got shifted from that live audience to this one co-actor of the show who was fully possessed in a fit of rage. Oh! By the way this co-actor was a senior and also a neighbour by my super bad luck.   I tried not to be the punching bag this time with keeping my calmness, but this co-actor had already done a thorough research on every aspect of my life. My calmness got defeated by the thunder created by that senior. With each passing second, I was experiencing character assassination of me, mockery of my integrity. The insecurities of my personal life which were known to only me till 15 minutes earlier, now became sensational news for that live audience after the exhibition organized by my senior. I assume all the information was collected by properly keeping an ear out for me as those days I had to talk to my family over thousands of calls. Anyways, after all the ruckus done, I left that place in a sense of utter shock, fear and humiliation and waited for the rise of dawn while sitting on a distant road. I returned to my room just to carry out daily rituals.   But since I already had conveyed about my intentions to file a complaint, it further brought retaliation against my way; The moment I gone inside room, I got locked up inside my very own room by this mighty co-actor of the night show and again got threatened for dire consequences and warning that from now on my life, I would be a living hell.   Somehow, I managed to escape from there and made an informative complaint at my workplace about the incident of harassment without any further strong action against the senior since deep down I was not willing to get that senior’s career destroyed. ​ I used to be like if I am not harming the lion, I will not be the lion’s prey. What I was facing this from quite a long time, it was just a professional competitiveness turned rivalry reached to the personal level. Though I was never the part of that rat race, but was assumed as a hurdle by that senior. ​ I remained distracted and confused due to so much happening around including the debilitating pain due to cervical spondylosis that I was neither able to shift the location of my room and workstation nor was able to comprehend the way out of anything. Before that incident, I consistently made one big mistake out of fear that I never strongly objected being taken as punching bag though facing humiliation and toxicity on a regular basis. Everything was appearing some sort of a never-ending movie to me. This particular story has been broadly narrated just to enlighten the reader about the necessity of identifying the difference between a dispute and a harassment. At times people around us make us believe that these kinds of incidences are no big deal just because the two people involved in it belong to same gender and we end up losing self-respect for delaying counter-actions or no actions at all. So, speak up for yourself if you are facing any kind of hindrance towards your physical or mental wellbeing, be it at any place including office, college or home. Be mindful what and how much you are tolerating in the name of “Ho jata h kbhi kbhi, itna to chalta h” because this way you are literally guiding the other person how to behave with you. Gather your courage and don’t give a heed to what X, Y or Z will say on your decision because those were and will always be mute, coward spectators enjoying the show. We all deserve happiness and no one has the right to pull our strings and treat us like a puppet in their show. Every bookmark in our book of life is not a mere bookmark, rather it tells a story what we learnt and grown up. ​ - Anonymous Author