Aastha Jain - Loneliness Is the Upcoming Epidemic for the World, and It’s a Very Sad Situation (Founder of The Grey Couch)

Advice to students is always a don’t run away from it. Just sit with the research part and statistics, and explore what is it that scares you the most

1. Tell us about your background and journey.

So my journey in psychology started in school, when like every kid I was trying to figure out what should I do with my life. Fortunately, I got to know that my school offered psychology as a subject in classes 11th and 12th.

And I started discovering about it. I was fascinated with it so much, that I knew instantly that this is what I want to do! So my journey began. I studied it in school, then went to my dream college for my undergrad, then went for my masters in Chandigarh. There I got the opportunity to do a 6 month apprenticeship and get exposed to the real world of the field. My journey till now has been beautiful and I have been fortunate to have been exposed to many sub-fields and learn from them. 

2. Tell us about your journey in psychology and how it led to the founding of The Grey Couch. What inspired you to establish your own organization?

After I came back to Delhi (my hometown) after completing my masters, I was trying to discover my footing as a professional. I started working with an NGO with pediatric cancer patients and their caregivers. Along with that, I was seeing some private clients with mental health concerns not related to cancer.

Meanwhile, I had worked with 1500+ cancer patients in government institutions for a period of 2.5 months, I decided to expand my private practice to get more time to focus on my further education. That’s when I officially founded and branded The Grey Couch and expanded my private practice. We now have collaborations with NGOs and other organizations and are doing work with diverse populations. It allows me to compensate myself with what and how much I deserve, create a healthy work environment, and focus on my academics and what I want to do with my skills and time. 

3. Could you share a success story or a transformative experience from your counseling practice where you witnessed significant positive change in a young adult's life?

Counseling setups are full of such stories, where we see our clients move out of the unhealthy patterns created in their lives. But we don’t and can’t rely on such “transformations” as a validation of our work because everyone’s stories and journeys are unique and different. Everyone’s goals in therapy are different and hence how we move forward is unique too. For psychologists and therapists, there is no change as “significant” changes in the lives of our clients because it’s a never ending journey. Every insight and action is significant in this journey. 

4. Given your interest in dream analysis, can you share some insights into how dreams can be interpreted or utilized in therapy? How does this aspect contribute to your practice at The Grey Couch?

I don’t see dream analysis and interpretation as a stand-alone technique (which is often marketed by course sellers), but it definitely has a space in the overall therapeutic journey. As Freud called them, dreams as a royal road to the unconscious. So when clients discuss their dreams, often nightmares, in the sessions, it allows us to understand how they are feeling about their lives.

It allows us to uncover through dream analysis what they may be repressing. However, there is no “one answer” to an understanding of a dream, and hence it's always collaborative work with the client. My practice as a psychologist, it allows me to help a client uncover and understand the issues being faced from a holistic perspective and go deeper into their experiences. 

5. As a researcher with more than 15 articles in international, national, and peer-reviewed journals, can you highlight one of your research projects that you found particularly meaningful or impactful?

As a researcher, every research article has been particularly meaningful for me. However one particular research article has been very insightful for me. We recently did surveyed almost 350 university students and asked them about their usage and perception of mental health apps.

We administered a standardised questionnaire to ascertain the prevalence of symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress, and then asked them if they had ever in the past, or still do use any mental health app. Based on their responses of yes or no, a different set of questions was asked to explore the factors considered while choosing the apps, continuing their use and factors responsible for stopping the use, or why they never used these apps. 
It is particularly an important research because we are moving in a world where technology is replacing human touch in all areas of life, and hence a user feedback is important for the app developers and mental health professionals to make informed decisions and moves in this direction. 
This research paper is still in press and will be published soon. 

6.How, according to you, can one manage loneliness?

Loneliness is the upcoming epidemic for the world, and it’s a very sad situation. We see around us human connection being replaced by the virtual social media. We are moving towards a more individualistic culture, and we are still not completely accommodated with it. However, it is also important to distinguish between loneliness and isolation.

Make sure that you are not isolating yourself, especially as a result of an unresolved mental health-related concern. Keeping yourself connected with people who matter is important, and focussing on quality relationships is important too. If recently, you have been losing significant people in your life, introspect if something needs to be worked upon in you to improve the quality of your relationships.

Also, becoming self-reliant and not depending too much on others can be helpful. Rather than focusing on the lack of people close to you always, try to focus on building your self-love and figuring out the activities that help you feel better when alone. 

7. Mentoring students in research work and SPSS is part of your background. What advice do you often give to students entering the field of psychology and research?

Whenever I communicate with students pursuing psychology, the majority of them either dislike or are afraid of statistics and research. But it’s important to understand that statistics and research are an integral part of psychology, at least in academics. Advice to students is always a don’t run away from it.

Just sit with the research part and statistics, and explore what is it that scares you the most. Often the feelings emerge from a lack of proper exposure to training in the universities, which often is represented as a dislike. But I have discovered that if given proper training with patience, a lot of students realize that they are really good at it and really enjoy it.

 
So my advice would be that if you are not getting proper exposure in your university, try learning it and exploring if you really like it or not through some courses or online platforms. We at The Grey Couch also provide individual research guidance sessions along with courses from time to time for students and beginners. 

8. What challenges do you think the field of psychology faces, especially concerning mental health stigma and accessibility to mental health services? How do you believe these challenges can be addressed on a broader scale?

The challenges in the field of mental health for many. As professionals we take this responsibility of debunking the myths and stigma as much as we can. Of course, things are changing, but there is a lot of resistance still in tier two and three cities. Mental health services are not always covered by insurance companies and hence they may not be financially accessible to everyone, along with a lack of awareness about which professional to reach out to and how to do that in a confidential manner.

Badly, in India, it is very common also that people are not properly trained or even formally educated, or marketing themselves his mental health professionals, which ends up causing more harm to the field rather than helping. So we as professionals are fighting on so many fronts because we want to provide the best services to the people who need and deserve them.

I think these challenges can be addressed on a broader scale if we as a society take responsibility for it. Rather than putting this responsibility only on the mental health professionals, every organization, employee, parent, sibling, friend, and as humans in society we also take the responsibility of gatekeeping people around us for mental health concerns, be aware of more preventive practices and supporting one another for seeking help when needed. 

We have a long way to go, but each step is impactful! 

Bio-

Aastha is an experienced psychologist and founder of The Grey Couch. She holds a strong academic record in the field of Psychology. She is passionate about her work with various vulnerable populations, and does therapy and training work for them, and professionals working with similar populations. 

Her work with vulnerable populations allows her to be empathetic, thoughtful and sensitive in those areas. She is also a researcher, and has authored 15 research articles published in reputable national and international journals.Aastha is an experienced psychologist and founder of The Grey Couch. 

She holds a strong academic record in the field of Psychology. She is passionate about her work with various vulnerable populations, and does therapy and training work for them, and professionals working with similar populations. Her work with vulnerable populations allows her to be empathetic, thoughtful and sensitive in those areas. 

 She is also a researcher, and has authored 15 research articles published in reputable national and international journals.

Interviewed and Edited by - Arunangshu Chatterjee