THE FRIENDSHIPS THAT SHAPE US, AND SOMETIMES, SHAKE US Some of my strongest memories from school and college are not of classrooms or exams. They're of people. The friends I sat beside during lectures. The ones I shared lunch with. The people who knew my inside jokes, my favorite songs, my favorite movies, my secrets and still somehow always knew when something was wrong, even when I insisted that I was "fine." For a long time, I believed that friendships were supposed to be

It begins in a quiet moment, the day you realize that your next big step isn’t just a dream but a deadline. I still remember the weight of that moment as I scrolled through placement opportunities, each one promising a possible future but also a looming uncertainty. For every college student, this is a familiar dance, the balance between hope and fear as placement season arrives. I felt it before my own interview, knowing that every yes or no could shape my career trajectory.

As far as my memory goes, I've been a professional at saying, "I'll do it later." Assignments? Later. Exam preparation? Later. That email I've been meaning to send for three days? Definitely later. The funny thing is, I never thought of myself as lazy. In fact, I cared a lot about the things I kept postponing. Sometimes, I cared so much that I couldn't bring myself to start. I'd tell myself I worked better under pressure. That I needed the "right mood." That I'd begin after o

In a bustling World, a small daily ritual can anchor someone’s mood, turning scattered thoughts into a steady, manageable routine. These “small daily rituals” or “tiny habits” are called micro-rituals: small actions you repeat every day, often without thinking. Checking your phone first thing in the morning, skipping breaks while studying, and scrolling late at night in bed. Each one seems harmless. But together, they quietly shape your mood, stress levels and ability to foc

Growing up, I was never the “chill about deadlines” kind of student. I was alert. Hyper-aware. Always tracking something, my marks, feedback, tone shifts in conversations, who was doing better, who was ahead. Achievement felt less like ambition and more like oxygen. If I was doing well, I could breathe. If I wasn’t, something inside me tightened. I learnt to measure myself early. Marks meant approval. Productivity meant safety. Being busy meant being valuable. So when someone

Have you ever left a social gathering feeling oddly exhausted? Even though you are with people you genuinely love, your friends, course-mates, family and so on. You laughed, you talked, you smiled, yet the moment you got home, all you wanted was silence. You feel tired in a strange way, not “I need sleep” kind of tired but heavy, quiet and emotionally empty. You scroll through your phone without interest, you don't feel like replying to messages, you just want to be alone, e

There's this weird thing the brain does at night. Have you ever noticed that when you lie down to sleep, your brain suddenly becomes a DJ and starts playing a “what-ifs” remix? All day you are fine: laughing with friends, rushing between lectures, pretending to understand what the seminar tutor is saying, and you spend an entire day around people. But the moment the world finally calms down, and you finally get into bed: lights off, room quiet, phone on the other side of the

Growing up, I never had a happy-go-lucky attitude towards life, was a quite-agitated child, not a very good combination in my opinion. Too defensive. Loved to isolate in face of confrontations. TOO OBSERVANT. Whatever happened around me, I used to quietly absorb it. Learn from it. Learnt patience too early, though not very much as a virtue but as a survival mechanism. So, when someone would say anything to me, I used to listen and not react and simply thought i didn’t pay att

For as long as I can remember and trust me, that goes way back, Unit Tests meant sleepless nights. I’d skip playtime, ditch friends, even miss my favorite cartoons. I figured it’d get easier as I grew up, like everyone said. You’d stop taking exams so seriously, right? But for me, it only got worse. All-nighters blurred into one-hour naps, then back to grinding until the exams ended. Years later, those nightmares still hit. The dread feels as raw as ever. Sound familiar? It h

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