Signs of Depression in Teenagers
By Dr. Parag Sharma 5 Signs of Depression in Teenagers Every Parent Should Know Teenage (13-19 years) is full of emotional, physical and social changes. Mood swings, irritability, peer pressure and wanting more privacy is normal part of growing up. Sometimes these changes are persistent, intense or extreme and begin affecting teenager’s school, relationships, sleep […]
What is Sleep Paralysis? Dr Parag Sharma explains the 3 AM Demon!
By Dr. Parag Sharma Picture this: It’s 3:30 AM. You suddenly wake up. You try to turn over, but your body refuses to move. You try to scream, but your voice is gone. Your chest feels like someone is sitting on it, and out of the corner of your eye, you swear there is a […]
Neurobiological Oscillations: The Clinical Science of Bipolar Affective Disorder
By Dr. Parag Sharma In popular vernacular, the term “bipolar” has been heavily diluted, often incorrectly used to describe normal emotional lability or transient mood swings. However, in psychiatric practice, Bipolar Affective Disorder (BPAD) is recognized not as a psychological quirk, but as a severe, highly heritable neurobiological illness characterized by profound dysregulation of the […]
The Death of a Thousand Cuts: 10 Silent Habits Eroding Our Mental Health
By Dr. Parag Sharma In my psychiatric practice, I often remind patients that our mental health is rarely dismantled overnight by a single, catastrophic event. More often, it is eroded by the “death of a thousand cuts”—the daily, deeply normalized habits ruining your mental health. In modern, urban India, our lifestyles have evolved at lightning […]
The Therapy of Solitude: The Neuroscience Behind Why You Need a Solo Trip
By Dr. Parag Sharma In the Indian cultural context, we are deeply conditioned to exist in collectives. We travel with our families, we vacation with our college friends, and we plan corporate offsites with our colleagues. The idea of packing a bag and traveling completely alone is often met with confusion or concern by our […]
When Forgetting Becomes Pathological: Distinguishing Normal Aging from Dementia in the Indian Household
By Dr. Parag Sharma If you are in your late 30s or 40s, you are likely navigating the most demanding decade of your life. You are raising your own children, peaking in your career, and simultaneously watching your parents—the pillars of your family—begin to age. In many households, it can be incredibly difficult to tell […]
Reclaim your Mind: A Scientific Guide to Understanding and Treating Anxiety
We all know the feeling: the racing heart before a big presentation or the “butterflies” before a first date. Evolutionarily, this is our “Fight or Flight” response—a survival mechanism designed to protect us from danger. However, for millions of people (including 1 in 6 Indians), this alarm system gets stuck. When worry becomes persistent, irrational, […]