Dear Soothfy:

Thank you for sharing your amazing journey through anxiety and insomnia. It started in 2020, fueled by (as I understand it to be) Covid-19 Anxiety Syndrome (not an official diagnosis). You didn’t trust negative results for Covid, and you didn’t trust results that showed normal CRP levels (indicating no inflammation in the body): “I dismissed these results, convinced they were incorrect. My anxiety escalated to alarming levels, causing my blood pressure to drop… Panic set“.

Your anxiety calmed after a prominent doctor in a big hospital confirmed to you that you were not infected with Covid. But a month later, when your uncle contracted Covid, you visited him in the hospital and “witnessed countless bodies wrapped in black plastic, and the hospital took care of the cremations. Family members were not allowed to attend due to the risk of infection. It was a scene of utter despair“.

Next, your grandmother also contracted Covid and passed away. Your anxiety skyrocketed, spiraling into insomnia.

Cardio workouts, yoga, dietary changes and supplements, aromatherapy, massage therapy and expensive psychotherapy.. all these did not help. Finally, you came across an empathetic and kind doctor at All India Institutes of medical Sciences: “I found a doctor at AIIMS in Delhi. She listened intently to my struggles, comforting me with her empathy. With kindness, she recommended that I take medication temporarily to manage my anxiety and improve my sleep. I followed her advice and started on mirtazapine. To my astonishment, my anxiety began to ease, and I started to sleep again. It felt like I was the happiest person in the world“-

– I wonder how much of the improvement you experienced was due to the doctor listening intently to you, comforting you with her empathy and kindness. What a difference an attentive, empathetic and kind treatment can make in professional and personal settings!

Congratulations for doing all that you can to help yourself. I hope that you continue to manage your arthritis well, to keep your mental health in check, and I hope that your body responds well to your new lifestyle. Your story is inspiring and told so well, thank you! I hope to read more from you: anytime that you feel like sharing more about your amazing journey, please do!

anita