Visiting a therapist or a psychiatrist has been a taboo in India for a long time (“37% of women dying of suicides are Indians,” Sept. 13). People see the act of meeting a therapist as a sign of incapability. This has to change. Many lives can be saved by just talking to a person who is trained to handle complex emotions and who can guide people in the right direction. It is particularly unfortunate that so many women are taking their lives. Perhaps it is because we are living at a time when women are more empowered than ever before and are working, yet they continue to do most of the household work. This combination causes immense stress.
We need to be careful about what we value the most in life and how much, so that even if we lose that, we don’t lose ourselves.
Elora Satya,
Hyderabad
