Desi Outsiders

In this episode, I reflect on how things have changed so drastically over the last 12 months. Working hard isn't just about passing my state exams in medical school anymore - it's a whole new dimension in this new phase of my life.  One of my biggest learning points over the last few months is that you shouldn't pat yourself on the back for achieving the basics. Patting yourself on the back from time to time is okay, but sometimes you need good mentors to push you to your limit. And once you reach your limit, the best mentors will push you even more.  Listen in to see how I went from commuting almost 3.5 hours after a night shift or 8 hour day in the hospital just so I could achieve my dream of being on the radio. A special thanks to Sabras Radio and Raj Baddhan for believing in me!

After releasing my thoughts on feminism in episode 88, I had a very interesting interaction with a listener. We spoke about how we feel this new era of feminism has left us in a position where we don't really know where we stand. CAUTION: A lot of you will disagree with what I will say in this episode and I welcome all of you to explain why you disagree. You can email me at meenal@desioutsiders.com Thank you all for joining me in this very important discussion, I have learnt so much over the last few weeks, and I hope we can all learn together!

Over the last few weeks, I have been trying to find productive ways to deal with stress. One easy and adaptable practice is mindfulness. Pam helps hundreds of people in her work as a mindfulness coach and has been studying the science and benefits behind this practice for years. In this episode, Pam talks to us about how we can incorporate this into our daily lives and the benefits we can expect by practicing some mindfulness on a daily basis.  You can find out more about Pam's work on www.learn2rest.com. Enjoy!

This International Women's Day, apart from celebrating all the amazing women who have influenced my life, I want to use this opportunity to re-evaluate what it means to be a woman in the #MeToo era. Feminism is a strong force that is slowly taking over every aspect of our life, but to where do we draw the line? Are we being counterproductive with our feminist thoughts and ideas or is feminism really creating the difference that women need?

In the last few episodes, a few deep conversations were had, a few tears came into the conversation, and we left hoping we'd figure it all out in the new year.  Some answers are never concrete, but it's always good progress when we feel we are taking steps in the right direction!  Please do share your own experiences after listening to this episode, you empower us which helps us empower **YOU! ** We hope you enjoy this one

Following from last week's episode, we unexpectedly jumped into a conversation about finding the true definition of happiness - of course, Meenal is questioning if it really exists after the few weeks she has been through (yes, she has a dark side)! With the new year approaching, both of us reflect on our personal growth, our future growth and share all our hopes and dreams for the coming year. Thank you for being a part of our podcast, and we promise to bring you more in the coming year. We love you all!

When Meenal receives an email that reads "you sound depressed, are you okay?" - we know something is clearly wrong. It's been an interesting couple of weeks for both of us. Each of us experiencing life in different ways and trying to learn from our experiences as much as possible. Not every day will be a happy, bubbly day - a concept Meenal is trying to get a hold of. Tune in to find out why we didn't record last week and why Meenal sounds "dead inside".

Life can get busy.  So busy that we both didn't even get a moment to sit and record an episode last week. But it's okay, because sometimes we have to accept that life can get crazy and we can always find ways to work around it. We are currently learning how to deal with our hectic work schedules and still have time to record a podcast and also deal with our ongoing daily life activities. We talk about our struggles and how we have found our own personal ways of overcoming our anxiety of trying to get enough done during our working days.  If you have any suggestions for us, please send them over - as you'll listen, you'll realize we need all the help we can take!

**Shane (the guy who edits this show and is married to the short one)** - This time, it's my bad that the episode was late. I'm a little tied up in Seattle as part of a work trip. Apologies. * * * Long distance relationships aren't always easy and we've all had to deal with it at some point in our life. We discuss how we've dealt with our own relationships, how we've overcome the difficulties and some tips on how to make things a little easier when you're far away from your loved ones. Enjoy!

This Diwali we bring you a special episode where we catch up with our lives and go through all your mails. We love reading about your opinions and used this opportunity to share what we think with all of you lovely listeners. This special episode is all about you! Enjoy!