What is mindfulness? Can you be mindful without meditating? What is self-compassion? Is it the same as being selfish? What's all of this got to do with mental health?

All this and more answered by Paras Sharma. 

If you were to sit down to make a list of things affecting your mental health, would capitalism feature in it? Most mental health practitioners would ask you to look inward, to try and find things within you that can be fixed. At The Alternative Story, we know that capitalism and the importance it places on productivity can impact your mental health. 

Paras Sharma talks about what it means to be a mental health professional who believes that capitalism is not helping us and why we should be nicer to ourselves. 

TW: Cancer, Terminal illness, Death, Grief

Getting a diagnosis of cancer can be traumatic not only for the person but their loved ones, as well. In this episode, Rashi talks to Hiba Siddiqui, a trained psycho-oncologist about the impact cancer can have on one's mental health. 

Both Hiba and Rashi talk about their experiences of being a caregiver to someone with cancer, losing people in their lives and grief. There's a lot of conversation about Hiba's work at Max CancerCare, Max Hospital, New Delhi.