New beginnings

Bahrain-based creative and social entrepreneur Ramanpreet Praveen, better known as Preety Praveen, shares her empowering story, through adversity to the stars, as she embarks on a new journey as GulfWeekly’s columnist, writes Melissa Nazareth.

An ambitious and driven individual, Preety had big dreams of becoming a dentist. However, life took a different turn when she met with a horrifying accident that forced her to drop out of college.

“My low phase started after my accident where my right femur bone broke into two pieces,” the 49-year-old told GulfWeekly. “I had to leave college in the final year. I couldn’t walk without support for more than a year. Blaming myself, I hid under the layers of loneliness and guilt.

“It took me years to understand that I wasn’t being myself and wasn’t helping either myself or my dear ones. That’s when I made up my mind and decided to pursue a career in psychology.”

Preety chose to complete her education as a way to empower herself and bring ‘life back into her soul’. She obtained a Master’s in Alternative Medicine from the Indian Institute of Alternative Medicine with a specialisation in psychology. Today, she uses her knowledge in the field and her empathy to reach out to others who might be going through a low phase.

“It’s more than a decade that I’ve been practising counselling, but as a freelancer. I’ve dedicated my knowledge to helping people who juggle and struggle to clear the network of their thoughts and make wise decisions to have a smooth normal life. A healthy, open conversation can help.”

When the Covid-19 pandemic hit, Preety reached out to people, the majority of whom were strangers, and helped them get over their emotional struggles.

“There was one lady I met and it took me more than five months to put a smile on her face, but I succeeded. She is living a happy normal life with her family now,” she revealed.

Preety observed how the pandemic put a strain on people’s emotional well-being. And, while the digital world has gradually taken over our daily routine, relationships, and thought processes, she believes the ‘punch’ was the long pandemic phase.

“That’s when I thought of creating a platform, where all of us can share our thoughts and opinions on a common subject, learn from each other’s experiences, and figure out solutions to small issues that we fail to address,” she added.

Preety approached GulfWeekly with her idea to get the ‘difficult conversations going’ and we put our heads together to bring her dream ‘Speak Your Mind’ to fruition.

“I encourage readers of GulfWeekly to come forward and share what’s on their minds. Let’s learn from each other, forge a bond of trust and understanding, and set the inhibitions and confusions free.”