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My name is Aditi Sharma and I am a research intern at Epoch Elder Care. Currently, I am completing my masters in clinical psychology from Symbiosis College of Arts & Commerce, Pune. I am a mental health research aspirant who has worked with special children, children & adult disabilities ranging from neuro-developmental disorders to mental disorders, and rehabilitation. 

Today, on the occasion of world students day, I would like to put light on the three principles that shape my journey as a student. First principle is **“never giving up”** which I learnt from my mother. When I was about 7 years old, I had a minor squint issue in my right eye which severely affected my learning abilities & self-esteem. My inability to see my capabilities affected my vision to see beyond my disability. In the midst of all the chaos around me, I paused and saw my mother. She guided me with love. Seeing her unconditional effort towards me, eventually made me conquer my disability.

Which brings me to my second principle, being **“courageous”**. I was 15 years old when I decided to become a clinical psychologist. A lot of people told me a lot of things about this profession. Some positives but many negatives. I was 18 years old when I got the opportunity to intern at a hospital in Delhi where I saw the difficulties of this profession & the harsh realities of encountering various psychological disorders, as well as the helplessness that comes with it. Surprisingly, I saw myself willing to continue to step into the clinic the next day and hear many other challenging realities. This is when I met the “courage” in me towards my ambition. 

I was fortunate enough to recently learn the third principle that shaped my student life. This principle is called **“expertise”**. Being a college student, I found myself too occupied with books, assignments and the competition to top my class. I would spend hours reading a research or blog article on neuropsychology and try to discuss it with my professor in the next class. However, after a point I found myself feeling helpless! Helpless, reading about the people and their psychopathological deficits without actually helping them live normally with their impairment. It was a point in my life where I realized that I had something more to offer to the world and I felt as if I was wasting that skill. This is when, Epoch happened to me! 

Now, it has been more than a month with Epoch and I found myself not only studying but also expanding my skills for a larger cause. My mentor, Anju ma’am at Epoch has pushed me to study and expand my knowledge to not only help Epoch residents but also to develop my skills. She has been my backbone and teacher beyond my college classroom. Epoch helped me learn that expertise lies in not only scoring good in college or studying but also in developing skills to serve the “one in need” and most importantly it taught me the power of companionship. 

Expertise also lies in seeing & sensing the knowledge for real. Recently, my friend & I visited Epoch Monet house in Pune. He’s an engineer in defence technology and holds a certain notion of viewing care for dementia. This view rests on the societal belief that residents with dementia care are treated typically like patients. However, when we arrived, both of us were surprised to encounter a familiar home-like environment over there. He saw elders with dementia interacting as normally as anyone else. There was a difference not just in terms of the aesthetics of the place but also the interaction with dementia residents that made the place feel like home to both of us. Interacting, playing games and listening to residents sing songs were the highlights of the day for us. My visit to Epoch home has been a learning experience. My mentor at Monet was Saju sir who made us see a different perspective on dementia care. 

In this developing phase of my life, my mentors uplifted the spirit of a student and a beautiful human in me. My mentors poured the light into my colorful canvas. They helped me see the capabilities of situations rather than their disabilities. 

I would like to end by quoting Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, “Creativity is seeing the same thing but thinking differently.” 
With this thought, I will continue to positively impact the lives of many people around me as I shape myself in this journey called life. 


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Looking beyond the textbook

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There’s the music of sarod playing in the background while I write this, helps me write my memoirs!

When I was a child, I used to write diaries. What’s enticing to me at that point in time was the smell of new vintage-looking pages, and a unique feeling to ink it down. It all started then. Who knew the passion for writing would grow so strongly on me!

Hi, I’m Sneha, Business Assistant & Content Writer at Epoch. Yes, I own these words and wear them with pride. The journey to earn this was pretty savage, and I’ll like you to be a part of this! Hence, sharing a page from my memoir.

It was the dawn of the year 2020 when I promised myself to come out of the University with a Mass Communication and Journalism degree in one hand and a placement in other. Things started turning upside down when the covid wave came along and washed away all the aspirations I had of starting my career in a corporate world. Later that year, after graduating, I started freelancing.

Little did I know that the universe had something else up in its sleeves.  On 1st Feb, I started my journey at Epoch, and it’s already a year now! I’ll need pinches from myself to believe so. When I stepped out of my comfort zone, came to a new city, I met amazing people, especially women, who inspired me in the most unusual ways. It is my sheer luck and fortune that I landed in Epoch right after college. The journey of amazement and learning didn’t stop for me, I would say.

How often does it happen that a CEO of an organization holds your hand, mentors you, and walks you through your journey? Well, happened to me and to all those who started anew! Here, at Epoch, I saw myself under the guidance of domain experts. From each one of them, I learnt something, both applicable in personal and professional lives. My team pushed me one notch beyond my threshold, surprisingly that brought different colours to my work. To date, I am told to be the owner of not only my projects, but also my decisions, successes, and failures. I am learning.

Epoch has played a vast role in shaping me into Sneha 2.0. If you know me and don’t believe, let’s go out for a cup of coffee! A confident and radiant Sneha, you’ll see.

Epoch homes abode elderly those who need dementia care and assisted daily living support. When I started, I was briefed about dementia but the understanding of the daily life of a senior 75+, came to me when I was in their presence. Recently through one of the Epoch webinars, I heard a doctor/geriatrician say, and I quote, “there’s a person still behind the dementia patient”, and this made me realize how naïve are we to not notice this in our elderly loved ones!

Amidst the pandemic, there were fewer interactions with our elderly residents, regarding their own safety. But whenever I got the chance, covered in PPE kit, I would jump to know each one of them. With some I sang era old songs, with some I recited poems of Harivansh Rai Bachchan, Dinkar, Nirala, with some I learnt the concept of perspective, with some I learnt fashion, some taught me to live life with a bang, and that’s what I am doing!

Epoch in a way turned out to be a blessing in disguise. I would like to stop the roller coaster of my emotions here by simply being grateful. One day, when I close my eyes, I would love the memories with Epoch to roll in the cassette of my life. 

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To Epoch, a cassette of my life

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I want to share my unique professional journey with you. Personally, I have been someone who is always up for trying new things.

In August 2014, after completing my training as a General Duty Assistant, I got placed at Epoch Elder Care as a care attendant.  Even though I had prior care training, being a care attendant in an assisted living home was new for me and there was much to learn, especially about dementia care. At Epoch, everyone is encouraged to ask questions whenever they do not understand, your colleagues and seniors will answer them patiently and help you understand your issues. I realised how tough life can be with dementia and at Epoch I was able to increase the quality of life of elders with dementia and this was very satisfactory for me. 

Given my inclination to try new roles, back in 2018, I was chosen for the role of Admin Assistant which was a huge change for me professionally as I was moving from  care to an administrative role. With much support of senior colleagues, I was able to manage this role with confidence. Here I learnt new skills like vendor management, maintenance planning, and working with multiple departments. Being an ex-care attendant, I was able to understand the importance of this role where I had to ensure the upkeep of Epoch homes and how crucial it was for our care attendants to take care of our residents. Iss dauran maine apni life ko bahut hadd tak personally, professionally and financially grow bhi kiya hai (During this time, I was able to grow personally, professionally and financially). 

Then in January 2020, I saw an opportunity to move to a new role within Epoch as a Human Resource (HR) assistant and I confidently took the leap. Given my prior experience as a care attendant, I was quickly able to connect to prospective candidates for Care Attendant role and understand who could be a good fit at Epoch, and I learnt the aspect of people management. Ab dedication and guidance of my manager and colleagues ke sath grow kar raha hun or hope aage bhi yun hi grow karta rahunga. (With the dedication and guidance of my manager and colleagues, I am learning & growing  ,and will continue doing so!)

Thanks to Epoch, I have been able to understand this industry well and grow myself professionally in many different perspectives by gaining many new skills.

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Trying new roles and gaining new skills at Epoch

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I want to share my journey so far with Epoch Elder Care. I started my journey as a care attendant with Epoch’s Monet house at Pune location on 15th May 2016 and sab kuch naya tha mere liye (everything was new to me). It was a great year well spent at Monet house; and bohot kuch sikhne ko mila (great learnings came along). Under the guidance of our Facility Managers and Facility Nurses and other care attendants, I was properly trained to look after our residents. Epoch work culture bohot welcoming and unique tha mere liye (Epoch culture was welcoming and unique for me) - where the team was great & they treated me like a family member. Not only this, the relationship and bond I developed with residents was an amazing feeling. The concept of dementia and its management was something jo mujhe dhire dhire samajh aya. (The concept of dementia and its management was something I learned over a period of time).

After the completion of one year, the management decided to transfer me to Epoch’s other home (Vermeer House) in Gurugram. I was happy with the decision for two reasons. Firstly, my learning was about to expand and secondly, my hometown was nearby. After working as a care attendant for a year and a half at the Vermeer House, the management decided to promote me to the role of Head Care Attendant. Finally, my dedication & honesty paid off. My responsibilities increased and I had to oversee all errands related to our residents, other care team members, and the house overall, which I enjoyed throughout.

Then again on 1st May 2019, I was offered a role change based on my skills and eagerness to work. This time the management decided to offer me the role of Admin Assistant, which I accepted confidently. It was challenging at first, but with the constant guidance of the then corporate team, I managed with quite ease.

Epoch has not only helped me professionally but also personally. It is here that I met Sarita (Care Attendant at Vermeer House), married her and started another chapter of my life. She is always there to support & motivate me. 

During the outbreak of COVID-19, around Feb 2020, I was handed over the role & responsibilities of an Office Assistant in the new Vermeer house at Gurgaon. Covid ke first wave me hume bohot kuch naya experience karne ko and samajhne ko mila. Ye time humare liye bohot difficult tha but hum sabne milkar Epoch and ek doosre ko sambhala. (New learnings came along whilst managing and experiencing the first wave of coronavirus. It was a difficult time, but we managed to pull through). I was presented with the COVID warrior award. Epoch ke saath ab itne memories jud gaye hain ki yahan har koi apna sa lagta hai. 

Epoch me hamesha kuch na kuch naya sikhne ko and samajhne ko milta hi hai and mere liye bohot unique experience banta raha hai.

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My journey of multiple roles at Epoch

My name is Aditi Sharma and I am a research intern at Epoch Elder Care. Currently, I am completing my masters in clinical psychology from Symbiosis College of Arts & Commerce, Pune. I am a mental health research aspirant who...

Looking beyond the textbook

Aditi Sharma , Research Intern

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