Once a nurse, now boss at same hospital-Real Life Story of Mrs.Santy Sajan

Mrs.Santy Sajan

I am glad to post this inspiring and motivating  real Life Story of a Nurse who became General Manager of the same Hospital where she worked as a Nurse:

Santy Sajan was born and grew up in Calicut, Kerala and studied in a Malayalam medium school. She had set her sights on being a doctor and although she sat for the entrance exam, she couldn't make it largely due to a lack of finances. Santy is the eldest of four children and with her father having passed away, she had to support herself and contribute to the family pool. With medicine ruled out, nursing was her next best bet. Santy believed it was her passport to see the world — precisely as it turned out. 

"I secured a seat in a Pharma course, but instead I decided to pursue a BSc (Nursing) course from a women's college," Santy said. "After I graduated, I spent close to 12 years in the Gulf being a bedside nurse. I then returned to India to do my MSc (Nursing)." During her stint in the Middle East, Santy married Sajan Neeliyanickal, an acquaintance from school. They had kept in touch and acquaintance had grown to love. For six years while she was in the Gulf, Santy kept in touch with her sweetheart — long distance — until her husband moved there. 

After returning to India, Santy joined Columbia Asia as a nurse manager in 2004. But she was always 'troubled' by a higher calling. "I didn't want to live out life as a nurse," Santy said. "I always wanted to head a hospital someday, preferably Columbia Asia." 

She began putting her dream into action. After leaving Columbia Asia, Santy moved to the US to do a PhD in nursing. She also completed an MBA in Medicine from Johns Hopkins University. No part of the journey was easy though. Her husband, who is in the business of health and fitness clubs, was a major driving force, while her son Ryan, now 13, also had to make sacrifices. 

"It was our dream and we lived it out together," she said. "We achieved it as a family. I funded my studies by doing part-time jobs and taking education loans. When I was doing my MBA, classes used to go on till 9 pm. My son used to do his homework in my college cafeteria and we used to return home together after classes. The only long holiday I've taken is maternity leave." 

Today, in a perfect suit, Santy manages the four floors of the hospital, running up and down the stairs at least 10 times daily.

She has 220 employees and 80 doctors under her charge and takes care ofrecruitments, accounts and assessments. Her strong belief in her capabilities paid off. 
 She wakes up at 4 am and hits the gym before doing her household chores. She is usually in the hospital until 8 pm. 

She is still very aware of her roots. "Nurses are the backbone of any hospital, but what is missing is dignity of labour. In the US, most hospitals are run by nurses, but in our country there is little regard for the profession. I am still a nurse at heart and will never forget that compassion and care that the profession imbibes in you. But I think nurses should explore the plethora of opportunities before them. No job is menial and every profession needs to be looked on with respect." 

Hindu Festivals -Part V Pongal/Makara Sankranthi

In continuation of my earlier posting of articles on Hindu Festival, I post below an article on another important Hindu Festival Pongal which corresponds to the  Makar Sankrati

Thai Pongal (Tamil: taippongal) is a Tamil harvest festival. Thai Pongal is a four day festival which according to the Gregorian calendar is normally celebrated from January 13 to January 16, but sometimes it is celebrated from January 14 to January 17. This corresponds to the last day of the Tamil month Maargazhi to the third day of the Tamil month Thai.

Thai Pongal is one of the most important festivals celebrated by Tamil people  in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, the Indian Union Territory of Puducherry, Sri Lanka^] as well as Tamils worldwide, including those in Malaysia, Mauritius, South Africa, USA, Singapore, Canada and UK. .

The day marks the start of the sun’s six-month-long journey northwards (the Uttarayanam). This also corresponds to the Indic solstice when the sun purportedly enters the 10th house of the Indian zodiac Makara or Capricorn. Thai Pongal is mainly celebrated to convey appreciation to the Sun God for providing the energy for agriculture. Part of the celebration is the boiling of the first rice of the season consecrated to the Sun - the Surya Maangalyam.

The festival also corresponds to the following following festivals celebrated in other parts of India:

Name	Region
Thai Pongal	Tamil Nadu, Sri Lanka
Makara Sankranthi	Andhra Pradesh, Bengal, Kerala, Bihar, Jharkhand,Goa, Karnataka, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Telangana Uttar Pradesh
Uttarayana	Gujarat and Rajasthan
Lohri	Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab
Magh Bihu/Bhogali Bihu	Assam
Maghe Sankranti or Makar Sankranti	Nepal

Source:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_Pongal

Days of the Festival:

The First Day The first day of Pongal is called as Bhogi and devoted to Lord Indra, who is the supreme ruler of clouds that give rain. People pay homage to Lord Indra for the abundance of harvest and prosperity to the land. There is a custom of throwing useless household articles into a fire, made of wood and cow-dung cakes. Girls are seen dancing around the bonfire and singing songs in praise of the God. 

The Second Day On the second day of Pongal, a puja is performed. Rice is boiled in milk, outdoors - in an earthenware pot, and is symbolically offered to the Sun God, along with other oblations. 

There is a ritual of tying turmeric plant around the pot in which the rice will be boiled. The offerings include coconut and bananas in a dish, with two sticks of sugar-cane in background.

The Third Day It is also known as Mattu Pongal, the day when cattle are worshipped. The cattle are decorated with multi-colored beads, tinkling bells, sheaves of corn and flower garlands. They are fed with Pongal and taken to the village center, where the young men race each other's cattle. It makes the atmosphere more festive and full of fun. Later on, aarti is performed. 

The Fourth Day The final day of Pongal celebration is known as Knau or Kannum Pongal. On this day, a turmeric leaf is washed and kept on ground. The left over of sweet Pongal and Venn Pongal, ordinary rice as well as rice colored red and yellow, betel leaves, betel nuts, two pieces of sugarcane, turmeric leaves, and plantains are placed on it. All the women assemble in the courtyard and pray for the prosperity of their brother. An aarti is performed with turmeric water, limestone and rice and the items are sprinkled on the kolam in front of the house.
Source:http://festivals.iloveindia.com/pongal/pongal-celebrations.html

The word kaanum in this context means "to visit." Many families hold reunions on this day. Brothers pay special tribute to their married sisters by giving gifts as affirmation of their filial love. Landlords present gifts of food, clothes and money to their tenants. Villagers visit relatives and friends while in the cities people flock to beaches and theme parks with their families. 

People assembled in Marina beach,Chennai on the day of Kanum Pongal.

Celebrants chew sugar cane and again decorate their houses with kolam. Relatives and friends receive thanks for their assistance supporting the harvest.
Source:Wikipedia

Margazhi Kolam

Though rarely followed in cities, most villages in Tamil Nadu mark the arrival of Pongal festival a month before (Margazhi - mid December to mid January) by embellishing the floor space of their dwelling entrance with decorative patterns called Kolam - drawn using rice flour and different colour powders- by female members of the family on or before dawn. 

Traditionally dwellings are whitewashed with in the month of Margazhi to welcome the auspicious Thai Pongal.

Source:Wikipedia

Makara Sankranthi:

Makara Sankranthi is an Indian festival celebrated in almost all parts of India and Nepal in lots of cultural forms. It is a harvest festival.

Makara Sankranthi marks the transition of the Sun into the zodiac sign of Makara (Capricorn) on its celestial path. The day is also believed to mark the arrival of spring in India and is a traditional event. Makara Sankranthi is a solar event making one of the few Indian festivals which fall on the same date in the Gregorian calendar every year: 14 January, with some exceptions when the festival is celebrated on 13 January.

Source:Wikipedia

I wish all the readers of this Blog Very Happy Pongal/Makara Sankranthi

Pictures Courtesy: Google images

Addiction of Social Media activities very Dangerous for Real Life.

Are you addicted to social networking sites? Generally, this addiction is caused as social media activity proves to be a stimulant for your brain’s pleasure centres. But, addiction to social media can take a toll on your health as it comes with numerous side effects. 

Here are some of the negative effects social media addiction has on your health.

1. Limited intellectual growth: 
Social media activity generally involves viewing photos, commenting on them or reading comments, reading status messages etc. When you get addicted to social media, these things constantly occupy your mind and hinder your intellectual development. This happens because your preoccupation keeps you away from learning new things, and reading or studying something that generates value. Social media addiction interferes with the development of your brain and reduces your ability to concentrate on any task.

2. Pain or cramps in the thumbs: 
Overuse of your thumb for typing on a mobile device can occur due to social media addiction. This in turn leads to consequences like chronic pain or cramps in your thumbs, which may result into calluses (thickening or hardening of your skin).

3. Low self-esteem: 
Social media addiction can lead to lower self-esteem as it makes you compare your life with that of other people. This creates an inferiority complex among most people as social media updates always project that their friends’ have a better life than them. In 2012, a team of researchers from UK conducted a study on social media users. The study revealed that out of 53% people whose behaviour had been influenced by social media addiction, 51% accepted that it diminished their confidence level.

4. Lack of attention: 
Remaining active on social media sites can result in decreased attentiveness and concentration levels, which are considered to be early symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or ADHD. This happens due to the fact that constant use of social media websites creates a habit in people of switching from one task to another at short intervals. This has a negative impact on your attention span as you cannot concentrate on a single task for a long time.

5. Fatigue:
Social media addiction is responsible for tiring your brain because of availability of too much information in a short duration of time. The brain often fails to process so much of information at such a short amount of time, which can completely exhaust you by the end of the day. 

Courtesy: Article By:Ms. Nisha Bothra
M.Sc - PsychologyPsychologist • 68 People helped • 7 Year experience CONSULTANT