Dr. Mala Murlidhar (PhD) (PhD)

I've been going through a tough time in my marital life since Nov 2022 and was finding it hard to cope with everything. I had tried 1 counselling session in Nov 2022 with a different counselor and the counselor barely listened to me and told me to reduce stress and get more sleep to fix my issues, even when I told her that it was difficult for me to do that, so I did not try any more therapy sessions or look out for other therapists assuming all will be the same. Naturally the issues built up over the last year and reached a point in Dec 2023 where I could not take it anymore. I started doing more research and came across Dr. Mala's profile and thought I should give therapy another try. I'm very glad and relieved about this decision. It took 2 sessions to describe what I was going through in my marriage and she patiently listened to me without any interruptions or judgement, she then gave me a few exercises to write down. I have completed 5 sessions so far and am slowly healing. Therapy is slow and steady and obviously I will take time to heal, but I do see a shift in my mindset, I'm less self critical and more loving towards myself. I'm able to be more in control of my decisions and emotions. I feel more confident that with time and more sessions over the next few months, I will be fine and life will be ok. All this is thanks to Dr. Mala and her therapy approach. She balances well between being a caring professional yet not making me too dependent on her. She helps one be more in control of their lives and independant through the exercises and through conversations. I would definitely recommend her to anyone who needs help, but they need to be patient and willing to put in the work.

I am 40 years old female and for the past14 years, I was struggling with psychological issues that were vaguely put under the umbrella of depression. I had visited many psychologists but I had never received any detailed information about my problems and I never felt understood. It was a coincidence that I came to know about Dr. Mala Murlidhar. I took the appointment and from the very first session, I felt that I am in good hands. She quickly understood my language and summarized it exactly I way I used to feel. She crafts her words very positively. I found her very professional. And the best part was that my session didn’t end on any sympathetic note. I decided to continue with the therapy and it proved to be the right decision.

After Three sessions Dr. Mala diagnosed me with borderline personality disorder and put me under cluster B personality types. I had never heard about these terms before. I read about it and I was surprised and shocked at the same time. Surprised about the accuracy of the diagnosis and shocked about the fact that how come no one ever managed to find it out. I knew always that I struggle with fear, loneliness and extreme mood swings. But I never knew the whys. I was always asked to look at the outside environment to fix. But since that was never an actual problem so those fixers never worked. I am right now taking regular therapy sessions from Dr. Mala and I am really feeling more aware of myself. She focuses on the roots of the problem rather than the external environment. And above all, she uses a very professional and emphatic approach to treatment. I go through ups and downs but I firmly believe that with the right help I will sail through it. I am optimistic about my future only bcoz of Mala. Thanks a lot.

Dr. Mala was extremely patient while listening to our problems, the sessions we had with her were mostly focused on my partner. But on one of the days, I was feeling extremely confused on a possible path forward. So, I hi-jacked my partner's session to talk to her about my own problems.

The problem was that I had put up a huge wall b/w myself and [my-family, friends, colleagues] so that I could support my partner better by spending majority of my time with her. This was a wrong strategy as I was not happy with myself and since I was not happy, I could not help my partner properly.

So, to tackle the problem, Dr. Mala suggested that my partner is in a weak state and to support her I have to be strong. But I was also weak as I was not leading a life with good quality. So, I needed to improve the quality of my life first to become strong and then I can be capable of actually supporting my partner.

This advice in an approximatley 40m session made me understand the missing piece as I later came to manage my life better with help from Dr. Mala and lectures from Dr. Jordan B. Peterson. And now, my dynamic with my partner is so good that it reminds me of the initial few months (maybe better now) of our 7y long relationship.

Thank you so much Dr. Mala for helping us out!

One thing that I believe Dr. Mala can work on is simplifying the process of scheduling an appointment, it is through whatsapp texts and it involves too much back and forth messages. And for someone, who is dealing with such serious issues, it can be quite frustrating.

While searching out for a psychologist I had looked out for various aspects like qualification, age , experience etc. I had also come with certain expectations since the previous experience with another doctor was not satisfactory.

My first session with Dr. Mala Muralidhar created a favorable opinion in me since she listened to me patiently much beyond the prescribed time. She prodded me to speak more about my past/ experiences without any interruption. She with her warm smile and friendly approach made me feel comfortable and at ease which helped me speak without any reservations.

The succeeding sessions over the last 2 months reinforced my trust in her and slowly my confidence built up. Dr. Mala helped analyze the root cause of the issues faced by me which made it easier for me to understand and deal with the same effectively. The activity prescribed helped me bring about positive changes in myself and my thought process. Dr. Mala also helped me to dispel my fears , anxiety and inspired me to build up my self-esteem.

As of date I feel that the sessions have lifted me up to a great extent and I look forward to being my cheerful normal self at the earliest.

Thank you so much Mala maam :)

Although this doctor was recommended by a former patient, **** ***** *** ** ** ****** *************** She struggles with making and keeping appointments, often overpromising and underdelivering. ******* ********** * ******** ** ******* ************* she never followed through. * ******* **** ** *** *** ********* ** ***** *** she should have communicated that clearly. As a counselor, her inability to express her opinions raises questions about her ability to effectively counsel others.

At various stages of my life, I thought of seeing a therapist due to various traumatic experiences I was never fully able to cope with and for which I was not able to achieve full closure. For the past couple of years due to problems at work, my mental health suffered, and Covid and the lockdown made the situation worse. My mental state started affecting my marriage too. That’s when I opened Practo's website and, after going through some profiles and reviews, I booked an appointment with Dr. Murlidhar. I chose her for her professional qualifications and experience. Seeing she collaborates with Manipal Hospital gave me the confidence that she was the right choice. I booked a face-to-face visit by mistake, but Dr. Mala was very accommodating and we had our first session online.

The first session went well and we scheduled another visit in person for the following week. The second visit was incredible, Dr. Murlidhar tried to go a bit deeper on why I decided to start therapy and that’s when I opened up to her. What helped me and built trust was her openness and her non-judgmental attitude–I had premarital relationships (even live-in) and not once have I felt judged or looked down upon, something I was worried about before. The second session with Dr. Murlidhar was the turning point for me, she helped me realise my thought process and behavioural patterns. She opened my eyes to many aspects of my character I never noticed before and helped me connect the dots. Thanks to the exercises she gave me, I was able to put down on paper my feelings and she helped me to look at situations from a different perspective and restructure the way I react to my and other people’s behaviours.

During the following sessions, Dr. Mala helped me work on my assertiveness. While she was direct when she needed to be, she has always been extremely encouraging and, thanks to her continuous support, I can see a big difference in my thoughts and behaviours. Even if I am still on a journey towards my goal, our sessions together have made a massive impact on my well-being.

I would advice anyone who is thinking about it to start therapy at the earliest, it’s hard work but the results are incredible. I would also recommend Dr. Murlidhar to anyone, she is professional and experienced but also friendly, non-judgmental, and her sessions are very effective.

Being a victim of harassment in childhood, I developed ample insecurities that eventually manifested into bigger problems. Dr. Mala helped identify the root cause and has been helping me cope with the issues and get over my fear and rebuild me as an individual wholly. -

My story is below-

I am a victim of #metoo. What happened to me when I was a kid, happened in my neighborhood. A guy my parents entrusted my responsibility with took advantage of the ‘kid’ in me and harassed me. But the ‘kid’ in me was clueless about what was happening although I do remember being repulsive.What happened after the incident was more traumatizing than the incident itself. The boundary of individuality in me slowly erased without my knowledge, etching a sense of fear about every man around me. I developed 2 extremes- either trust someone completely or never trust a person at all. And for any individual, a boundary is extremely important to be able to let the right people into one’s life and keep the ones we don’t want, away- which I apparently did not really have- all thanks to the "gentle"man who abused me. When I did realize what had happened, which was few years down the line, I did briefly mention about it to my mother but she dismissed it immediately not understanding the intensity or impact it would eventually have on me. She probably thought moving on by putting it under the carpet was best then. So quite obviously I couldn’t trust anyone at home and told myself I would need to fight my case myself if such a thing happened in the future again.

It’s extremely important for folks at home to let the kids know- be it a girl or a boy that ‘Hey. I am there for you. I will stand by you and I shall protect you always.Talk to me’, lest the kid might bottle up any ‘wrong’ doing that’s happened to her/him and it manifests in inexplicable ways.

Dr.Mala is helping me get over my fear and helping me in rebuilding the ‘I’ in me as a whole. I tell myself I will not let anyone take advantage of me anywhere- be it at work, be it in family, be it in public places. Where I am a witness of such a wrong doing, I will stand up against it.

I met Dr. Mala mam when I was feeling very depressed and started to notice some kind OCD behaviours in myself. I still remember that i was crying in the first session when I was talking to her about my life. But, she made me feel very safe and at ease right after our first meeting and felt that i could talk to someone about my problems. She explained to me really well the root cause for my issues which was a traumatic childhood and made me do some therapy exercises to help deal with my issues in day to day life.Slowly, I started feeling better after every session and after following her mental exercises regularly. I feel much better now and can't thank her enough for all the help she has given me. I would definitely recommend her to anyone who is struggling with stress, depression,anxiety or any other psychological issues. Very grateful and blessed to have met her.

I'm glad to finally find a doctor treating the cause and not focus only on the symptoms. She's Godsend for me. I feel validated instead of feeling the weird one.

It's tough to find acceptance for our behavior. To any person who feels this way, please get yourself diagnosed from a qualified health professional. Know that you're not alone, there are millions of people who are silently fighting. It is always better to know that you have a battle to fight instead of fighting a battle without even aware of being a part of it.

I visited Dr. Mala Muralidharan today and today's first session was really really helpful for me to understand about me, my strengths and areas of improvement, to some extent. As sessions continues I will be knowing more about me. It was really an eye opener for me. Brought some confidence that someone is out there to listen and help me out. Thank you doctor for being a great listener, being empathetic, helpful and friendly and giving expert advice. I highly recommend Dr. Mala Muralidharan to everyone.Thank you.