"I've had the opportunity to do so many interesting things"
An Indian woman took to LinkedIn to share that it has been four years since her divorce and highlighted all the positives that have come.
Shasvathi Siva explained how, after deciding to end the unfulfilling marriage, she couldn’t be happier.
In the post, Shasvathi shared: “Today, 4 years ago, I got divorced.
“I celebrate this day every year as my day of freedom and it’s really important to me that I acknowledge it every year.
“Not a day has gone by without feeling immense gratitude for life every day, these past 1,460 days.”
Shasvathi went on to share what has happened since her divorce.
“In the last 4 years, I’ve had the opportunity to do so many interesting things that I never imagined in life’s roadmap.
“That’s the thing – unplanned, uncharted waters mostly yield beautiful results.”
Being an Indian woman, Shasvathi acknowledged the stigma attached to divorce but she didn’t step back from the challenge of re-writing cultural stereotypes.
Not only has this benefitted her outlook on divorce, but she is also helping break barriers for women in similar situations.
Her post continued: “Going through a divorce gave me an understanding of the depth of stigma in this country, and I took it upon myself to shatter that.
“I spoke about it online, got the conversation rolling, and to date, I’ve conducted over 75 support group video and in-person sessions.
“I am currently running a Telegram support group of 500+ participants, actively benefiting from the space.”
In addition to her public speaking stints, Shasvathi also got the chance to be a TEDx speaker.
She said: “I had the privilege to be a TEDx speaker, tied up with multiple brands for collaborations, spoke on 10+ podcasts, shot videos, and got featured on multiple media outlets.”
Among her post-divorce ventures, Shasvathi started a business during the Covid-19 pandemic called Cowvathi.
Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances, the business was not successful.
However, Shasvathi shared how she overcame her failure.
“I slogged day in and out to run my business, Cowvathi, and also saw the biggest heartbreak of losing that to the pandemic.
“It was so tough, but I picked myself up all over again.”
Being resilient was Shasvathi’s key message, as she was able to pick herself up from the losses she faced to find a job, move cities in India, work on herself and find new opportunities.
“From times that seemed so bleak and uncertain, to now having a better grip on reality and understanding what drives me and what I will steer clear of.
“I don’t take a single moment of this freedom for granted.”
Shasvathi stated that the picture was taken by her current partner.
People in the comments applauded Shasvathi for being brave and resilient to life’s challenges, especially whilst living in Indian society.
She is set to release her first book, Divorce is Normal.
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