Who Is Behind It All?

"What was the inspiration behind SERENITY?"

My grandfather was everything I ever wanted to be since the tender age of 4. He was the most caring human being on the planet, was the most intelligent and artistic, and was the role model that I saw to be flawless and irreplaceable in my life. He immigrated to Canada after the civil war in Sri Lanka where he was shot, suffered three heart attacks, and yet provided for his family better than anyone. The biggest lesson I learned from him was his resilience and will to constantly help those around him - not one day in his life did he live for himself, it was always for his family. He never failed to treat me like his own child and always did everything I asked for. Until one day, when I was heading back from school in third grade and my mom came to pick me up, I had an odd sense of discomfort in my stomach based on the expressions of wincing pain on my mother’s face, her blatantly obvious attempts to conceal her emotions in public. I knew something was wrong and as soon as I returned home, I was looking for my grandfather, who’s arms I always leap into after school awaiting for his kiss and tell him how my day went. But today, he was on the floor in the middle of the living room, laying there trembling, wheezing and moaning in pain. I immediately broke into tears and wasn’t able to find out what was going on from anyone in their panicked stage. Within what seemed like a matter of seconds, the paramedics stormed in, performed first aid, and took him away. The only thing I remember vividly is my seven-year-old self bawling and praying to all the Gods that existed to save my grandfather because he was the one person on the planet that I loved the most.

   That evening, I had learned that my grandfather had passed due to a drug overdose which was incited by the constant anxiety and depression he experienced that he hid from me - this was likely caused by the PTSD from the Sri Lankan civil war as well as other professional pressure he experienced in an executive position at the Ceylon Electricity Board.

And with my current research and experimentation in neuroscience, specifically brain-computer interfaces and artificial intelligence, I was inspired to find a solution to anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues like my grandfather’s, to prevent secondary conditions and resultant deaths. I am motivated to ensure that no other human being experiences the tragedy of losing such an intimate loved one and the agony associated with it. I wasn’t even allowed to say goodbye to my grandfather which remains one of my biggest regrets and worst pains in my entire life.