Jyoti Chronicle

MY LEARNING JOURNEY SO FAR
AND TO NEW BEGINNINGS

JYOTHI PAKALA

13 JUNE 2021

CHRONICLES OF ALO

My Learning Journey So Far and To New Beginnings
Jyothi Pakala

Never say ‘no’, never say ‘I cannot’, for you are infinite. All the power is within you. You can
do anything. – Swami Vivekananda
Although there have been many difficulties in her life, Jyothi Pakala has grown into the
person she always wanted to be. From sacrificing her education to becoming the lead
optometrist of the Alwal center of LV Prasad Eye Institute, Jyothi has come a long way. Here
is an exclusive interview of Jyothi where she shared with us her vibrant and inspiring life
story.

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Bhavna: Can you tell us about your 13 JUNE 2021
childhood and primary education?
Jyothi: My story started in Kodavatoor a MY
remote village near Warangal before coming FATHER
to the city of pearls. My parents come from an
agriculture background and I was one of the IS
four sisters. As a farmer, my father faced MY
several hurdles that were uncommon for a SUPPORT
farmer in India. When I was in seventh grade, SYSTEM
our lands were hit by severe droughts and
famine for over 2 years and that affected our 2
crop yield in our agricultural lands. Due to
lack of resources during the drought stricken
times, we were forced to migrate from our
village to Hyderabad in search of better
sustainability and resources for our living.
Because of all the chaos, my education also
took a hit and I had to take a break for three
years.
Unexpectedly, one of my friends' parent
encouraged me and provided me with an
opportunity to prepare and appear for the
tenth-grade board exams. He was the one
who cultivated in me the thought of
continuing my education. I borrowed books,
stationery and other educational materials
from my friends and tried to study what I
could. I was always optimistic about my
education and with complete dedication and
hard work I cleared the board examinations
with good results. My father recognized my
potential because of my results and allowed
me to continue my education.

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13 JUNE 2021

Bhavna: How did you come to know about
Optometry?
Jyothi: During my intermediate education, one of
my teachers, Mr. Gopalakrishna helped me
envision what my academic life would look like. I
always acknowledge his contributions to
concrete my academics because he helped me
understand concepts, numerical calculations and
other major theories. Since I missed my primary
education it was difficult for me to grasp
concepts. However, I managed to get away from
all the academia struggles with the help of my
teachers. Fortunately, Mr. Gopalakrishna was the
one who also introduced me to optometry and
encouraged me to find out more about vision
science and optometry from a friend who was
pursuing the same.

Bhavna: How was your life at Bausch and
Lomb School of Optometry (BLSO)?
Jyothi: BLSO was a beautiful experience; not
the initial few days though. I am still in
disbelief that I cleared my interview at BLSO. A
panel of six - seven renowned and eminent
optometrists were aiming questions at me.
That was not the problem; the real problem
was that they were all in English. I had no idea
what they were saying. However, I tried my
best to speak and convey what I wanted to say
and answered whatever I knew. To my utter
disbelief, I learned that I was selected as a
sponsored student at BLSO. Sometimes the
easiest way to make your parents happy is to
get admitted into a good college.

I made them proud that day.

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13 JUNE 2021

Throughout my time in BLSO, my classmates, teachers, project mates, seniors and others
offered to help me in several ways. During my first year, I was busy improving my spoken
English, communication skills and catching up with the concepts of vision science. Learning
through my mistakes, rebukes, and words of encouragement from my faculty and friends
helped me sail through tough times.

My faculty, Mr. Kondapuram 4
Mahesh Kumar was always there
to help me out whenever I needed
a guiding hand. My batch-mates,
Chaitanya Sai Kiran, Swetha
Bindu, and Sahi Nandini
Wuppukundur helped me the
most back then. Although every
profession requires some
personality and traits, a well-
reputed profession requires high
levels of professionalism and
etiquette and Chaitanya always
helped me build that.

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13 JUNE 2021

Bhavna: How was your life at LVPEI?
Jyothi: I had to shift from learning concepts to learning communication skills, people skills,
etc. to navigate through LVPEI. Two people who were instrumental in my growth were Drs.
Premnandini and Ganesh Jonnagondula. They were both encouraging, polite, kind,
supportive and strict at the same time, which helped me reach the position I am in today.
The best days during my internship at LVPEI were the Glaucoma and Cornea department
postings. I enjoyed working in these departments and always wanted to work in either of
these departments after graduating.

The day finally came when I graduated and that moment was precious
and a memorable one.

Bhavna: Was there a turning point in your Bhavna: How was your experience after
life that you will always remember? your LVPEI journey?
Jyothi: The major turning point in my life Jyothi: After LVPEI, I worked at Vision
was at LVPEI. LVPEI gave me the Express as a Senior Optometrist and
foundation and helped me gain the skill set Contact Lens Specialist for over four years
that I needed in my life and profession. where I got several opportunities to learn
Taking up family responsibility wasn’t easy more about management perspectives. It
as I had to keep working to support my was here I discovered my passion for
younger sister’s education as well as mine. teaching as I trained new students who
Being an LVPEIan gave me the strong were getting recruited at Vision Express. I
foundation to work better in the outside worked my way up and received
world with more passion to sustain and rise recognition. I owe my skills and learning to
in life. BLSO and LVPEI.

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Bhavna: How was the transition from the 13 JUNE 2021
dispensing world to LVPEI again?
Jyothi: It was huge challenge to return to clinics 6
after working in the optical field for over 4-
years. Reconnecting with colleagues, learning
new diagnostics instruments, etc. was a hurdle
but I had people to help and push me. Dr.
Somashiela Murthy, Dr. Shrikanth Bharadwaj,
and Mr G Ravi Kumar offered a lot of support.

Bhavna: Is there anyone who has been an
inspiration or guide for you throughout?
Jyothi: One person who I always follow is
Swami Vivekananda. His books, teachings, and
writings have always helped me overcome
tough situations. I consider him to be my guide
and inspiration.

Bhavna: What’s in store for your future?
Jyothi: I have explored a few branches of
optometry like clinics, dispensing, etc. I now
want to explore my passion for teaching,
enter the teaching fraternity and prove to
myself on that front as well.

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13 JUNE 2021

Bhavna: Is there something that you are extremely proud of about yourself?
Jyothi: As you now know, my family is from the agricultural background and they migrated
to Hyderabad due to a famine. My parents later went back to our farms after my sisters and I
grew up and are able to sustain independently. I solved a major problem that my family
faced with my savings that I made from a few months of salary. I was able to get a borewell
constructed in my farm with which our fields had unlimited water supply round the year
and my father didn’t have to worry about rains again. I was really happy seeing the smiles
on my parents’ faces that day. It was a wonderful feeling.

Take risks in your life. If you win, you can lead. If you lose, you can guide.
– Swami Vivekananda

I would like to thank ALO for providing an avenue to showcase my story.

Do you know a friend or a peer whose story is worth sharing? Please recommend them to us at
[email protected] so that we can reach out to them.

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