Published in 2023 by Penguin Life/ Penguin Random House, Real Self-Care (Crystals, Cleanses and Bubble Baths Not Included) became a national bestseller. The book has been translated into 10 languages, and was named an NPR Best Book of 2023. Real Self-Care has been featured in countless media outlets including The New York Times, The Guardian, Good Morning American, Vox, and many others.

As a contributor to The New York Times, Pooja's essays have shifted the national conversation on mental health, wellness, and motherhood. Pooja has been invited onto shows like NPR's 1A, The Today Show, The Ezra Klein Show, the Mel Robbins podcast, and We Can Do Hard Things to discuss her compelling philosophy for real self-care.

Prior to moving her focus to writing for a general audience, Pooja’s research background was in women's mental health including post-doctoral research training at Rutgers University where she worked on projects studying the neural basis of sexual response in women. Other research projects of have included using qualitative methods to study women's perception of living with depression in India, and testimonial therapy for intimate partner violence survivors.

Pooja has served on Board of Directors of the Maternal Mental Health Leadership Alliance, and is a foundering mother and board member of the Chamber of Mothers.

Recent speaking clients include Booz Allen Hamilton, Linked In, Yale Law School, Girl Scouts of the USA, Penn Medicine, Kaiser Permanente Medical Group, Peloton for Business and others.

In addition to corporate speaking, Pooja has also been featured on the stages of top thought leadership conferences and festivals like SXSW and Aspen Ideas Health.

Dr. Lakshmin has been on the clinical faculty in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at GWU since 2016.

Pooja's education and medical training has included the University of Pennsylvania, Jefferson Medical College, Stanford University, and George Washington University.

Dr. Lakshmin spent 14 years in total becoming a board-certified psychiatrist. She has been in independent practice since 2016.

Dr. Lakshmin graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Phi Beta Kappa and Summa Cum Laude in Women's Studies and the Biological Basis of Behavior. She went to medical school at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia.

Dr. Lakshmin completed her internship and PGY2 year of psychiatry residency training at Stanford University, and finished her psychiatry residency training at George Washington University, where she was part of the Global Mental Health track.

She served as the Associate Program Director of the psychiatry residency program at GWU for two years, and for seven years served as a clinical supervisor in the Five Trimesters Perinatal Psychiatry Clinic.