Beginner Gardening: Need help with a sparse-looking Pachira Aquatica plant , 1 by pruant

pruant wrote:
I keep my potted Pachira Aquatica plant that I bought from a local Costco (Zone 8-9), indoors. I've had it for about 3 months now. Initially, I watered it only once a week (and not too much, coz I read that over-watering kills the plant) and kept it in a very shaded area indoors (not much sunlight at all). The leaves were initially bright and big, but ever since they've grown smaller in size, and are not even a healthy green. Thinking that it was because of the lack of sunlight, I left it outside for a day. That was the worst thing ever. My plant (leaves, stem and all) turned white, as if with shock!! On seeing that, I immediately took it back inside, and since then I've been keeping it near a window where quite a bit of sunlight streams in, but it's still indirect, so I'm hoping that won't kill my plant. I also snipped the leaves and the stems that turned white. I've seen a few tiny new leaves springing out of the stems, but I really am still not sure how much water is too much, or just right for this plant. The new leaves too almost always shrivel up. Or even if they grown to a decent size, it starts turning brown and falls off. I have no idea what is happening. How often can I safely water this plant? Any input will be greatly appreciated.