-
The Struggle for Better Days: Vivien’s Story
By Vivien Y. // I had lost a visible amount of weight in a short amount of time and people said that I looked great. The truth was that at 22 and living through the tribulations of the final semester of university, I was incredibly depressed. I wasn’t eating, I couldn’t sleep, I was running…
-
5 Ways to Develop Empathy, A Bedrock Social Skill
By Joy Hou // “I just get so angry when she says she will call and then doesn’t,” said Celine about her good friend. Her husband Dave responded, “Darling, it’s such as a small matter, why are you always getting upset about these trivial things?” Inevitably, Celine got even more frustrated, leading to another one…
-
If That’s The Way It Is: Andrew’s Story
By Andrew Y. // The Japanese word, “Sayonara”, translates literally into the phrase, “If that’s the way it is”. The phrase, for me, evokes a sense of something both unsettling and final. Perhaps it’s a sad sense of acceptance that some things that were, will never be again. I’ve been thinking of people who I…
-
I Should Be Able to Handle This, Right?: Josephine’s Story
By Josephine N. // The past few months of last year were tough. I remembered waking up one morning feeling helpless and empty. I felt that there was something lacking in my life and, me being me, told myself that it was absolutely necessary that I do something about it. “I scared myself this morning,” I…
-
Build an Emergency Supply of Light: Alana’s Story
By Alana G. // Beyond A Maze Pause for a moment now and look inwards. What do you see or hear? We have roughly 50,000 to 70,000 thoughts in a day. Many of those we tend to focus on can be negative ones. I often struggle with negative self-talk, especially during stressful periods. Through this…
-
One Meal At A Time: Joanne’s Story
By Joanne // I never imagined myself writing on a platform that raises awareness for mental health issues, because in my mind mental health had such a stigma. But the truth is, there is no shame in having/having had a mental disorder. In a way, it is just our brains falling sick. And since National…
-
“Get Over It! What Is This ‘Depression’ Thing Anyway?”: Kevin’s Story
By Kevin W. // Depression is pain—a devastating, yet invisible pain. And so, unless it’s experienced firsthand, it’s hard to comprehend. Consider this analogy: Your brain is to you what a processor is to a computer—both carry out commands to enable healthy functioning. Depression is a virus—a vicious, nasty virus. As with how a virus corrupts…
-
Caregiving for Dementia as a Family: Katherine’s Story
By Katherine T. // At the time of writing this, my maternal grandmother Ah Ma was recently admitted to SGH due to severe dementia. Prior to that, we were hearing stories from my army of aunties and cousins on the daily challenges they faced taking care of and living with Ah Ma. The stories then…
-
An Escape Room for Empathy: Have you met Jessica?
By Effendi K. // On 9 to 10 January 2018, a ground up social movement dedicated to heighten awareness of mental health issues among youths, CampusPSY (short for Peer Support for Youths) ran a series of escape room experiences titled, Jessica – Have you met her? Inviting participants to find Jessica through a series of puzzles,…
-
The Truth About Eating Disorders: Cheryl’s Story
By Cheryl // Breaking Mirrors – You Are More Than What You See I’ve had an eating disorder for almost six years now and have come to terms with the fact that I’m still living with this illness. However, I now know that this disorder is not who I am; that it’s not even a part…
-
Waves of Depression: Jacelynn’s Story
By Jacelynn // I’ve been receiving school counselling since I was in Primary 5. But it was only in October 2015 that I was officially diagnosed by a GP. I was having extreme suicidal thoughts. So extreme to the point that I would become nauseous. I’d run out of the house and kept on running…
-
More Than My Disorder: Jia Jun’s Story
By Jia Jun // Breaking Mirrors – You Are More Than What You See It feels good talking about my eating disorder; to see how far I’ve come and to, hopefully, help someone out there. Sharing details about ED though, is triggering–I buried all the negativity on my road to recovery, so digging them up…
-
Depression is a Jerk: Mak’s Story
By Kean Loong // He is next to me, at the head of my bed the moment I wake up. He smiles, then kicks at my head, and jumps on my chest. He sneers, “So what’s lined up for today? Shall I tell you the ways I can interfere and make sure your life doesn’t…
-
Minding My Mind: Emily’s Story
By Emily // I am Emily. “THAT Emily” as the haters would say. Even my closest friends and schoolmates whisper critically amongst themselves at the very sight of me. They saw me as different and hated the fact that I was considered “special” and favoured by teachers and school seniors. Being the only child of…
-
Living with Undiagnosed Mental Illness: Amanda’s Story
By Amanda // I am fearful of disappointing my family. Unlike most people who have an official mental health diagnosis, I do not have one. But I do struggle with mental health issues. I have lived with an eating disorder and anxiety for almost four years. Today, I am here to share my story as…
