Mental Health

Health

Orphaned at 28, I wanted to commit suicide

I experienced my first anxiety attack right after my mum passed away in front of me ā€” from a brain haemorrhage in aĀ Hong Kong hospital. For once in my life, things had actually been going along...

Relationships

I couldn’t move on after my break-up

One month afterĀ the passing of my mother in April 2011, I ended a year-long relationship with my boyfriend. The relationshipĀ had already been on the rocks for months. It was adding to the...

Health

The night my mother was murdered

When I first found the knife, I thought nothing of it.Ā But I did wonder why it wasn’t in its usual place. It had been wiped clean and was lying beside a bottle of vodka and some lighter fluid...

Health

"Our fight is simply to make it to tomorrow": This is what depression looks like

I almost committed suicide in August of 2017. Iā€™d made plans. Iā€™d started to put part of it into action, unbeknown to those closest to me. I have a loving wife, a couple of good kids, and a...

Health

Youā€™re 50 shades of blue, what can I do?

In 2009, I visited a friend in hospital for the “blues”.Ā I was 17 years old and stood at the door clutching a bunch of flowers, not quite comprehending what had just happened. In 2015, I...

Health

Who will save me from myself?

Donā€™t be silly, only kids half your age do these things. The oldĀ pen knife blade was cold to the touch. In my head, a fierce battle raged. But I deserve this. IĀ fell into the deep, dark and...

Health

A prayer for the downcast soul

I’d finally climbed out of a deep pit in my life, where I had decided to hide for the longest time.Ā I looked up and I saw Him at the edge of the pit; He was helping me back up. So I climbed...

Health

A letter to you, the one desperately trying to hide your depression

Dear You, I see you. You hold down a stable job. You’re well-dressed. You were at work today, in new shoes and your favourite dress. You were wearing cute animal ear studs! You were almost late...

Health

Where every phone call could be a matter of life and death: The Samaritans of Singapore

As he walked into anĀ austere interview room at Samaritans of Singapore (SOS) over a year ago, Shawn Lai had absolutely no idea of what he was getting himselfĀ into. “I was quite clueless in...