LONELY IN SINGAPORE?
EXPERTS AND GEN Z SHARE THEIR TIPS TO OVERCOME ISOLATION AND FEEL CONNECTED TO THE WORLD
CHO MING XIU,
34, founder of Campus PSY (Peer Support for Youths)
”People struggling with mental health tell us they're not sure what help is out there – apart from hospitals or the Institute of Mental Health. Actually, there are many NGOs and clinics you can access confidentially. For example, the Samaritans of Singapore helpline is free and open 24/7.
Campus PSY also works with six local agencies that focus on community-based mental health services for children and youth: Acceset, Boys' Town, Caregivers Alliance Limited, Limitless Singapore, Singapore Association for Mental Health, and Singapore Children's Society. You can find more resources on our Tiktok and Facebook page.”
ANYA LOW,
25, design management student
”I think it can be helpful to follow mental health information on social media. I prefer to follow organisations as I find them more trustworthy. I like the Instagram account @ letsbreaktheshame – it's run by 20 people in their teens, 20s and 30s. They post something about mental health every day.”
ELLY YEOH
(@elly. minty), 28, founder of mental health service Shin.tsugi
”I'm part of Tiktok's Youth For Good mental health programme. I create educational content about Mental Wellness in creative formats such as singing, journalling and calligraphy. For example, www.shintsugi. com offers personalised mental wellness workshops. We tap on the therapeutic effects of selfexpression, art and fandoms, to help people discover their own best-fit approach to mental wellness.
If you can't get together in person, I find that it helps to catch up with friends on social platforms, and share an article or meme to inspire them or make their day. I also recommend using apps like Teleparty to watch Netflix together with friends, or host a game night together online.”
MARLENE LOW,
21, art student
”It's tempting to text… but if you can meet face to face, it gives you a different perception. During home-based learning, we did video presentations. We could record ourselves and edit out the mistakes. It was like making a Youtube video. When it was time to present, you just sent the link and everyone watched it.
Then we had to do a presentation in real life. I saw all the people present in front of me, and I got extremely nervous… but I did the presentation anyway. Afterwards, I felt proud that I had handled my nerves. These social experiences help you grow. To learn and grow, you have to experiment, sometimes even show your mistakes.”
TERESA TAN,
head of Public Policy, Singapore and South-east Asia, Tiktok
”Tiktok's Youth For Good initiative aims to inspire a groundup movement to normalise conversations around mental health, and create a strong peer support ecosystem.
We hope our wellness educators can encourage people to reach out and seek help from the local non-profit organisations available. As an example, one of our nonprofit partners @Limitless received strong traction for its first-ever Tiktok video – close to a hundred people reached out to it for help.
Youth For Good is a collaboration with the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY), Ministry of Education (MOE) and National Youth Council (NYC).”