Social Anxiety Disorder: Not Shy, Not an Introvert, Not Rude, just Overwhelming Fear in Social Settings

Caleb (not his real name) was in Primary 3 when he started to come home from school in tears. He seemed stressed, and avoided some of his friends. No one…

Is Excessive Screen Time or Device Addiction affecting your Child’s Mental Health?

From the outside, 16-year-old Zack (name changed) appears to be doing fine. His grades, while not excellent, are not terrible. A student in London, he speaks clearly and confidently, and…

Buckets & Taps to Help My Child Cope with Stress

How do you cope with stress? It’s exam season and the girls were laughing mindlessly at something over dinner. I wanted a more serious conversation of how their day went,…

Postpartum Depression 101 – Beyond the Baby Blues

One of the most beautiful moments of human existence is when a mother brings life into the world. But such moments of joy can also lead to darkness. It is…

Adolescent Angst: Is It Rebellion or Depression?

“Ling, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know you were depressed.” My baby girl, now 17, tried to blink back her tears as I continued, “But you’re not alone. I was…

Losing Your Child: From Cope To Hope

From the euphoria you feel when you first learn that you’re pregnant to that life-changing moment when you finally hold that precious little miracle in your arms… there is no…

Counsellors and Therapists in Singapore who can Help your Child deal with Problems and Stresses from School and Life

At a parenting seminar I attended last weekend, the top answers to the question “what do you wish for your child in the future?” were mostly “be happy” and “happiness”….

10 Effective Ways to Help your Child Cope with Stress

Stress is a normal experience in daily life, and a certain amount of stress can be helpful in getting things done or improving motivation. However, there are times when the…

This made-in-Singapore book is helping Children of Divorce, one page at a time

When Kimberley Bruce was 18, her parents divorced. The experience impacted her deeply, but what was even more challenging was to see her eight-year-old brother grapple to comprehend the situation….

What Makes a Child Commit Animal Abuse

When the news about the child who threw a cat from the 22nd floor broke, Tan Wei Jie, co-founder of Good School Learning Hub and father of a two-year-old boy,…

Why You Need to have Mental Health Conversations with your Children

Did you know that one in seven young people between 10 and 19 years has a mental health issue? Furthermore, that these mental health issues remain largely untreated? Adolescents are…

“How Can I Be a Happy Mother When I’m Always Tired?”

Some time back, someone asked me, “Junia, are you happy?” I kept quiet because it would not look good to admit that I wasn’t. Yet my heart said NO. It…

Anxiety in Children: How to Help Your Child Keep Calm & Carry On

All children experience moments of anxiety from time to time. Even adults fear and worry about what we don’t know, what more the little ones. After all, so much of…

Are You a Caregiver for Your Child? – Please Read This (+ True Life Stories)

The case of 11-year-old twin boys found dead at Greenridge Crescent Playground earlier this year struck a nationwide nerve. The shock waves intensified when we learnt that the boys had…

8 Expert Strategies to Build your Child’s Self-esteem and give them Confidence in Life

Did you know that letting your kids fail can help build their self-esteem? Learning to overcome failure, working through the experience, analysing where they went off track, and learning how…

4 Ways you can Empower Your Daughters

As a child growing up, I suffered from low self-esteem and had very little confidence. I would constantly compare myself with my peers in every way, and feel inferior about…

“My Child Wants to Commit Suicide. What Can I Do?”

A few weeks ago, a mum asked me: “Junia, my Primary Six-year-old son says he wants to commit suicide. What can I do?” I teared up. COVID-19 has isolated us…

Depression in Children: Spot the Signs and Seek Help Now

Depression in children is on the rise, and more kids in Singapore are seeking help for mental health issues than ever before. Child Guidance Clinics at the Institute of Mental…

Mum Stress is Real. Here’s How to Cope with it

A friend of mine — one of those beautiful, vivacious, gregarious, seemingly perfect-lead-a-charmed-existence kind of women who always leaves me staring after her in drop-jawed wonder — recently thought aloud…

Pre-Baby Blues & Anxiety during Pregnancy: When to be worried

Pregnancy is often featured with a back-lit glow, as a celebration of fecundity, and the expectation of cuddly joy coming your way. What’s we do not see is the anxiety…

Baby Blues: What to do when Perinatal Depression Strikes

Perinatal depression, which refers to depression occurring during pregnancy or the first year postnatally, affects up to 15 per cent of women in Singapore. Dr Cornelia Chee, Consultant & Director…