By Dirk de Korne for the Straits Times. The writer is a Dutch health scientist working in Singapore. -
It's time to remove the stigma attached to mental disorders - they are illnesses, not character flaws.
He and his wife made us feel at home in Singapore. We shared many meals and enjoyed fellowship in what we called our "238 community", referring to our table number at the Old Airport Road Hawker Centre.
Not everything in his garden was rosy. From his student years on, he had suffered from severe depression. With a daily intake of medication, things could go well for months only to suddenly take a downward spiral. Anxiety and uncertainty came together in his gloomy weeks during which he blamed himself for not taking care of his wife.
One of the last WhatsApp messages that we shared was about jogging: "Hi John, would you be able to run Thursday?"
"No. Anyway, this week I am quite drained so trying not to over exert myself. Some symptoms of anxiety and brain fog showing up. Pray with me."
We will never have a run again. He has finished his earthly one. He died after an overdose of medication. He was 45 years old.
HIS death has called my attention to a topic that I had often been thinking about during my journey with him: the terrible stigma associated to mental illness.
A 2012 study by Associate Professor Chong Siow Ann and colleagues at the IMH showed that one out of 17 Singaporean adults is suffering from a major depressive disorder. And in 2009, another study by Dr Alvin Liew and others of 600 children, aged between six and 12 years, reported that 22 per cent of those surveyed indicated they harboured suicidal tendencies.
While medication plays a great role in the treatment of mental diseases, the role of (continuous) therapeutic sessions and social activities is, at the least, important too.
A mental illness is an illness, not a character flaw. It has nothing to do with being weak or lacking willpower. Although people with mental illness can play a big part in their own recovery, they did not choose to become ill.
As the Singapore Association for Mental Health (SAMH) advises, we can do much to support our suffering family or friends.
Understand the person's perspectives and offer hope; encourage the person to seek and sustain professional treatment; do not ignore comments about suicide. Work together with the help of professionals to reduce the risk of suicide; revise expectations and set realistic goals; and practise good self-care.
Former United States president Bill Clinton said once: "Mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of, but stigma and bias shame us all."
