Organised by WealthUp, our recent webinar on “Your Money, Your Mental Health” addressed current trends on how your wealth may affect your mental health. Some of the key takeaways included:
- Anyone and everyone is vulnerable to mental health issues.
- Therapy doesn’t always need to be expensive .
- Your “dream job” might not be what you cut it out to be.
Moderated by Qiuyan Tian, Head Honcho of WealthUp, she was joined by a panel of experts:
- Professor Kua Ee Heok, Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, NUS
- Melvyn Yeo, Deputy CEO, Asia, Schroders Wealth Management
- Sandra Quelle, Founder, The Happy Mondays Co
For those who missed out, here are the key highlights from the webinar.
Anyone Is Vulnerable to Mental Health Issues
It’s easy to think that the rich or wealthier groups might not get affected by money – but that’s far from the truth. In fact, Melvyn calls it a hard truth.
He shared: “Without sounding too contrived, let’s establish 3 hard truths. First, mental health issues can affect anyone (regardless of financial status). The second truth is how having more financial resources can definitely open up treatment possibilities, so let’s not shy away from this point. Meanwhile, the third one is that there are ways to solve it regardless of your financial circumstances. The first thing is to recognise that there is a need for help.”
Therapy Doesn’t Always Need To be Expensive
Contrary to popular belief, therapy isn’t limited to expensive drug treatments. Prof Kua also explained further that you need to meet certain criterias to be clinically diagnosed as depressed. However, he pointed out: “A growing group of people who are doing quite well are also experiencing panic attacks, and sleep problems but they may not be clinically depressed. This group of people are classified as subclinical, and there is an increase in cases as such.”
In such instances, he recommended: “You don’t have to go for expensive therapy, but you can just walk to the Botanical Gardens for a more non-drug approach.” Other than that, there’s also art and music therapy.
Your “Dream Job” Isn’t All It Cut Out To Be
Being an entrepreneur herself, Sandra has had her fair share of struggles. In fact, she called herself an “accidental entrepreneur” as she found herself being in Singapore at 27. Sharing her expertise in recruitment, she shared how the “dream job” doesn’t quite exist.
She mentioned: “When you were younger, you were eager to be free and start your own company. But then you get, and you suddenly miss your high paying job. The fact is, ambitions change cause you have changed.
“Revisit your definition of ‘dream job’ every year. It’s key to reevaluate your wants and understand the difference between what you want, and do you need. For example, I want to be an entrepreneur, but I also need to be paid $200k a year. Chances are it might not happen, so what are your priorities?,” she closed.
For other topics on work-life balance, check out “What Do You Want Out of Life?” Isn’t The Right Question To Ask
