Stay Awake

It is no wonder that information about mindfulness and mental well being is rampant these days. We are living in one of the most unpredictable and anxious times. Even without the pandemic, our lives are increasingly a blur as we are perpetually being bombarded with endless information everyday. Our attention span is no better than a goldfish. We fail to foster intimate and meaningful relationships in real life, choosing to immerse ourselves in screens.

Until you value yourself, you won’t value your time. Until you value your time, you will not do anything with it.

M. Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled: A New Psychology of Love, Traditional Values and Spiritual Growth

Why do we not use most of our time wisely? I think the above quote explains it very well. Valuing or loving yourself can be an easy mantra to spread around, but it is very difficult to actually do it. Most of us avoid the hard work that is necessary for our own spiritual growth, we’d prefer short-term pleasures. When we find ourselves feeling stuck or frustrated a lot of times, we don’t realise that it stems from ourselves.

Even if we do realise it, we refuse to take responsibility for our own mind and actions. It stunts our growth, before we even begin to. It will take courage to face ourselves and truthfully, it’s very painful to take the steps necessary in growing as a person. It is a never ending journey, and the joys can be extraordinary, as the pain can be too.

But when you can feel at peace with yourself, when you know you value yourself, it is the best any conscious being can ask for. When you are so full of love for yourself, you’ll naturally have so much love to give.

Life is difficult. This is a great truth, one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it. Once we truly know that life is difficult-once we truly understand and accept it-then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters.

M. Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled: A New Psychology of Love, Traditional Values and Spiritual Growth

Helplines

National Care Hotline: 1800-202-6868  (8am-12am daily, from 1 Sep 2020)

Mental Well-being – Fei Yue’s Online Counselling Service – Institute of Mental Health’s Mental Health Helpline (6389-2222) – Samaritans of Singapore (1800-221-4444) – Silver Ribbon Singapore (6385-3714)

Marital and parenting issues – Community Psychology Hub’s Online Counselling platform

Violence or abuse – Big Love Child Protection Specialist Centre (6445-0400) – HEART @ Fei Yue Child Protection Specialist Centre (6819-9170) – PAVE Integrated Services for Individual and Family Protection (6555-0390) – Project StART (6476-1482) – TRANS SAFE Centre (6449-9088)

Counselling – TOUCHline (Counselling) – 1800 377 2252

For other Helplines and mental health-related support – Visit go.gov.sg/hotlines