Recession woes have affected many Singaporeans and for some, losing sleep over the economy could turn out to be something more serious.
Private clinics said they are seeing more patients with recession-related mood problems, with some doctors getting 50 per cent more cases compared to two years ago.
These problems can range from anxiety attacks, insomnia, to more severe problems like depression.
Dr Adrian Wang, consultant psychiatrist, Dr Adrian Wang Psychiatric & Counselling Care, said: "When a person loses his job, the person loses part of his identity. All your life, you've been told you're a banker, you're a doctor, you're a lawyer, you're an office administrator and when that's taken away from you, suddenly you feel like you're questioning your own abilities."
Most of the patients affected by recession blues are in their late 20s to early 40s. Dr Wang said this is because people in that age group are at the most productive stage in their careers.
It is also the most vulnerable period as these people have many commitments, such as mortgages and car loans, which depend heavily on a steady stream of income.
Although women are more likely to develop depression, Dr Wang said he is seeing an increase in the number of male patients suffering from the condition.
Although feeling stressed out about work is a normal reaction, psychologists and counsellors said it becomes a problem when it makes a person lose his ability to function properly and causes disruption to his day-to-day activities like eating and sleeping.
For foreign students and migrant workers, having a limited social network may worsen their condition.
"Sometimes, the loss of employment or the loss of income is the trigger point to a serious or major depressive episode. When a serious event happens at your work environment, it can have a very jarring effect on your sense of reality – of what's right, what's wrong and what's going to happen in the future," Dr Wang said.
Several online blogs have speculated that the death of Zhou Zheng, a project officer at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU), last Saturday could be related to the shocking incident at the university last Monday when 21-year-old David Widjaja stabbed a lecturer before ending his own life.
However, the university has dismissed these claims. NTU said its counselling centre has seen an increase of about five to six cases since those incidents occurred.
- Channel News Asia
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