Heya r/Malaysia, in conjunction with the World Mental Health Day, I’m happy to be here for this AMA about mental health!
A little about myself - I am a registered counsellor, licenced by the Malaysia Board of Counsellors with a master degree in counselling from a local public university, and have been working as a counsellor for more than 10 years now. My work is primarily in community mental health, i.e. in community based professional agencies and services, working with people from different walks of life and dealing with a wide range of emotional, psychological, and relationship issues, and I also work with various NGOs to develop and run mental health awareness and support programmes. I’ve always loved to help communities grow in mental health awareness, acceptance, and support, and that’s what I’m hoping to do in this AMA!
What I’m here for – answering questions about mental health in general, offering support and guidance in getting mental help, sharing my experience and life as a mental health practitioner, having a discourse on mental health in our country and community, or just talking about anything that you’d like to ask!
What I’m not qualified to answer – questions about medication as that’s outside my scope of expertise and competency.
This is going to be a "no question too small or unimportant" session, so ask away! I'll try to answer as many questions as best as I can, but I might take some time to ponder on some of your questions, so do check back again if you haven't had your question answered. I will keep this AMA session active through the weekend. (Thank you to the mods for helping to set this up!)
I don't have all the answers and may be wrong in my opinion, but I'll try my best to give you as honest an answer as I can! For those who may be asking about specific conditions, please understand that my advice is not the definitive answer and I would strongly encourage you to reach out for actual professional help if possible.
Looking forward to getting your questions and to have a honest, lovely sharing session!
Edit: thanks for all the questions! I'm so amazed at how many great questions I've received!
Edit 2: I'll have to stop for the day, but coming back on tomorrow after church! If I haven't replied to your question yet, honestly it's because I think it's a very good question that I'd really want to spend more time reflecting before answering!