WARNING: This episode may have some trigger points as we talk about things like depression, suicide and death. 

Sabrina Ooi is the co-founder and CEO of Calm Collective Asia - a community that was established during Singapore’s first circuit breaker to talk about all things mental health in Asia.

To understand how Sabrina ended up establishing Calm Collective Asia, it’s necessary to dive into her story. She shares why she felt like an imposter while studying at Raffles Girls’ School (Singapore’s top school), how she started DJing for the likes of Dior & Rolls Royce, getting through debilitating depressive episodes since the age of 11, how she was initially misdiagnosed as being depressive only to discover that she was bipolar, being “arrested” for attempting to end her life and her journey to recovery. 

This is STIMY’s first mental health episode and I felt that Sabrina’s story is so incredibly powerful and important. It is time to destigmatise discussions around mental health and I hope that this episode contributes a little to that ongoing conversation, particularly in Asia.  

Highlights:

• 3:41 Being told by her mum to be “average”
• 5:23 Having her first depressive episode at age 11
• 12:33 How her DJ career began 
• 17:35 Triggers for her depressive episodes
• 21:59 Going for therapy
• 23:55 Not going for private practice
• 25:05 Having suicidal thoughts
• 27:36 Taking antidepressants 
• 29:52 Depression v Bipolar
• 31:49 Survive, Live and Thrive
• 35:11 Journey to recovery
• 36:52 “How I went from Leaving to Living”
• 42:36 Starting Calm Collective Asia
• 47:24 The vision
• 51:13 Symptoms to look out for
• 52:31 How to find the right therapist

📍Show notes: www.sothisismywhy.com/71                

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