Dr Paul Ang

There is always more that can be done— Work has to be done from the level of all the stakeholders for change to happen. Governments: Reduce stigma, talk about it in parliament. Grassroot leaders should stop stigmatising them. Media: Stop portraying mental illness in a negative light. Public: Build more open spaces to discuss and promote acceptance. Individuals: Learn more about it yourself. Advocate. Businesses: Donate to mental health advocacy. Stop discriminating. Reduce the workload for your employees. Policy and Lawmakers: Reduce discriminatory laws against mental illness.

Below are the different ways to lose weight in order of effectiveness: Surgery Intermittent fasting Exercise Losing Weight Through Surgery The most effective way to lose weight is actually surgery. We call it bariatric surgery. So far, it is the most effective method to reduce weight in the long term with a high success rate. But of course, you have to first join a weight management program in a hospital.

Having a Routine. A regular hectic routine is very important for people with ADHD. The mind and body need to keep active the entire day. Breaking down big blocks of time is useful. Try not to do something for more than 30 minutes straight. For example, if you need to study for 3 hours, try breaking that time down into 6 sessions with a short 5 minutes run/exercise/swim in between.

The temporal loss of sight and sound is called syncope or brief fainting spells. It can actually be quite dangerous. It happens because your body is not able to deal with the high dose of alcohol. It might be a good idea for you to stay off alcohol. The greatest danger is if you faint and suffer a head injury. For allergies, it can differ from person to person. Most people who have allergies might not even realise that they have it. The common allergies that we see are itchiness in some parts of the body as well as rashes.

Generally, if you are using the commercially available preparations, long term use of nasal irrigation has been known to be safe. Well of course if the water is not clean in the way it is prepared, it can lead to infections. Also, if the technique in which nasal irrigation is done is not correct, it can sometimes trigger nasal irritation, nosebleeds, or headache.

What we understand about this illness is that it only goes into "hiding" or what doctors call remission. Although the patient can almost fully recover and work like most other people, we usually do not say that patient is completely discharged. The patient still needs life long follow up and, if on medications, likely require them for life. If the medication is stopped and follow up defaulted, the chance of schizophrenia coming back is 4 in 5 people. And every attack has a chance that it can decrease the function of the patient permanently.

Hi, it seems that you have a lot of questions to ask. The best person to answer all of your questions would be a child clinical psychologist. In any case, one of the greatest pain in life is (falsely) thinking that we can actually change someone else's mind. We can first try by befriending them. Try to be in the good books of your child's teacher. Then you can explain, in various forms and formats and with different people. Some times, our clinical psychologists have to go down to schools to talk to teachers. But even that is not guaranteed success.

Hi, yeah, thanks for sharing your symptoms. There is indeed a medical condition related to this. Try googling trichotillomania. It is actually a type of severe chronic mental illness classified under a type of obsessive-compulsive disorder which is wrongly classified as an "anxiety" disorder (In my opinion). But yes, if it does bother you, you should seek medical help. You can see a clinical psychologist or a family physician with an interest in mental health or a psychiatrist. Take care!

In cases where you doubt a diagnosis, you would have to get a second or third opinion. You will have to obtain an opinion from someone of the same field and level of expertise if not more. So in this case, if you were diagnosed by a clinical psychologist, you can look for a child clinical psychologist. If you were diagnosed by a psychiatrist, you can seek the opinion of another child psychiatrist.

The risk is remote but not impossible. 1) It would be best to avoid casual sex encounters. 2) If you really want to take the risk, you can wear gloves and put on condoms.

There can be many reasons for that. You should see an ENT specialist or a family doctor with special interest in ENT to check further. You can google to look for them. Sometimes, the earwax can expand and become painful. Other times, it can be due to a ear infection, can be bacterial or fungal. Rarely, it can be due to a hole in the eardrum. In any case, you should let a medical professional look inside your ear.

There are many ways we can understand this question. Firstly from the legal aspect, as of 20 April 2020, we are still allowed to participate in recreational activities in parks like walking and running. But remember to wear a mask (unless your kid is 2 years old, then it's not needed as of now). But be mindful, the government can change this law at the drop of a hat. Secondly medically speaking, the risk is low as long as you maintain the social distancing rules and you maintain good hand hygiene while outside. Once you return home, immediately go and bathe.

Thank you for your question. 1) This is part of your anxiety. Looking for reassurances, answers, possibilities. You probably also asked the same question to your treating doctor many times. 2) You should always stick to the same treating doctor. Please go back and ask your doctor this question if you haven't done so. 3) There is an option to increase the dose. 4) Or wait for some time before it takes effect. 5) Change a medication or add on medications. 6) Go for psychotherapy in addition or in replacement of medications. 7) Seek a second opinion.

Yes, why not? As long as a patient requires medication, he/she will be prescribed, including minors. However, the minor has to be accompanied by their guardians when seeking treatment. If the guardians/parents do not give consent, the doctors cannot start any treatment like medications or psychotherapy. This is of course unless there is a medical emergency. And in this particular case, a medical emergency is unlikely.

Hi, this depends on the size of the skin tag. We usually can leave them alone as they are usually not cancerous. For larger ones, we usually remove them under local anaesthesia. We usually inject/apply a numbing agent, then remove it with a minor procedure. This is usually quite straightforward. Emails are not known to be a very secure form of communication. If you would like to send me sensitive data, I would advise you to save it in a zip or pdf file and lock it with a pin that you would tell me via another means. Alternatively use PGP encryption.