‘You will go insane’: mental health eye-opener spurs Singaporean to create an online platform for people feeling lonely and lost
- Viaano Spruyt was ‘scared’ before interning at Singapore’s Institute of Mental Health but discovered the patients were genuine, heartfelt and talented
- He realised there was a huge gap in mental health social support, so he created Huddlehumans, now Huddleverse, for people to discuss their own challenges
Viaano Spruyt was in his teens when he went to a doctor’s office for help with his crippling anxiety. He was turned away.
“I tried to seek help, I mustered up all my courage, but Singapore is very conservative. We don’t really talk about [mental health]. People tell you to toughen up, that everything will be fine, so I was very nervous to step out,” he says.
“When I did, the doctor invalidated my experiences completely, refused me medication and refused me a referral. The reason he gave was that my parents weren’t there with me.”
Spruyt’s anxiety was exacerbated by a neurological condition called essential tremor, a movement disorder that causes uncontrollable shaking of the hands, arms and other body parts.
According to the US National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, about 50 per cent of essential tremor cases are thought to be caused by genetics.
The causes of essential tremor are unknown but there are medications to help manage the condition, such as beta-blocking drugs like propranolol, anti-seizure drugs like primidone, and tranquilisers.