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SINGAPORE: A 30-year-old woman took to social media on Sunday evening (Apr 20) to share how a mental health crisis at work pushed her to resign.
In a candid post, she revealed that for three straight months, she found herself crying in the toilet daily due to the stress from a “crazy” boss who allegedly yelled at staff and crushed morale across the office.
Her story has sparked wider discussion about mental health in Singaporean workplaces, especially among Gen Z and millennial employees, highlighting how the mental health struggles faced by younger generations are significantly different from those of older generations.
“Is work truly getting worse than the previous generations, or are the younger generations too soft and idealistic with unrealistic expectations of life ambitions and career?” she asked.
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Claiming to have had a “terrible time” at work, the woman claimed that her former boss was “a crazy lady” who allegedly yelled a lot and “made everyone feel (bad).”
“I am leaving the job after breaking down in the office toilet almost daily for the last three months without a new job,” the woman shared, adding that having to go to her workplace gave her panic attacks.
Touching on mental health, she also shared how several acquaintances of hers are also facing mental health issues due to workplace stress. “Hearing several colleagues and friends in different departments and companies who were either on anti-anxiety meds with a psychiatrist or crying in the toilet daily,” she said.
She then took it upon herself to compare the struggles of people from her generation with those from her mother’s generation. “Was talking to my mom’s friends or older friends who are in their 50s and 60s about how they survived working for the last 30 to 40 years. It seemed like mental health wasn’t a thing when everyone was focused on putting food on the table.”
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She then questioned if the quality of the workplace is worsening over time or if the younger generations are “too soft and idealistic with unrealistic expectations of life ambitions and career.” To end the post, she added that she wasn’t trying to compare which generation had it harder, nor was she trying to invalidate anyone’s experience, but merely wanted to understand.
Singaporeans weigh in on mental health struggles of Gen Z and millennial employees
Many argued that mental health issues have always been an underlying problem, but it is only the newer generations who are allowing them to come to the surface. “It’s just that mental health issues become more noticeable and prominent nowadays, not that they didn’t exist last time,” said one. “They existed, but nobody paid attention.”
“Before, everybody sucked it up because everybody thought that was the norm,” said another. “Now, with more awareness of mental health, that is the new norm. I don’t know where to draw the line between training resilience and being in pain, but if you are feeling down, please speak to someone. If your boss is unreasonable, the fault is theirs, not yours.”
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Featured image by Depositphotos/primagefactory (For illustration purposes only)
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