Joan Low, Founder of Thoughtfull
Despite one in seven Singaporeans experiencing mental health challenges at some point in their lives, only a quarter of those seeks treatment for it.
The uncomfortable truth is we do not perceive mental health to be as important as its physical counterpart. While there had been an increase in raising awareness and educating the community on mental health, few are doing what matters most – taking action to solve mental health issues.
That was the state of mental health in 2018. Back then, Joan Low was in the fast-paced banking industry. Having been a mental health caregiver for more than two decades, she saw gaps that needed plugging within the conventional mental healthcare system in Southeast Asia.
With a desire to solve hurdles impeding others from taking action on their mental health, she founded Thoughtfull. “We want to empower the community to take ownership of their mental health by making healthcare affordable and accessible to the masses,” Low tells e27 in an interview.
In line with their goal of providing accessible mental health solutions, its consultancy arm Thoughtfull Education works with corporates to implement end-to-end mental wellness programmes for their employees. Having interacted with thousands of working professionals through Thoughtfull Education, Joan realised the stigma surrounding mental health within workplaces was an issue that needed solving.
She shares that preventive mental healthcare was nascent within traditionally conservative Asian societies due to this stigma. “Majority only engage with mental health professionals upon reaching a breaking point where their issues interfere with their daily lives,” she says.
Prevention is better than cure
“We wanted to shift the focus on mental health issues upstream to target the prevention of such issues from arising in the first place,” Low explains as she embarked on a quest to solve this issue.
The idea led to the birth of Thoughtfull Chat. The mobile platform connects users to accredited mental health professionals for daily conversations. Joan believes going digital adds an element of privacy that removes the stigma hindering potential users from engaging with their mental health issues.
“Daily engagements with professionals are a step towards normalising engagement with mental health,” Low opines. Online tracking of users’ mental health progress also serves as a barometer of one’s mental health condition and improvements in it encourages users to continue on the journey towards better mental health.
Acknowledging that mental wellness is a deeply personal topic, Low shares that Thoughtfull is mindful of providing a human-centric experience through their carefully crafted user experience on Thoughtfull Chat.
To ensure the quality and authenticity of a user’s journey on the platform, professional mental health experts on the platform are thoroughly screened and accredited by the relevant bodies before they are allowed to consult users.
Combating stigma with digitalisation
Leveraging on digitalisation to improve one’s access to mental health solutions, Low explains the long-term nature of conversations on Thoughtfull Chat is integral to preventing mental health issues from developing.
Further integrating mental healthcare into our daily lives, the chat app is easily accessible on mobile devices, making engaging with mental health manageable even for the busiest professionals. Thereby, further reducing the stigma associated with it.
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Discussing the impact the pandemic had on their business, Low remarks the great groundwork done by the team since its founding in 2018 provided a strong foundation for them to capture the numerous growth opportunities presented this year. Having met its annual sales target within the first six months of the year, the Thoughtfull team is not resting on its laurels.
With new features released every fortnight, Thoughtfull Chat users can look forward to more products to enrich their mental wellness. The team recently launched a learning package within the app. Consisting of curated and evidence-based lessons packed with actionable tips, it is targeted at users keen to self-educate themselves on various mental wellness practices without the need for a coach.
“We are also working on implementing artificial intelligence and machine learning to enhance the user journey and provide more accurate and timely mental healthcare,” Joan closes.
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Image Credit: Thoughtfull
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