We received this post from a mentally distressed NS man.
I was stress about army life, towards the end of my national service in 2004, I had a mental breakdown.
I went to see MO. He refer me to NUH and then to TTSH. Both hospital diagnosed me as mental ill. TTSH doctors even wrote that my mental illness was severe.
Back to camp, I was still a combatant, armed with M16. My parent decided to seek help from Member of Parliament. The reply was that my camp wont worsen my condition and after 2 weeks, I will be released from official duty. Shouldn’t it be immediate? Is there any trained phycologists in camp?
After this 2 weeks, I was basically doing nothing but hiding in the bunk and clearing leave before I ORD. I had cleared my NS liability like the rest of my peers without early release.
After that, I still received notice to go for IPPT and reservice. I went back camp as civilian to visit my MO, explaining that I cant go back due to my illness. However, my medical status was always pending. I will need to visited them many times to defer. I am sick of revealing my condition and privacy to different MO and medic. All the MO that I visited, promised me that I wont need to come back. In the end, I still received the notice.
In 2013, I received another call up. Out of impulse, I rushed to the police station to challenge for an arrest as I do not wish to go back. My mum rushed to the station to calm me down.
Finally, I do not need to go back for reservice.
There is no compensation for all the mental damage as Mindef claim my illness is genetic. If it was genetic, then why enlisted me as combatant? Even if it is genetic, does they had the right to pour salt on my wound?
Why when the doctor describe me as severely ill, I was still not given Att C?
Why take so long to downgrade my PES?
What help had been given to mental ill serviceman?
Mindef just avoid my questions.
Mr. A.