Forum: TTSH medical team helped dad through cancer journey
It has been nearly two months since the death of my father, Mr Eng Lye Choon. Over the course of a year, he battled adenocarcinoma, an aggressive form of cancer in the lungs that caused him immense pain.
As a layperson, I was initially overwhelmed by the diagnosis and what lay ahead. But what made all the difference was the incredible support we received from the medical team at Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH), in particular Dr Kulendran Lavenia from the Oncology Clinic, Nurse Jasmine, and the Palliative Medicine team.
Throughout this journey, we witnessed a level of professionalism and empathy that was both humbling and inspiring.
The side effects of chemotherapy were surprisingly manageable for my father – something I attribute in part to his own positive outlook, but also to the expertise and care shown by the team.
Dr Lavenia's calm assurance, the responsiveness of the medical team, and the comforting presence of familiar faces like Nurse Jasmine gave us strength and peace in moments of uncertainty. Amid what must be an overwhelming workload, the team never once wavered in their compassion.
In a time when healthcare workers continue to give so much of themselves, often under great pressure, it is important that we recognise and honour their quiet acts of humanity.
My family will always be deeply grateful to the staff at TTSH who stood with us in our most difficult moments.
Eng Lingying
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Straits Times
26 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Hear Me Out: What I wish my parents knew before I was diagnosed with ADHD
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Parents should recognise that neurodivergence is not a death sentence, but a different way of experiencing the world. SINGAPORE – Is ADHD a death sentence? This was the morbid question posed to me by a parent whose child had recently been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Since sharing my story about being diagnosed with ADHD as an adult in May 2025 , I have received e-mails and messages from parents who described feeling disappointed, confused or heartbroken by their child's learning difference. They worried if their child would be able to cope with the stress of university. If they had somehow failed as parents. If their nature or nurture was to blame. Or more practically, how they could stop their child from cutting class. As someone whose executive dysfunction has been a bane throughout my life, I can empathise with their worries because I have lived it from the other side. When I was 15, I could not sit still in class for hours on end and frequently played truant. Much of my secondary school years was spent listlessly riding the MRT from end to end. I dreaded school. Eventually, I dropped out at Secondary 3. During this time, my parents sought psychiatric help for me (I was prescribed antidepressants) and even spiritual help – spending thousands on idols they hoped would ward off the negative energy they were convinced was to blame. The arguments we had during this time were brutal, ending in tears on both sides, as my parents watched their previously 'quiet and meticulous' child spiral – losing 10kg of weight over the course of a year while I was homeschooled by tutors to take the O levels as a private candidate. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Asia Air India crash report shows pilot confusion over engine switch movement Singapore More NSFs may be recruited to tackle scams: Police Business F&B operators face tougher business landscape amid rising costs and stiff competition Multimedia Which floor is this? Chongqing's maze-like environment powers its rise as a megacity Life The rise of Tupai King, the rage of weather: How durian season is changing Asia 'Woven air': Ancient fabric spun across history makes comeback amid lies and climate change Life At 79, she can do 100 pull-ups: Why more seniors are hitting the gym Business What's in store for policyholders after GE removes pre-authorisation letters for two private hospitals Our relationship recovered when I went to polytechnic and, later, university abroad in the Netherlands, eventually clinching a scholarship to complete my master's degree at the University of Cambridge. In case this is of help to others, here are the three things I wish my parents knew before I was diagnosed with ADHD only at the age of 28, which made everything that came before make sense. 1. It is not your fault In Singapore, where tiger parenting is a norm – and some parents even go on extended leave to help their children study for major examinations – many parents take personal responsibility for their child's shortcomings. A child struggling in school is often experienced as a parent's moral failure, with the accompanying shame and loss of face. Ms Theresa Pong, founder of The Relationship Room counselling centre, and whose daughter was recently diagnosed with ADHD, tells me: 'When she entered the Normal (Academic) stream, I wrestled with guilt and self-blame. I had unknowingly used her Primary School Leaving Examination score as a measure of how well I had done as a parent.' This line of thought is understandable but not helpful, as it raises the temperature of what many experience as a 'pressure cooker' education system. A 2017 study by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) found that 76 per cent of Singapore students reported feeling very anxious for a test even if they were well prepared, compared with the OECD average of 55 per cent. Nearly a third of young people aged 15 to 35 reported very poor mental health, according to a 2024 study by the Institute of Mental Health. For Ms Pong, her daughter's diagnosis brought clarity and much-needed support. 'My daughter will be sitting her N levels next year,' she says. 'And while some may still think she's not 'smart enough' for the Express stream, I now see how resilient, capable and uniquely gifted she is.' Leaving behind the language of blame and moral failure – 'Why are you like this? What am I doing wrong?' – is an important step towards having a healthier and shame-free conversation about how your child's needs are not being met and how you can better meet them. 2. Stop forcing a square peg into a round hole Neurodivergence is not a death sentence. Neither is it a superpower. What it really translates into is a different way of experiencing and understanding the world, plus struggling to pay attention for prolonged periods, feeling constantly restless or expending greater effort on tasks that seem effortless to others. Not all of these symptoms are experienced by those who have ADHD. While some struggle with inattentiveness, others wrestle with hyperactivity, and some deal with both. The friction stems from how much of the world is not built with this in mind, such as white-collar jobs that involve long hours at a desk or classroom environments that heap shame on 'disruptive' students. Ms Alleyah, an 18-year-old student diagnosed with ADHD a year ago who declined to share her last name, wishes her parents could have understood earlier that she could not help being different. 'Growing up, I was made to feel like there was something fundamentally wrong with me,' she says. 'I grew up feeling like I could never tell my parents anything because they wouldn't understand – they would yell at me, saying I wasn't putting in enough effort even though I had 'potential'.' This often leads to 'masking' – where people with ADHD consciously or unconsciously suppress or compensate for their ADHD symptoms to appear neurotypical. Masking can involve forcing oneself to sit still, copying others' social behaviours, avoiding situations that spotlight their difficulties or working harder to achieve the same results. American neuropsychologist Russell Barkley suggests that up to one-third of people with ADHD do this. While it can sometimes be useful, doing so chronically often leads to burnout, anxiety and delays in diagnosis. Some researchers posit that masking is also the reason that fewer women are diagnosed with ADHD. Ms Alleyah recounts: 'I didn't fit the stereotype of a 12-year-old hyperactive boy. I was a quiet, inattentive girl instead.' In her view, chronic masking meant that her ADHD was brushed off as depression and anxiety. Post-diagnosis, her parents have become more understanding. Her father, who was himself diagnosed with ADHD as a young adult, now has a better relationship with her because he, too, grew up forcing himself to abide by neurotypical norms. Ms Alleyah's experiences are echoed by many of those living with ADHD I have interviewed, as well as a commonly held wish that their parents could have looked further into their struggle beyond accepting the 'lazy' label. Ms Moonlake Lee, who founded the non-profit Unlocking ADHD, says the most common concerns she hears from parents are whether ADHD might close doors for their child, and whether their child can keep up academically. She notes that while parents might vex over how and when to discuss ADHD and their concerns with their children, their kids are often already aware of these unspoken fears and differences. 'That's why we encourage parents to talk about ADHD early and openly – in a way that's age-appropriate and strengths-based,' she says. 'When the diagnosis is framed to better understand how their brain works, it can actually empower the child.' 3. Life is not a race What complicates things is that we live in a society built for early bloomers. All these 30-under-30 lists, scholarships reserved for star students under 18 and high-stakes school-leaving exams shape one's university and career trajectory from as early as age 12. This breeds a 'life is a race' mentality where everyone is either ahead of the pack or falling behind. But reality is perhaps more nuanced. Ms Gladys Yeo, 25, dropped out of her International Baccalaureate programme at 17 and decided to go to beauty school instead. Working as a freelance make-up artist, she met people from different ages and walks of life – such as Institute of Technical Education graduates and older homemakers – who were 'all so happy and warm'. 'It made me realise there was more than one way to be happy,' says the now magazine writer, who was diagnosed with ADHD at 21. Moving to Australia to pursue her university degree in media and arts also opened her eyes to 'how narrow the average Singaporean view of success is', because Australian society did not look askance at those engaged in 'blue-collar' work. She discovered that the rat race to prestigious universities and white-collar professions was more a condition of Singaporean life than a universal state of humanity. Of course, there is no disputing that good-class degrees correlate with higher starting incomes and entry into highly competitive and grade-dependent careers like law, medicine and computing. But as Singapore increasingly moves to recognise more varied forms of success, adopt education policies that reduce pressure and promote different kinds of intelligence, one crucial role that parents play is not to stand in the way. Looking back at my stressful schooling years, I can see now that my fraught arguments with my parents were just manifestations of deeply held social anxieties. We knew nobody my age who had dropped out of school. They were deeply concerned that stepping outside the norm would irreversibly damage my life prospects. I, too, lacked the wherewithal to ignore the naysayers or allay their worries. If I could turn back time, it would be to drop out from a system that sapped me, not in defeat, but with optimism that things would turn out all right, in the end. 'We need to shift our expectations, adjust how we (as parents) support them, and advocate for their needs – especially when others don't see the hidden challenges,' reflects Ms Lee, who has a daughter with ADHD and was diagnosed with it herself at age 50. 'Our role isn't just to push them towards success, but to walk alongside them so they build the skills and self-belief to thrive. 'The ADHD brain is wired for interest, novelty and urgency. If we understand this and create environments where their strengths can shine, we open the door for them not just to keep up, but also to soar.' It is an incredibly scary thing for a child to forge his or her own path or to have this reality thrust upon him or her because of neurodivergence. What would make all this a little less frightening are brave parents who will take the child's hand and journey along with him or her without judgment.
AsiaOne
an hour ago
- AsiaOne
Sniffer dogs help Mexico fight the flesh-eating screwworm, World News
TECAMAC, Mexico - With tail wagging, tongue out and ears perked, Hummer - a young mixed breed dog with a slick black coat - sits down in front of a sample of screwworm scent, promptly accepting praise and treats from his handler. Trained to detect the smell of screwworm, a flesh-eating pest that has infected Mexico's cattle herd and disrupted livestock trade with the United States, Hummer and his canine colleagues offer a glimmer of hope in controlling the worm. At a government-run training centre about an hour outside Mexico City, officials from a special unit of the country's health safety agency Senasica run a three-month intensive training programme for a select group of dogs to sniff out screwworm and other pests or diseases in live animals or agricultural products. Most of the dogs are rescued from shelters, allowing animals that may have been abandoned for being too difficult to find a new life. Feisty pups that steal food from the table, never calm down and have a relentless desire to play are the perfect candidates. "Sometimes what people don't want is the ideal for us," said Cesar Dangu, head of the canine training centre Ceacan. "We also have to look for other qualities: that they don't get angry, they are affectionate, they can live with people and with other animals." Not all dogs respond to the aroma of screwworm, a pest that infests livestock and wildlife and carries maggots that burrow into the skin of living animals, causing serious and often fatal damage. Some dogs will refuse to approach the aroma, Dangu said, making those that take to it even more valuable in their task. After cases started emerging in Mexico, the US closed its southern border to imports of certain livestock, including cattle, in May before a gradual reopening began this week. On Wednesday, however, the US government once again closed the border to cattle after a new case of screwworm was detected in Veracruz state, about 370 miles (595 km) south of the US border, a decision Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum called "exaggerated." [[nid:423048]] On a sunny afternoon at Ceacan, just hours after the border closure announcement, the work of the dogs took on new urgency. There are only six screwworm-sniffing dogs working at a livestock border passage in the southern state of Chiapas, which borders Guatemala, the heart of Mexico's screwworm infestation. Havana, a two-year-old Shepherd mix, practices detecting screwworm on cow-sized equipment inside a greenhouse, a training exercise meant to mimic the sweltering heat the dogs must tolerate in Chiapas, said instructor Mayte Tontle. "We want our dogs to adapt as much as possible to the real-life conditions," Tontle said. With at least 47 new cases of screwworm detected daily in Mexico, according to government data, the handful of highly trained canines are a small element of Mexico's response, which also includes a $51 million (S$65 million) facility in Chiapas to produce sterile flies to reduce the reproducing population of the wild flies. The plant, with a hefty $21 million investment from the US, is expected to be ready in the first half of 2026. The dogs trained at Ceacan will work until they complete eight years on the job or turn 10 years old, whichever comes first. After that, they retire. "I would say 99 per cent of the dogs are adopted by their handler. There is an unbreakable link because of the love between the handler and the dog," Dangu said.
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
'Pull-up grandma', 79, can do 100 pull-ups and barbell squat her own weight: More seniors like her are working out at the gym
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Dr Charlotte Lim, 79, doing pull-ups with a 5kg weight. She began her strength training journey when she was 72. SINGAPORE – Dr Charlotte Lim stands at a petite 1.58 m and weighs 49kg, but she pulls her own weight in the gym. At 79 years old, she can do a 50kg barbell back squat and dead-hang for over 3½ minutes. Her training includes up to 100 pull-ups. Besides making friends with younger gym users, she has also picked up fitness lingo such as 'jacked', which has been used to describe her well-honed muscles. 'A total stranger came up to me, fist-bumped me and said, 'Well done, gym bro.' That was quite cute,' she says of an encounter in a gym in Perth, Australia, that she used while visiting her sister there. She never stops working out, even on holiday, rain or shine. Dr Lim's strength training journey started at age 72. Her children – health and fitness coaches Yan Lin, 42, and Tiat Lim, 53 – invited her to join the gym they run together, Bespoke Fitness, so they could train as a family. It was then at one-north, but has since relocated to a space under Dr Lim's 1,600 sq ft condominium unit in Farrer Road. Dr Lim, a widow who holds a PhD in anthropology, had exercised on her own since retiring from her job in human resources at age 57. She would run on a treadmill and do light weights, but her training was unfocused, she says. Dr Charlotte Lim (centre) with her two children Yan Lin (left) and Tiat Lim (right). ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO She was then 'skinny fat', with a body fat percentage of about 29, which is within the average range for women her age. But after starting the gym's FitRX training programme, she could do unassisted sit-ups within a year. 'Before that, I had to anchor my legs down before I could do a sit-up,' says Dr Lim, who turns 80 in December. It took her four years to do her first chin-up, using an underhand grip that is easier than a pull-up's overhand grip. Today, her body fat is 15 per cent, according to the InBody machine, which measures body composition. She does FitRX three times a week, with each workout containing calisthenics, strength training and a cardio burst. The programme covers her whole body over a two-week cycle. On her active rest days, she runs 1.2km around her condo compound and does pull-ups. She has no helper and does the housework herself. Dr Lim demonstrates her strength and mobility during this interview with her least favourite exercise, a Turkish get-up that uses the whole body in multiple planes. Raising a dumbbell in one hand with one leg bent and the other stretched out, she lifts her body from a lying position to standing, and back down again. Dr Charlotte Lim demonstrating her strength and mobility with her least favourite exercise, a Turkish get-up. ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO Her workouts do take more than twice as long as others half her age. Although she star ts a t 7am, it sometimes takes her two hours to finish what younger clients complete in 40 minutes. But she says: 'I recover from my soreness and aches very fast now.' Ms Lin says: 'She's never given up on any workout, no matter how long. It's a reflection of the integrity of her character.' Dr Lim says: 'Whenever I complete a workout, I feel good. Then months or years later, I suddenly realise I can do things I never expected to do, like the chin-up. My biggest achievement is not having to see a doctor for health issues.' Her cholesterol levels are now optimal and she has managed to prevent sarcopenia, which is age-related muscle loss, says Ms Lin. Dr Charlotte Lim can do a 50kg barbell back squat, more than her weight of 49kg. ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO Bespoke Fitness has about 30 clients, over half of whom are 50 years old and up. A three-day trial for first-timers costs $38, and unlimited classes are $259 a month. On July 12, Dr Lim will run her first race, a 100m dash in the women's masters 75 to 79 age group category in the Singapore Masters Track and Field Association's Track & Field Champions hip. At home, her family eats a clean homemade diet and cooks with no sugar, oil, additives and processed food. But it is no 'gym bro' food like boiled chicken breasts that sacrifices taste entirely. Dr Lim shows off a menu that lists local dishes from rendang to chicken curry bee hoon. She also drinks two homemade protein shakes daily. Out of 21 meals in a week, two are 'cheat' meals where they may visit, say, Crystal Jade restaurants. Chendol is her favourite cheat dessert, which she indulges in three to four times a year. Dr Lim has also achieved a measure of social media fame since Ms Lin started an Instagram account, @pullup_grandma, about a year ago to chronicle her fitness journey. It has over 1,830 followers and Dr Lim says she has received 'thousands' of encouraging messages from fans as far away as the US . 'It's like a mission now to show people how to look after your body. You don't have to have a walking stick or be in a wheelchair in the last 10 years of your life,' she says. Accessible and affordable options for seniors Like Dr Lim, more active midlifers and seniors are heading to the gym to strength-train, which helps prevent and manage age-related health issues like sarcopenia that could lead to frailty, falls and fractures. It also strengthens their mental health and immunity, among a host of benefits. Strength training, in other words, increases health span, the period of life in which one is healthy. This is a trend driven by Singapore's super-ageing society, changing societal norms about what 'old' people can do, as well as an increase in the gym choices available. One in four Singaporeans will be aged 65 and above by 2030, compared with one in 10 in 2010. One of the most well-known local senior gym brands, Gym Tonic, has a waiting list of 2,200 individuals despite minimal marketing. It plans to expand to 10 new sites within the next year, says Mr Gabriel Lim, programme director at Lien Foundation. The philanthropic organisation initially partnered nursing homes and senior care centres for Gym Tonic's launch in 2015, but shifted its focus to all seniors within the community a year later, with 22 of its 29 sites open to this more active group. Launched in 2015 by Lien Foundation and its partners, Gym Tonic has a waiting list of 2,200 seniors despite minimal marketing and plans to open 10 new sites within the next year. PHOTO: LIEN FOUNDATION They are run by social service agencies and located in A ctive Ageing Centres, community clubs and a social service hub in a shopping centre. Its programme hopes to make strength training mainstream and address age-related muscle loss, a key cause of frailty, Mr Lim says. It now serves some 5,200 users annually, who range from 55 to 97 years old, with an average age of 71 for women and 73 for men. Nearly 40 participants in its community sites are aged 90 and up. Members undergo a structured 12-week programme with a pre-assessment, twice-weekly sessions on hydraulic or pneumatic equipment, as well as a post-assessment. Fees vary by centre, typically ranging from $7.50 to $20 a session in 24-session packages. They are kept affordable through its non-profit partners and the foundation's support. Nearly six in 10 seniors in the community are physically well but inactive, which means they need earlier intervention so they do not increase their frailty risk an d h ealthcare burden, he says, referring to statistics from the Ministry of Health's 2023 Frailty Strategy Policy Report. 'User needs have also evolved. Five years ago, many joined at the urging of their children. Today, more seniors sign up on their own, aware that frailty can be delayed or reversed. National initiatives like Healthier SG and Age Well SG have also brought strength training into sharper public focus,' he says. 'Younger seniors aged 55 to 65 are more health-literate and seek structured, results-driven sessions, while older participants in their 80s often have simpler goals – like staying mobile and independent – and require closer supervision to train safely.' A Sport Singapore (SportSG) spokesperson says about 14,000 individuals aged 50 and up visited its 28 gyms at least once a week in the first half of 2025. It did not provide comparison figures for previous years. A one-time entry ticket is free for Singaporeans and permanent residents aged 65 and up, while those aged 55 and above pay $1.50 and adults aged up to 54 pay $2.50. Its ActiveSG Sport Centres also offer an eight-week Calm (Combat Age-related Loss of Muscle) programme for seniors who are at least 60 years old, where they learn about the importance of building lean muscle for daily activities and use resistance bands, free weights and gym machines to build their strength-training confidence. To make the programme more accessible, SportSG has taken Calm to 75 Active Ageing Centres as part of its Frailty Prevention Programme so far, and will reach a total of 100 such centres by the end of 2025. ActiveSG members who are Singaporeans and permanent residents can use their $100 SG60 ActiveSG credits to fully cover Active Health programme fees, including the $60 Calm programme. Gym is the new coffee shop Commercial gyms for seniors also have come up with innovative spins for their clients. Community is at the heart of Aspire55, a 900 sq ft gym in Commonwealth that started in 2014, says co-founder Janice Chia. It boasts nine state-of-the-art smart strength stations with Wi-Fi-enabled touchscreens from Finnish company Hur, but it is the camaraderie from working out together that keeps its 120 active members coming back . 'Our membership has grown steadily, especially post-pandemic, as more older adults prioritise strength and preventive health,' she says. 'As a social health-focused community, the strength training circuit is designed so members can laugh and chat with one another while working out.' Ms Janice Chia is the founder of Aspire55. ST PHOTO: GIN TAY Aspire55's membership ranges from ages 50 to over 90, but most are between 60 and 80 years old. They undergo an initial fitness assessment – covering baseline strength, balance, body composition as well as functional tests – and repeat it every six months. Sixty-minute personalised strength training classes are held in small groups. Prices start at $700 for 10 sessions. Trial passes and social memberships are available, as is ad-hoc personal training. Aspire55 members are guided by fitness instructors as they undergoing strength training. ST PHOTO: GIN TAY Aspire55 also serves another 300 seniors who take part in its a la carte activities, and has a database of over 10,000 seniors who are invited to active ageing events. The clubhouse has a 100 sq ft balcony where clients can plant vegetables and fruits. Its latest harvest includes blue pea flowers, mint and lemon, Ms Chia says. 'Commitment is sustained through strong community bonds, encouragement from trainers and the social aspect – members look forward to meeting friends during sessions. We also encourage mini potlucks where members spontaneously cook for one another. W e have enjoyed dishes, from freshly baked sourdough bread to nasi ulam to ondeh ondeh,' she adds. Other popular activities include dance evenings, fitness ball drumming, cheerleading, camps and karaoke sessions. Underserved market Seniors are a sorely underserved market Ms Chia wants to tap. Ageing is a US$4.56 trillion (S$5.84 trillion) market opportunity in the Asia-Pacific region in 2025, with Singapore's market potential estimated to be at US$72.4 billion, says Ms Chia. She is also the founder of Ageing Asia, an ageing-focused consultancy that is behind the 16-year-old annual World Ageing Asia Festival. In June 2025 , Aspire55's community brand, Singapore Seniors, became the active ageing operator for Commune@Henderson, Singapore's first intergenerational co-living space that houses seniors as well as foreign students. It was developed by TSTAP, a joint venture between dormitory operator TS Group and co-living provider The Assembly Place. Under Commune's community ambassador time-share model, seniors organise and teach activities such as painting and gardening in exchange for access to a personalised circuit strength gym programme similar to Aspire55's version . Students living there also help to teach the older adults tech-related classes, among other activities. Ms Chia hopes to replicate the concept of an intergenerational gym in private condominiums here, which often see their gyms empty during office hours. While condos usually have seasonal programmes for residents, she wants to create regular opportunities for young and old to interact meaningfully. 'This is a cost-efficient, scalable way to bring our model closer to homes,' she says. At Vigeo Personal Training's 1,900 sq ft gym in YWCA Fort Canning, members do not have to wait for their turn at a weight machine or search for missing dumbbells. Its 'gym within a gym' concept has pods containing the equipment they need for their workout, almost like a business-class version of the usual gym set-up. Mr Benson Poh, director of Vigeo Personal Training, helping Ms Julia Tey during a training session. It has a 'gym within a gym' concept, with pods that contain all the equipment members need. ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO And unlike gyms which have a wall of mirrors, the ones here are strategically placed as semi-private partitions along the middle of the gym to make shy clients feel more at ease. Most of Vigeo's clients are above 50 years old and many have medical conditions such as osteoporosis, sarcopenia, diabetes and general muscle weakness, says its director Benson Poh, who started the business six years ago. He declined to reveal his membership figures. It offers semi-private personal training, in which a coach takes care of two to four clients in a session and each can access his or her customised workout using a tablet at his or her pod. Fees start at $105 a session and members are encouraged to attend twice weekly. 'Gyms have always been about aesthetics, but we are trying to improve quality of life and help people stay healthy into their 60s, 70s and beyond,' Mr Poh says. That also means challenging stereotypes of what kinds of exercise seniors can do, while being mindful of their injuries and health issues. 'If you treat old people like old people, they will be old people. A lot of times, senior training is about taking it slow because you're very frail. But we want to challenge them to the best of their abilities,' he adds. One of the most heart-warming cases he has handled was a woman in her 70s who wept with joy after she was strong enough to get up from the floor, something she had not been able to do since knee replacement surgery. Part-time teacher Julia Tey, 50, signed up at Vigeo in November 2023 when she began gaining weight in perimenopause despite running and doing yoga stretches regularly. After strength training for a while, she realised she had to buy clothes in a bigger size as her muscles developed, but it triggered a 'mindset shift' from the perception that women must be stick-thin like K-drama actresses. 'Since gym training, I run better and feel independent and strong, physically and mentally. My back doesn't hurt when I try to carry something,' she says. 'I shamelessly feel like I'm 30 again.' Physiotherapy practice Thrive Healthcare launched its Legends programme in 2019 because it saw a gap in the market. The programme helps older adults with diverse medical conditions develop functional fitness, strength and conditioning, says physiotherapist Lenis Phoa. It has around 100 active members ranging from 50 to 91 years old, who can choose from its schedule of eight one-hour classes. Most attend once or twice weekly. Prospective members must attend a trial class at $35 to see if they are suitable. Packages start at $225 for five sessions and there is a couple package for spouses as well. Ms Phoa says the programme initially focused on safety and engagement for a diverse group of clients, but has since evolved to include a data-driven approach to track improvement, fitness and health education, as well as community building. One success story is Madam Cheok Soh Cheng, 74, who suffers from multiple health conditions. After joining the programme in July 2024, she has improved her health and gained energy and confidence, so much so that she is looking forward to taking part in the gym's in-house competition in Augu st. Madam Cheok Soh Cheng, 74, who suffers from multiple health conditions, has improved her health and gained energy and confidence after joining Thrive Healthcare's Legends programme for seniors. PHOTO: THRIVE HEALTHCARE Mr Li m from Lien Foundation says private gyms such as these serve a different segment of the silver market. He hopes all future Active Ageing Centres will include a dedicated seniors' gym. 'Their rise signals a positive shift towards ageing well – offering safe, peer-supported spaces for seniors to begin strength training. It is a fast-growing space. 'As seen in Finland and Japan, more players can drive innovation and help make strength training a norm for seniors, not the exception.'
