Today is World Mental Health Day! How can one be happier? This is something that I am constantly learning too.

Having exposed to the “Be Positive” Campaign in where I work, I’ve learnt to see things from a different perspective – There is always two sides of a coin!

Being resilient and embracing optimism are very important to one’s mental health. No doubt I still have bad days, I recover much faster now as I try to see things from the other perspective when I am feeling down.

Be Positive. Think Positive. Act Positive…and lead a happier life

Have you watched “Ah Kong“, a short film on dementia by Royston Tan, yet? Dementia is an illness that is relative more common among elderly aged above 65.

In Royston Tan’s Short Film “Ah Kong“, the grandfather was once a fit young man who mesmerised a lot girls in his village. While he can remember everything in the past, he is having problems connecting with the present. I personally thought the song “我不管你是谁” (which means “I don’t care who you are”) is very appropriate for “Ah Kong“ - Dementia can happen to anyone.

Rather than getting frustrated with the grandfather for the inability to connect with the present, the grandson actually played along with the grandfather in the last scene of “Ah Kong“. Dementia patients tend to imitate the emotions of the people around him. If the grandson had gotten frustrated with the grandfather, it was likely for the grandfather to imitate his emotions.

While there is no cure for dementia, early detection can slow down the deterioration of the brain’s ability. Studies have also shown that a healthy lifestyle can reduce your risk of developing dementia. Do check out the 10 warning signs of dementia at HPB Online. If you suspect that you or your loved one has dementia, there are helplines available on the webpage too.

With Zoe Tay and Kenny Ho

I had the privilege to attend the Gala Premiere of “Love Cuts“, a breast cancer awareness movie starring Zoe Tay and Kenny Ho on 31 Aug 2010. It was a star-studded evening where local celebrities like Felicia Chin, Dai Yang Tian and Joi Chua were there to support the Queen of Caldecott Hill!

The Production Team with the Main Cast

I shall not be a spoiler here, but I swear this is the first time that I ever cried while watching a movie! I teared for three times when I was watching Love Cuts in fact! I could hear audiences opening the tissue packs that were provided by the organisers simultaneously at a several scenes. So do remember to bring along a pack of tissue paper when you are catching Love Cuts as tissue packs are not provided during normal screening.

Do you know that early detection of breast cancer can save lives? It is recommended that women above 50 should go for regular mammography. In fact, I would encourage you to get your parents to go for regular health screening if they are above 40 years old. Health Screening can help reduce the risk of complications of diseases, and might even save one’s life. If you need more details Health Screening, they can be found at www.hpb.gov.sg/healthscreening.

I live it up without lighting up, and I’ll get to save $4,000 a year. Join me and stay tobacco-free to get rich!

Join me and pledge to “Live it up without lighting up!” using the “Live it up!” Pledge Facebook Application!

Let’s Live It Up Without Lighting Up! Woo Hoo!

The Great Audio Experience will happening this afternoon at 4.30pm sharp! I’ll be covering the route from SMU Green to Plaza Singapura! The hashtag for the event is #liveitup2010.

I am definitely feeling very nervous now… Last year “World No Tobacco Day” event, the fail whale attacked… Hope everything will go on well today!

Say hi if you are there! There will also be a Live it up! party at Plaza Singapura this evening with local bands who are smoke-free or going through smoking cessation at the moment!

Hope to see you there!

Photo credit: @DynStarr

Local artist DynStarr was commissioned to develop an art installation for the “Live it up without lighting up” campaign. The art installation, known as the “Hello Monsters“, was first showcased at the Esplanade in January 2010 and will be travelling around Singapore as part of the “Live it up without light up” 2010 Campaign.

A challenge was threw to our digital creative agency, Tribal DDB, to develop a game that capitalise on DynStarr‘s creation to extend its longevity.

One character in the “Hello Monsters” is Jimbo, the guy who suffered from the effects of smoking. Here’s the story that we want to tell – Support from friends play a big part in helping people to quit smoking.

Based on these, we are proud to present you “Jimbo Defence“, a game based on the concept of Tower Defence.

Play now and you can stand to win $100 shopping vouchers!

So… What is in this “Best Amulet 王牌保身灵” Ang Pao? Watch the video to find the answer…

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Yup. Each Ang Pao contains a condom.

It’s not the fear of death, it’s the fear of getting HIV because it’s the social stigma they cannot withstand.

Due to social stigma, a lot of people with high-risk sexual behaviour do not want to get tested. Did you know that more than 90% of people living with HIV in Singapore are adults in the prime working ages of 21 to 59 years? It is not possible to know if someone has HIV/AIDS by looking at him or her.

Regular HIV testing can help an infected person to be diagnosed at an earlier stage of infection. Early diagnosis can afford a person earlier access to care and treatment, and also allow the person to receive counselling on how to protect their partners from infection. The person can still contribute to society and work and lead a normal life.

“Pixelated” by Jack & Rai is a song dedicated to World AIDS Day 2009. Through this song, we hope that everyone should not look at HIV/AIDS through pixelated eyes. Learn more about HIV/AIDS to protect yourself and your love ones and show your care and concern for people living with HIV.

Was happy to see DK, Hisham, Jayden, Mus, Diana and Eevon at our event and glad to meet William for the first time! Friends like Claudia, Nadia, Jacelyn and Lawrence did not managed to make it for our event due to personal commitments and Nicole was not feeling well that day.

Kicking off the event was Jack & Rai singing the unplugged version of “Pixelated”, a song in commemoration of World AIDS Day 2009, live at the blogger event and followed by a screening of August 29, a short film produced by HPB and a group of youths.

[Part 1 of August 29]

[Part 2 of August 29]

Starring Lawrence and Evelyn Maria, August 29 is a heart-wrenching love story about a girl who is dying of AIDS and how she chooses to spend her last days with her ex-boyfriend, a photographer.

My colleague, Janice then shared the objective of the blogger engagement event and programme lined up to commemorate World AIDS Day 2009. This might sound cliché to you but we really hope to create more awareness about HIV/AIDS through the power of our blogger friends.

Did you see the countdown timer on the right column? It will be counting down to December 1, a day when many people around the world can often be seen wearing the red ribbon that has now become a familiar symbol of:

• CARE and CONCERN for people living with HIV and those who have died from AIDS;
• HOPE in the search for a vaccine and care; and
• SUPPORT for people living with or affected by HIV

Did you know that…

• condoms can provide protection against HIV when used correctly and consistently?
• when you are tested negative, it does not mean you are HIV negative for life?
• you will not get HIV by sharing food and drinks with someone who has the virus?
• a lot of people still do not know about the above-mentioned after so many years of public education since the discovery of the virus in 1981?
• and you can find out more about HIV/AIDS at HPB Online?

“Your life, your canvas” is the theme for World AIDS Day 2009 and is inspired by the notion that we are all responsible for painting the canvas of our own lives. What we choose to put on that canvas is entirely up to us, and the choices we make all contribute to a constantly evolving picture.

We will be having the finals of the Graffiti Art Competition at Scape Park on 21 Nov 09 and will also be hosting an exclusive World AIDS Day event of art, music and dance, featuring guest appearances by Jack & Rai on 5 Dec 09 at SupperClub Singapore.

To stand a chance to win one of the 100 pairs of tickets to this special event, all you need to do is answer 3 simple questions on Breathe.sg.

To increase your chances of winning the tickets, do keep an eye on my blog as I will also be giving out 5 pairs of tickets to 5 lucky readers in this 2 weeks! Some of our blogger friends will also be holding a ticket giveaway in their blogs so do keep a lookout on Breathe.sg!

Show your support!

I sincerely hope that you can also show your support for the World AIDS Day 2009 by joining our Twibbon campaign on Twitter and Facebook to create awareness on HIV/AIDS.

If you blog too, you can also show your support by embedding this countdown widget on your blog.

To participate, copy and paste the following codes to your blog:

As you may have known, I am with the Health Promotion Board (HPB) New Media Unit.

The  Ministry of Finance (MOF) and  Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) have  jointly organised the “Singapore Government Web Excellence Awards 2009″ to promote continuous improvement of government websites.

HPB has submitted 3 websites under our stable for this award. They are:

• HPB Online for for Most User-Friendly, Best Content and Top e-Service category
• Lets Talk About Sex for Most User-Friendly and Best Content category
• Healthy Mind Happy Life for Most User-Friendly and Best Content category

Vote now and you can stand a chance to win $100 voucher! Voting closes on 31 Oct 09.

Do vote for us! Every vote counts.