Hi, I'm Wendy and here's my story

Like many Singaporeans, I followed the path our Asian parents ingrained in us... study hard, get good grades, land a stable job, and settle down. Raised to bring honor to our families, I learned early on to hide my struggles behind a smile.

But life doesn’t always go as planned. Just as the pandemic began, I was diagnosed with breast cancer while working overseas. I scrambled to find flights, shuttling between two countries to get treatment while trying to keep my job. People around me dismissed my fears, saying it was only stage one, as if that made my feelings any less real.

During a time of immense insecurity, I found myself making sweeping changes... ending a long marriage (and losing many shared friends along with it), leaving my marital home, stepping away from my first overseas job, and relocating back for good without a place to call my own.

Starting over in my late 30s wasn’t easy. Carrying limiting beliefs for so long made me feel undeserving of anything good. Am I too old to start over in life? How do people even date nowadays? Would men be disgusted by a woman with a newly scarred breast? Would employers be willing to hire someone in cancer remission? Would cancer return?!

Overwhelming doubt and emotional exhaustion eventually led me to seek out the professionals, but finding the right help wasn’t easy. I went through several counselors, psychologists, and a psychiatrist... and was eventually diagnosed as autistic, and with persistent low-grade depression (dysthymia).

SSRI medication helped stabilize my mood and gave me the space to start working on myself without constantly bursting into tears. Through journaling and writing, I gently faced what I’d been carrying for years. I turned to financial literacy to rebuild my confidence after years of instability and setbacks that left me feeling powerless around money.

My self-portrait doodle

Well, I can't erase the painful or embarrassing parts of my past. And it's not probable to have everything figured out. Sometimes, the best we can do is work with what we have and focus on what’s within our control.

And as things shift at work and the future feels uncertain, I’ve been learning about artificial intelligence (AI) to keep growing and adapting. It’s one way I’m choosing to face uncertainty with intention, rather than fear.

This growth mindset also gave me the courage to let go of the masked persona I used to present to the world. I stopped trying so hard to impress and started showing up as I am. (Yes, that’s my bare face. I hardly wear makeup these days.)

Nowadays, I write for introspective souls who want to make sense of life and live with more intention, especially for those navigating life transitions, invisible struggles, or simply wanting to feel more like themselves again.