Testimonies from RDI Youths and Children
Graduates of the RDI Programme
Staying on as a volunteer has been an enriching experience for me, in learning how to be a mentor figure who provides guidance to others, gaining skillsets in preparing events such as camps for the children and youth, and learning from the mentees.
DOMINIC
Auntie Gen is a great psychologist, having allowed me the privilege to undergo many years of therapy under her. I still remember back in my younger days, where I would be obsessed with toys and jumping on the trampoline non-stop. Over the years, I started to be less picky and being more independent as a person. Today, I still exhibit some symptoms of ASD but can function normally like anyone else in most areas of life.
I’m now undergoing social therapy, in a group setting. I really struggle with talking to people and often get into misunderstandings. I learnt from Aunty Gen many calming down strategies, mental exercises and made progress in pushing out of my comfort zone. It was from this that I’m now able to initiate conversations with people and ensure that the other party listens. During the recent Chinese New Year gatherings, I was able to be more comfortable in listening to conversations and participating actively in them.
Another skill that I learnt from Aunty Gen was to own my mistakes. Previously, I would usually blame myself or others where something goes wrong. She taught me to study different perspectives of the problem, and to be open-minded about them. This makes it more difficult to easily blame others. As a result, I became more responsible for my own mistakes.
I greatly appreciate having her as my psychologist.
JO
Aunty Gen, she was nurturing and so patient. She made each session a safe space to be in.
JOHN
Aunty Gen has been really helpful, and she has taught me to improve my social skills and be more observant to subtle social cues, as well as to improve my observation skills of people in public. In short, her programme has imparted me with the skills and confidence to interact with others and make new friends.
JX
Hi, My name is Ryan. I’ve been mentored and guided by Auntie Gen for 4 years from 2018 – 2022 and it was bittersweet as I completed my O levels and went to junior college shortly after I graduated under her close supervision.
My parents noticed that I still had trouble reading social cues and expressing myself while I enrolled in a mainstream primary school. I initially did not want to redo social therapy as by then, I had already made good friends in secondary school and was somewhat able to converse normally with my classmates. However, my parents insisted and soon met Auntie Gen for the first time in 2018.
In almost every step, she was always there to guide and teach me with compassion. Slowly but surely, my social foundation began to build up again despite my initial doubts. She first taught me to be first aware of myself. How to express my feelings and thoughts in words. Only then I was finally able to progress forward and begin to understand others. The learning process was extremely fulfilling and enriching. I was able to practice what I have learnt not only with Auntie Gen but with others. She would patiently guide me through my mistakes and constant shortcomings I had with social cues. I felt that I was relearning everything from square one.
Eventually, I had the confidence to apply what I have learnt outside under her close supervision. It was a struggle to understand non verbal cues and it felt like I failed over and over again. However, slowly but surely, I began to see past words and started to pick up non verbal cues more effectively. This took way longer than I anticipated, but it would leave me with something that would change the rest of my social life for the better forever.
I am truly grateful to the guidance from Aunty Gen, and I would recommend anyone who needs help to her.
RYAN
