Wayne Freeman Chong, PhD

18/09/2025

I pushed her.

And instantly regretted it.

But it was too late.

She bruised her left elbow.

And her jade bangle broke into three.

In our culture, when jade breaks, we say it absorbed the misfortune. But the truth was caregiver stress...and my choices...caused harm.

I’ve carried that lesson through caring for my mum (ovarian cancer) and my dad (spinal issues and breathlessness).

I learned, sometimes the hard way, that love without tools burns out; love with tools builds up.

Defying dementia isn’t magic. It’s method:
• 60–90-second micro-breaks calm the nervous system and reset attention.
• Real connection reduces caregiver burden and protects mood and cognition.
• Routine movement and steady sleep support memory, judgment, and patience.

This Saturday (20 Sep) I’m sharing “𝗗𝗲𝗳𝘆 𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮, Define Your Destiny” at Caregiving Welfare Association's Caregiving Fest: a fast, practical session you can use the same day.

You’ll leave with a 1-page checklist, a quick memory self-test, and actionable micro-skills you can practice right away.

👉 Join me this Saturday. Details on the poster...bring a caregiver friend.

(Photos shared with my family’s blessing.)



GeroPsych Consultants

16/09/2025

𝘗𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘳... 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘭𝘬 𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳.

That’s what my 75-year-old mentor and Christian friend, Uncle Ephraim Chan, texted me this morning.

Two weeks ago, Uncle Ephraim didn’t fall.

The man a few steps ahead suddenly fainted in the busy underpass at Tanjong Pagar MRT… and fell backwards onto him.

My mentor’s body cushioned a stranger’s fall.

And took the full force on his own thigh.

What are the odds?

Older adults often fracture a hip or thigh after their own fall. In fact, even “low-energy” impacts can break bone.

But here, it wasn’t his fall at all. It was someone else’s collapse that sent him to surgery and now community rehab.

But this is who he is ... caregiver turned care recipient, ... still:

• Thanking God for oats, toast, and coffee.
• Finding courage in every transfer from bed to chair.
• Cracking jokes (“OUCH: OUtram Community Hospital”).
• And most importantly, bearing witness to his faith before staff and fellow patients.

Watching him, I’m reminded: recovery is never just medical.

It’s also mental, emotional, relational, and spiritual.

Caregiver or care recipient, the practice is the same: 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗺𝗶𝗰𝗿𝗼-𝘃𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀.

👉 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆?

(Shared with permission.)



GeroPsych Consultants

12/09/2025

𝗥𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: A Journey of Purpose and Connection 🌱

is often pictured as freedom and relaxation—but the reality can be more complex. Shifting from a structured work life to open-ended days can leave many retirees searching for purpose, routine, and meaningful connections.

This video, created by my students, explores stories like Gita’s and highlights how role transition theories can guide retirees toward fulfilling post-work lives. It’s a reminder of the vital role , families, and communities play in supporting mental and emotional well-being at this stage.

10/09/2025

Wife or Mum?

I was torn.

Both my wife’s gynaecologist and my mum’s oncologist scheduled appointments were on the same time, same day, same hospital.

My wife and I, soon-to-be first-time parents, were going for our first ultrasound appointment with the baby.

Mum was not responding to first phase of cancer treatment.

No employee handbook prepares you for this.

Thankfully, my brother returned unexpectedly from overseas and stepped in.

Without that, I’d have had to let one of them down.

This is the hidden reality of caregiving while working. And it’s not rare.
👉 1 in 2 employees in Singapore are silent caregivers (Ministry of Manpower, 2020).

The 𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 is clear. Peer support reduces stress, buffers against burnout, and strengthens resilience. For caregiving employees, it can mean the difference between silent struggle and sustained wellbeing.

I was reminded of this again last week at the IMDA, where I sat down with Gerald Boh, a seasoned clinical psychologist, and Jayne Lee from MindsHeart. Gerald spoke about stress in the workplace. I spoke about stress in the context of caregiving. Jayne guided the conversation with empathy and clarity.

The 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 is urgent. Workplaces that normalise peer support—through buddy systems, caregiver circles, or mental health champions—don’t just retain talent. They build cultures of trust, empathy, and performance.

When stress is acknowledged, it becomes lighter. When caregiving is recognised, it becomes less lonely.

👉 How does your organisation support its silent caregivers?

09/09/2025

At home, he’s withdrawn.

But my client's husband lights up in his dementia group.

For 45 minutes, with word games and laughter, she got a piece of him back.

Play didn’t make her husband childish.

It brought him back.

We don’t talk about this enough: 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲.

𝗖𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗶𝗺𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗽𝘆 (CST) uses simple, social activities—discussion, puzzles, music—to support recall, attention, language, and mood.

And when we gamify those moments (small challenges, feedback, rewards), engagement climbs and results stick (Chong, 2025).

Try this 2-minute CST-style game:
🧠 𝟰-𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗸 — pick 4 words → make one sentence → retell from memory → expand to a 2-sentence micro-story.

🎁 𝗖𝗦𝗧-𝗦𝘁𝘆𝗹𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲 with starter word packs + a 7-day tracker

📰 Read the full issue: 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘺 𝘐𝘴 𝘉𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘦: 𝘊𝘰𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘚𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘱𝘺.

If you’re a caregiver, clinician, or team lead, run a 5-minute story circle this week. You’ll feel the difference.



GeroPsych Consultants

Cognitive Stimulation Therapy turns play into brain care. Short, social activities can improve recall, attention, mood—and rekindle connection in dementia care.

05/09/2025

𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘳𝘶𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘳.

That's what I thought.

Until I owned it.

And didn’t let it.

At 21, I became a caregiver for my grandmother. Later, for my mother with cancer, and my father with spinal problems.

What looked like career detours became the very experiences that shaped my purpose: dementia prevention, geropsychology, and caregiving science.

That’s why I’m delighted to be a guest speaker at SG Psych Stuff’s upcoming webinar:

📌 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 – A Blueprint for the Emerging Psychologist
🗓 𝟰 𝗢𝗰𝘁 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 (Sat) | 𝟮:𝟬𝟬 – 𝟯:𝟯𝟬 𝗣𝗠 (Online)

We’ll explore:
✔️ How caregiving can be a career catalyst, not a career killer
✔️ What “caregiving science” means in ageing Singapore
✔️ Why emerging psychologists must see caregiving as career capital

Caregiving doesn’t end careers.

𝗜𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺, 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹.

👉 Swipe through the carousel for details.
👉 Sign-up link is in the first comment.



GeroPsych Consultants

04/09/2025

🛑 Stop lying

To yourself.

You deserve good things.

Day 27 of NATALIE’s 30-Day Affirmation Challenge reminds us of this truth: “I know I deserve good things.”

When I was caring for my grandma, I told myself my needs could wait.

That lie led to burnout.

The day I stopped lying, I began to heal. “As iron sharpens iron, one person sharpens another.”

Let’s uplift — and allow ourselves to be uplifted. ❤️

👉 What lie are you ready to stop telling yourself?

✨️ 30 Days Affirmation Challenge Day 27 ✨️ Day 27: I Know I Deserve Good Things Lamentations 3:25 ~ “The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him…” This is another hugely important affirmation, because when you don’t feel worthy of good fortune, you actually set up resistance to it...

03/09/2025

I wasn’t on stage.

But I met Daryl Lee, the event photographer.

He spends the day spotting others.

Framing, focusing, capturing.

Yet he’s rarely in the frame himself.

That’s exactly what caregivers do.

𝘐𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘦 1 (𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘋𝘢𝘳𝘺𝘭): “The ones who make the spotlight possible are rarely in it.”

𝘐𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘦 2 (𝘮𝘺 𝘧𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘣𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘮—𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺’𝘴 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯):
This moment shows my father being helped out of the pool by my Christian brothers after his water baptism. I stood beside them, steadying him.
No one clapped. But without those hands, the moment wouldn’t exist.
Caregivers do the heavy lifting quietly, every single day.

𝘐𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘦 3 (𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘺 𝘋𝘢𝘳𝘺𝘭): “When we ignore the unseen, organisations lose people and potential.”

Now, the workplace: your most committed staff may also be caregivers—unseen, stretched, exhausted.
If we don’t recognise that, we risk losing not just talent, but trust.

𝗠𝘆 𝗺𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀: 𝘚𝘵𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵.

Try this in the next 30 days:
✔️ Add a “care check-in” to 1:1s (How are YOU doing?)
✔️ Pilot small accommodations (flex starts/ends, 10% task swaps)
✔️ Pair teammates for coverage so caregivers can step away without penalty

I also share a 𝟱-𝗽𝗵𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 caregivers can use to better integrate work and care: 𝘌𝘹𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘦, 𝘋𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦, 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘯, 𝘈𝘤𝘵, 𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵 (see 1st comment for more info).

Because resilience at work depends on seeing the people who make it possible.

𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀: what’s one thing you’ll do this week to make unseen caregivers in your workforce feel seen?

02/09/2025

If I were a caregiver, there are many things I might have to do less, stop doing, change, or never do.

That’s the prospect of caregiving for Joven, a young university undergrad.

But “loss” depends on the values we hold.

And that’s where this issue begins.

If you’re supporting a parent or grandparent (now or soon), you’re not falling behind.

You’re learning agency, intimacy, and kindness under pressure.

In 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘀, 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 — Edition 5, Joven and I share a values-first playbook to redefine losses, reduce the 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘺, and align supports across home, school/work, and policy.

🔗 Read: Redefining Losses — Reclaiming Self & Pursuing Growth
💬 Comment “Caregiving” and I’ll DM you a printable to map goals + caregiving.
👥 Tag a young caregiver (or future one) who deserves support today.



GeroPsych Consultants

Youth caregiving has real costs. Reframe “loss,” share the load at home/school/work, and protect identity so growth continues while you care.

29/08/2025

Type "Gerontologist" into MyCareersFuture.

Zero job listings. (See screenshot below.)

Yet by 2035, around one-third of Singapore’s population will be over 65.

We’re teaching gerontology, but not signalling it in jobs.

What's happening?

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 + 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗲𝘆𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗱:

• Employers and HR often don’t recognise “gerontology” as a hiring signal; roles that would benefit from geron training aren’t labelled that way.
• In a small survey of 35 graduates, 77% reported working in ageing-related roles — but mid-career switchers still hit barriers: unclear pathways, experience filters, and pay mismatches.

How to close this gap?

𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀:

• Our Policy Brief highlights three fixes: raise awareness & basic gerontology literacy, align curricula with a common competency framework, and tighten higher learning–industry bridges (practicums, mentorship, hiring pathways).

𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲𝘀 (𝗔𝗦𝗖𝗔 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱):

On 27 Sept, at the Gerontological Society’s Annual Scientific Conference on Ageing (theme: Longevity & Employment), I’ll present our Roundtable Report & Policy Brief (1:30pm), then moderate 𝘗𝘢𝘯𝘦𝘭 3: 𝘌𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 & 𝘌𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘎𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘺.

👉 Swipe the carousel below for our panel line-up:

• Emily Wong (Temasek Polytechnic) – how IHLs map learning to role families and practicums
• Francis Aw Yong (Dex-Lab) – how health/medtech can value geron competencies in hiring
• Adrian Ng (Master of Geron, 2021 — personal capacity) – the graduate’s view: what actually converts to jobs

We’re honoured to have Mr Dinesh Vasu Dash (Minister of State, Singapore Ministry of Manpower) as Guest-of-Honour and Prof Paulin Straughan (Dean of Students, Singapore Management University) delivering the 15th Henry Lim Lecture on 𝘙𝘦𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘙𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵.

Join us — and bring a colleague from HR, service ops, or education.
📅 Sat, 27 Sept 2025 · 8:30am–4:00pm
📍 SingPost Auditorium
📝 Register: see first comment
📩 Enquiries: see first comment



GeroPsych Consultants

26/08/2025

Caregiving chose them.

At 19 and 22 respectively, Xiahui and Siti stepped into the role before they were ready.

Youth caregiving is real in Singapore.

Love isn’t the problem. Load and lack of clarity are.

In last week’s 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘀, 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀, we share two true stories—Xiahui and Siti.

We break down what the research says and offer a 5-step plan to make care shared, safe, and sustainable (including a one-page Care Map families actually use).

🔗 Read: Inheriting Care & Losing Clarity
Let’s make care sustainable for every generation.







GeroPsych Consultants

Youth caregiving is rising in Singapore. See how culture and role-clarity shape stress—and use a simple Care Map to protect young caregivers’ well-being.