Migrating? Leave your misery behind please.

[neddy]

There is no surprise when Singaporeans migrate to an isolated city like Perth, that they sometimes experience loneliness. This is after a global survey that shows Singaporeans as unhappy unemotional poeple who may experience poor interpersonal skills. I thought I just create this post for community service.

I have seen people who carry their unhappiness over to their adopted country.

There should not be shame to admit mental depression. One of WA Premier resigned over depression, so we see that this problem can affect anyone. (http://www.theage.com.au/news/natio...epression-demon/2006/01/16/1137260002320.html)

I learnt though my wife a Japanese friend who is a chef and has language problem & difficulties making friends.

There is this service provided by the Australia-wide Fed govt called "The Access To Allied Psychological Services" (ATAPS) Program provides minimal cost access to allied psychological services for patients experiencing mental health issues.

Just get the GP to give an ATAPS referral. Usually, if the person is a migrant or CLAD (culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds), there is no low-income requirements.

Usu, it will cost like $75 to 150? for a consultation. But the service is highly subsidized with a small co-payment ($20?) required by the patient.

These time limited, evidence based strategies include:
- Psycho-Education (including Motivational Interviewing)
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
- Cognitive Interventions
- Relaxation Strategies
- Skills Training
- Interpersonal Therapy

Happy New Year everyone!

(January 17, 2006) BARELY three weeks ago, Geoff Gallop sat on the veranda at the Perth home of his good mate Kim Beazley and appeared anything but a man on the verge of walking away from the most powerful job in Western Australia.

That's exactly what Dr Gallop did yesterday, telling his staff at 10am that he was quitting as WA Premier because of his battle with depression. Shortly afterwards he rang the Federal Opposition Leader then went public with the news at lunchtime.

Dr Gallop, 54, like Mr Beazley, is a Rhodes scholar who struck up a friendship with British Prime Minister Tony Blair while at Oxford University. When Mr Blair married, Dr Gallop was one of his groomsmen

 

[chupacabra]

Besides being on a 457 visa, Perth is fine.

 

[neddy]

Besides being on a 457 visa, Perth is fine.

As long as you are paid EQUAL to an Aussie citizen, 457 visa is OK. Perth is better than the eastern states when it comes to this.

I believe that after 2 years, you can move on to the Temporary Resident Transition program for conversion to a PR visa.

The process is transparent and clearly spelled out in the Immigration website, like what an advanced country should be doing. You have rights in Australia.

 

[neddy]

I think it is important for migrants to realise that this country has better mental healthcare.
Please do not end up angry. It is just not worth it. Things can be worked out.

I have been an underdog before, but things eventually worked out when the company sent the troublemaker to the Singapore office.

I still remembered HR telling me, we need you to stay on. Don't worry.


There is an example of a sad case migrant here. Don't end up like him!

 

[neddy]

Singapore is a rather repressive society, and people do not express their emotions openly.

In Australia, there is no such problem. In fact, Aussies are too expressive of their emotions in public, whether appropriate or not.

For Singaporean migrants, it this became an "eye-opener" to be able to display their pent-up emotions.

In fact, a psychologist friend who is familiar with Singapore, spoke of a couple of Singaporean migrants who have previously diagnosed mental health issues and carrying scars of NS life, are getting appropriate treatments in Australia. One of them send a Xmas card to her, telling her how happy his life is at the moment.

No bitterness. No more sour-face. His family is the ultimate beneficiary to his mental well-being.


For people who joke about Woodbridge Hospital, try not to end up talking to yourself on MRTs or stripping naked on the streets. They may be lucky to end up being treated in Australia, because such services are taboo in Singapore.

 

[neddy]

Wow, a paragraph disappeared from the above posting.

I wrote about the appropriate release of emotional tensions by a previously repressed person may lead to better wellbeing of a migrant. At the same time, it may lead to bewildered family members who think that the person has "mid-life crisis".

At the same time, some migrants display previously hidden mental health issues such as getting angry at everything. In Singapore, it is not polite to display anger in workplace or public because of loss of face, bad feedback to employer, etc.


I wish there are some reference materials on How to migrate to achieve a better mental health for Singaporeans.



You will know that you have achieved better health health when you start to be yourself and burn those self-improvement books.
A case I know involve this Singapore lady who cut out self-improvement articles from Her World magazines and file them. I thought it is rather stressful to do this, let alone follow the advice. Talking about making life difficult, and miserable.

 

[fishbuff]

a lot of people carry their emotional baggage across to the land when they migrated, as well as they inverse-racism, economic and social class stratification.
it is hard to break free from these minds, which had been subjected to years of conditioning and stresses back in their hometown.

it is a good opportunities for some that have acquired the new found freedom and leisure time to reflect on the past and present, and adjust their mindset, thoughts and values.

 

[neddy]

One of the conditioning we need to unlearn is moving from a high context communication to a low context communication.


In a high context communication, many things are left unsaid, letting the cultural background of the person do the explanation.

Words and word choice become very important in higher context communication, since a few words can communicate a complex message very effectively to an in-group (but less effectively outside that group), while in a lower context culture, the communicator needs to be much more explicit and the value of a single word is less important.

 

[Lambo]

if you don't have a basic working understanding of the language of the country you are moving to then things will be bad. You won't be able to understand the nuances of what's said or not said for that matter. And you won't make friends..then quality of life becomes poor. And you end up think wth did i leave. Sigh

 

[fishbuff]

As long as you are paid EQUAL to an Aussie citizen, 457 visa is OK. Perth is better than the eastern states when it comes to this.

I believe that after 2 years, you can move on to the Temporary Resident Transition program for conversion to a PR visa.

The process is transparent and clearly spelled out in the Immigration website, like what an advanced country should be doing. You have rights in Australia.

no you cant.
you have to apply for either 189 or 190 visa.

 

[neddy]

no you cant.
you have to apply for either 189 or 190 visa.

Hi Fishbuff,

Is there another change?

457 visa holder who worked for > 2 years can move on to 186 or 187 visa for PRs. Much longer process but still within the law.

The 189 visa is a more stringent replacement for good old 175 visa. I have not asked people on 189 visa, but if I am correct, you can wait 5 years on the 189 visa and not get a PR, whereas under the old 175 visa, the case officer will response to you from 3 months (occupations in demand) to a year.

 

[fishbuff]

Hi Fishbuff,

Is there another change?

457 visa holder who worked for > 2 years can move on to 186 or 187 visa for PRs. Much longer process but still within the law.

The 189 visa is a more stringent replacement for good old 175 visa. I have not asked people on 189 visa, but if I am correct, you can wait 5 years on the 189 visa and not get a PR, whereas under the old 175 visa, the case officer will response to you from 3 months (occupations in demand) to a year.

nope, 457 is a temporary business visa. 189 is a skilled migration visa and it is permanent. 60 points to qualify and you have to do it thru' skill select.
under the new scheme, applicants will be informed by DIAC within weeks.

 

[tanwahtiu]

bro, I agree with you that Singaporeans are repressive people. Some of these repressive voters have a chance to vote but threw away the vote with as spoil vote. They will carry their bag of emotional garbage with them wherever they went.

As to the White Aussies they are the opposite - the angry people. These type of people have too many freedom of many things which they can took for granted and tend to abuse it very often. For example they know that graffiti is bad but some will fight for their righst and say it is an urban art. These extremist view are a danger breaking the fabric of the society.

Perhaps it is a cultural shock to some people who see angry people flare up for no reason.

家和万事成 is what the West does not have.

Singapore is a rather repressive society, and people do not express their emotions openly.

In Australia, there is no such problem. In fact, Aussies are too expressive of their emotions in public, whether appropriate or not.

For Singaporean migrants, it this became an "eye-opener" to be able to display their pent-up emotions.

In fact, a psychologist friend who is familiar with Singapore, spoke of a couple of Singaporean migrants who have previously diagnosed mental health issues and carrying scars of NS life, are getting appropriate treatments in Australia. One of them send a Xmas card to her, telling her how happy his life is at the moment.

No bitterness. No more sour-face. His family is the ultimate beneficiary to his mental well-being.


For people who joke about Woodbridge Hospital, try not to end up talking to yourself on MRTs or stripping naked on the streets. They may be lucky to end up being treated in Australia, because such services are taboo in Singapore.

 

[neddy]

Besides being on a 457 visa, Perth is fine.

Hey chupacabra,

Is your employer sponsoring you for a bridging visa to transit to PR ?

nope, 457 is a temporary business visa. *189 is a skilled migration visa and it is permanent. 60 points to qualify and you have to do it thru' skill select.
under the new scheme, applicants will be informed by DIAC within weeks.

Either my friend is lying about his 457 visa story. But it went like this ...

Apparently, some NBN contractors have successfully obtained PR status after getting a batch of 457 visa holders to bridging visas. Some have not even worked for 2 years on the NBN!

This is during the time when the contractors failed to take in union trained workers and hired workers elsewhere, including NZ PRs. And the unions lobby the Gillard govt.

The big joke now that because NBN is under scrutiny on the 457 visa "abuse" (another union ploy) that NBN is now so far behind schedule that it will take 25 years to fully roll out the project, and not 10 years as stated.

What is happening today is known sometime mid last year when employers tried to get employees on 457 visas and try to put them on bridging visas because of pressure from unions and ALP Left (MPs like Doug Cameron) .

With the union power given by Gillard, it will be wise for employers to avoid scrutiny by putting 457 visa holders to a bridging PR visa. It also make wise business decision.

 

[Ash007]

I'll add another point. Just today, I mentioned to my Ah Neh colleague about visiting HK and its short hop to China from there. She immediately said she would never visit China because of bird flu there. I almost want to slapped her silly for making such a comment. If China has bird flu, then India has bigger problems with rape, diseases!

 

[neddy]

bro, I agree with you that Singaporeans are repressive people. Some of these repressive voters have a chance to vote but threw away the vote with as spoil vote. They will carry their bag of emotional garbage with them wherever they went.

As to the White Aussies they are the opposite - the angry people. These type of people have too many freedom of many things which they can took for granted and tend to abuse it very often. For example they know that graffiti is bad but some will fight for their righst and say it is an urban art. These extremist view are a danger breaking the fabric of the society.

Perhaps it is a cultural shock to some people who see angry people flare up for no reason.

家和万事成 is what the West does not have.

Older financially stable Aussies are quite fixed in their distorted worldview.
Some are quite "tu nao" (pig brained)


There is this female senior manager staffer in the Gillard government who went to Egypt, despite the tour guide asking the group to be careful about riding camels at the Pyramids. Later, she was missing in action and the group waited for her. The guide sensed something wrong and went to check. He rescued her from the camel touts and paid AUD$400??? for her release. She then cry father cry mother on the lack of security, wanting to file report to get back her insurance money, etc. She only stopped after a fellow Aussie reminded her in Australia, this type of things happen too, except at higher level by Labor govts.



I was shocked at the ignorance of General Knowledge and understanding of how the world works.
Now they are angry that Asians are getting richer and smarter than them.

Grumpy old white trash comes in 2 varieties, male, and female!

A Western Australian man who lost about $700,000 to offshore scammers says he was expecting to inherit $26 million.

The man in his 70s, who wishes to remain anonymous, says he sent the money offshore over a period of years as part of an inheritance and investment scam.

The Major Fraud Squad said they alerted the man a number of times but he continued to send money overseas.

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/breaking/16450483/wa-man-lost-700-000-in-offshore-scam/

 

[fishbuff]

With the union power given by Gillard, it will be wise for employers to avoid scrutiny by putting 457 visa holders to a bridging PR visa. It also make wise business decision.

bridging visa is a temporary visa which allow one to remain lawfully in australia until the next substantive visa is provided by DIAC. Although they can work on bridging visa, they usually come with conditions like condition 8101. But it is not meant for long stay here. Either they have to be on 457 or 187 visas.

however, 457 visa application isn't that straight forward, you need the employer to be an approved sponsor, then nominate that occupation/position before the skilled worker can apply. One can work for 4 years though and it can be renewed or extended.

The recent hoohahs about the 457 visa holder is yet another political ployby Gillard. However, there are many many businesses that have abused this visa and i feel that DIAC should be more wary of this.

 

[chupacabra]

bridging visa is a temporary visa which allow one to remain lawfully in australia until the next substantive visa is provided by DIAC. Although they can work on bridging visa, they usually come with conditions like condition 8101. But it is not meant for long stay here. Either they have to be on 457 or 187 visas.

however, 457 visa application isn't that straight forward, you need the employer to be an approved sponsor, then nominate that occupation/position before the skilled worker can apply. One can work for 4 years though and it can be renewed or extended.

The recent hoohahs about the 457 visa holder is yet another political ployby Gillard. However, there are many many businesses that have abused this visa and i feel that DIAC should be more wary of this.

Yup you are right. i have seen and experience first hand the abuse of the 457. Also other immigrants namely from africa have a fucked up attitude with work permit holders. 457 to me is a slave visa. There is no clear cut help for people on the 457, even to switch employers is hard. I was offered alot of jobs when i was on the 457 but once the employers go to the DIAC website, they find it too troublesome to apply for me. It would have been esay if I was on my own, but I was with my young family. I definitely will try another route.

 

[neddy]

Yup you are right. i have seen and experience first hand the abuse of the 457. Also other immigrants namely from africa have a fucked up attitude with work permit holders. 457 to me is a slave visa. There is no clear cut help for people on the 457, even to switch employers is hard. I was offered alot of jobs when i was on the 457 but once the employers go to the DIAC website, they find it too troublesome to apply for me. It would have been esay if I was on my own, but I was with my young family. I definitely will try another route.

Thanks. Point noted.

 

[The_Hypocrite]

457 is nothing but to abuse local workers at the benefit of employers. Its like the EP in singkieland. Nothing but to destroy the local PMETs. It should be abolish n to force aussie employers to train local workers. Employers are assholes.

Yup you are right. i have seen and experience first hand the abuse of the 457. Also other immigrants namely from africa have a fucked up attitude with work permit holders. 457 to me is a slave visa. There is no clear cut help for people on the 457, even to switch employers is hard. I was offered alot of jobs when i was on the 457 but once the employers go to the DIAC website, they find it too troublesome to apply for me. It would have been esay if I was on my own, but I was with my young family. I definitely will try another route.