My Journey to Becoming a Psychiatrist

I get this a lot: "Oh, you're a children's doctor, right?" It usually comes with a slightly apologetic look when someone realises they've come to see me about their own anxiety, or their elderly parent's memory problems. So I thought it was worth explaining properly — because it's a fair assumption to make, but not quite the full picture.

Yes, I subspecialise in child and adolescent psychiatry. But before that, I trained and worked as a general psychiatrist, treating adults of all ages — and I still do, alongside my work with children and teens.

How I Got Here

My path into psychiatry started the way most doctors' paths do — years of general medical training, followed by a decision about which direction to specialise in. I chose psychiatry because I found the mind endlessly interesting, and because I wanted a kind of medicine where I could really get to know my patients as people, not just treat a list of symptoms.

I did my Master's in Psychiatry at University of Malaya, one of the more rigorous psychiatry training programmes in the country. That training covered the full range of psychiatric care — not just children, but adults and the elderly too. I saw patients with depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, dementia, and everything in between, across every age group.

Becoming a Psychiatrist First

Something people don't always realise is that child and adolescent psychiatry isn't a separate profession — it's a subspecialty. That means I became a fully qualified psychiatrist first, trained and experienced in treating adults, before going on to further train specifically in child and adolescent mental health.

I chose to subspecialise in child and adolescent psychiatry because I saw how much of a difference early support can make in a young person's life. But that additional training built on my general psychiatric foundation. It didn't replace it.

So Who Do I Actually See?

In practice, that means my clinic days are a genuine mix. I see:

• Children and teens — for things like ADHD, autism, anxiety, school refusal, and other concerns specific to growing up
• Adults — for depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, work-related stress and burnout, and general mental health concerns
• Elderly patients — for memory concerns, dementia assessments, late-life depression, and other conditions that come with ageing

If anything, having trained across the full age range means I bring that broader perspective into every consultation — whether I'm sitting with a worried teenager, a stressed working adult, or someone's ageing parent.

Why This Matters

I understand why the assumption happens — child and adolescent psychiatry is a smaller, more specific field, so it tends to stand out on a CV or a clinic profile. But I want to be clear that you don't need to be a child, or be bringing in a young one, to come see me. Good psychiatric care isn't about which age group you specialise in — it's about really listening, understanding what someone is going through, and figuring out the right way to help. That applies just as much to a 70-year-old as it does to a 7-year-old.