Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Ramanujan88]

Does South Korea have a suicide hotline for foreigners? Or an online English chat?

[Pianote]

If you are having suicidal thoughts, please go to your nearest ER and tell them you are having suicidal thoughts. I don't know what your situation is but please seek out a psychiatrist/medical professional asap!

I found this site online: http://ahskorea.com/counsel/medical-and-crisis-services

Medical Emergencies

Emergency Hotline: dial 119

Open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

Run by Ministry of Health and Welfare, 1339 hotline counselors will refer callers to an appropriate medical center location, a consultation with a doctor, or if needed, they can assist in arranging ambulance transport.

[lithium]

[Ramanujan88]

[Ramanujan88]

[northway]

[Fallacy]

[Kepler]

[Fallacy]

1988 must not have been a good year.

[Pianote]

To the OP, I think you need to talk to an English speaking psychologist asap. http://seoul.angloinfo.com/af/580/seoul-psychiatrists.html This has links to various websites to check out. Please talk to a professional very soon!

That being said, teaching English in Korea can be very stressful. If it is too much for you or you are in a bad situation, just go home! If you can't go home, go to Thailand or someplace with a more relaxed culture. You have many options.

I'm really glad you replied to my post and I hope you find the help you need right away.

[emetib]

Due to how they do the medical center leveling here in Korea, I believe you will probably have to go to the hospital or the international center to get those specific medications. Soonchunhyang is your best bet. I believe the consultation fee is 30,000 or 35,000 for your visit. They can also give you a referral for a psychiatrist. Just talk to the doctors in the international center and they can prescribe it for you. You are going to have to pay full cost for the medication, there is no way around it unless you get insurance. There is a huge stigma against any type of mental illness here and anything having to do with a psychiatrist/antidepressants etc. within the Korean community.
Your boss doesn't have to know what you are seeing the doctor for at SCH. You can find ways around that. I suggest make a different excuse and press for health insurance ASAP.

I know English speaking counselors, if you're interested you can PM me.

[Ramanujan88]

I appreciate your concern. Thank you. It's very kind and I'm sure some of you are sincere. However, Korea is not the problem. I LOVE it here. I'm happy here, cultural differences and all. I love my job. It's challenging and hard, but it has a supportive staff, wonderful kids, good pay. I'm happy through the day. I'm not going anywhere.

I'm not gonna spill my life story, but I was far more sick in America. I escaped some abuse and a lot heartbreak and job that stressed me out in a terrible way...and health care was FAR more expensive there. While I've gotten much happier and healthier than I was within in the last two months, one can't simple cure schizophrenia (though environment does help big time). And one can't erase violent memories from childhood or the loss the of loved ones through death. I hear voices, I sometimes travel back in time to those moments and then I lose myself. It never happens at work, the kids are the light of my life, and their energy keeps so glad and frustrated that I actually get distracted from all the bad things. Coming home at night though can be difficult. Some nights I'm great, I read or study Korean or talk to people. Some nights I'm heartbroken and can't escape the past.

But I'm not going anywhere. Life is way better here. So I'm searching things out. I felt very desperate the other day, not because of too much work or because of the country...it was because of me and my disease and my past. I asked for help because I WANTED to live, and I wanted to see if I could talk to someone, and maybe find someone to help me sooth the pain or let it go.

I can't go to an ER and be held there, because then I don't think I'd be allowed back at work. My boss is Korean and very understanding and she knows I have schizophrenia. She was worried at first but says, "I can't tell...you do great with the kids and they love you. Just want to make sure you're all right. But you don't have to worry about your job...as long as you don't tell anyone. The parents won't understand." And I told her about my home life and how I'd like to talk to someone...she said, "no problem, just let me knows how it goes." But I don't know if I'd be trusted in going to the ER, and if I lose this job, I really won't anything to live for. My students why I'm here, and I have nowhere else to go. I'm asking for help to get better, not cured (not possible in this day yet), but healed to an extent. I want to always be there every morning each class comes in. I never want to show them that terrible option especially as they live in the country where it is the highest.

I also have a kind doctor who gave me my American meds without question. She said there was no reason I couldn't take what I needed there, and while she didn't pry into what was wrong, she said, "I can tell you've been through a lot. We'll work on getting better." Alas, the meds stopped working. She trying some other ways not, not mental, but physical drugs she think may be better. They're not working yet, so I'm looking for someone to talk who is in this field.

I do appreciate everyone's concern for me. There are times I don't think I'm gonna make it, because the voices and flashbacks tell me to jump or whatever. But I've been living sick for years, and getting better at it. Korea has been a life saver for me. I'm so happy to be here, and feel way better and way safer than I ever did in America.

To be honest though, anytime I posted here, people have been really mean. Not everyone, I have gotten kind responses with information. But people have just said rude things. I thought this forum was to help one another, simple or serious questions, but a lot of responses to my questions (and others I've read( have been rude and hurtful. And I'm glad to type...that all them so far have been wrong. Everything I was afraid of (and that you guys made me more afraid of) was nothing like the reality when I came here. Work is wonderful, the people I've met so far in Seoul are very kind, Immigration Office didn't challenge me at all, and neither has my doctor. I know Korea has serious problems like any country. It's terrible how they don't understand mental health...I don't even mean for me, but I hate how autistic and ADD children are suffering, and I'm sure how adults with other diversities of the mind must feel terrible.

I don't think I'll be coming on this website anymore. I want to, it's seems so good from the outside. But the information I usually get is wrong, and people here can be very judgmental for people you don't even know. I've had posters and private messages sent that make many mean assumptions about me that are completely wrong. Just be careful. I wanted to live, I got pissed rather than broke, but if someone came on here not sure if they wanted to, and got some of these responses, it might've just given her/him the push.

Again thank you to all of you that really helped with your links and PMs. I've had no luck yet in finding somewhere to go, but will keep searching. Thank you.

[CentralCali]

Judgmental? Do you mean that many posters here are not appreciative of someone who likely submitted a false application to get their job in Korea? Nope, nobody here like that at all.

[Ramanujan88]

[northway]