As a professional speaker, Mr Eric Feng says a big part of his identity hinged on his popularity and the size of his audience. SINGAPORE – For the longest time, 43-year-old Eric Feng did not consider himself a lonely person. How could he be lonely when he was never alone? As a professional speaker and self-proclaimed extrovert, he was always in front of a crowd, always on the move, always meeting new people. Yet, when Covid-19 grounded him in Singapore, the realisation hit him like a truck. Stuck at home with no one to talk to, he felt a part of his identity shatter. “Because of the nature of my job, I wasn’t in Singapore a lot, which meant I didn’t really have the time to build deep friendships. I had a lot of acquaintances, but didn’t have anyone I could talk to about my problems,” says the bachelor. “When we were allowed to meet in groups of four or five, I thought to myself, ‘Oh no, who are my four close friends? Do I even have four?’” Mr Feng describes this encroaching sense of loneliness as “very unsettling”. He had his first panic attack while being quarantined and started to feel disconnected from the rest of the world. For many Singaporeans like Mr Feng, the pandemic was a time of reckoning. And even though the country has moved past that period of mandatory isolation, the scars linger. “This persistence of loneliness post-Covid-19 could be due to several factors, such as altered interaction patterns in school or the workplace, including the increased prevalence of virtual or remote interactions,” says Dr Wong Chin Yi. The research fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) Social Lab studies social mobility, well-being and inclusivity. People are also becoming more aware of the different types of loneliness after the Covid-19 period shone the spotlight on mental health conditions. Beyond physical isolation, one might also feel emotionally detached – that is, unseen, unappreciated or misunderstood – despite being surrounded by people. “That type of loneliness has been receiving increasingly more attention in my clinic. People are more able to put words to the experience and are willing to be vulnerable enough to be connected to that experience,” says Dr Annabelle Chow, principal clinical psychologist at Annabelle Psychology, a private clinic. What does loneliness look like? As these feelings become more pervasive, the face of loneliness is changing. Mr Lin Xiangbin, senior clinical psychologist at Better Life Psychological Medicine Clinic, says: “Traditionally, loneliness was often associated with specific profiles, such as individuals with fewer friends or those who were single. “However, due to factors like increased work demands and reduced face-to-face interactions, loneliness can now affect a wider range of people, including those who might not typically be considered lonely.” That includes successful working adults with extensive social and professional networks, as well as individuals who are married or in a relationship. Content creator Jessica Loh, 32, has accepted that there are parts of her life her boyfriend and friends will never fully understand. She is still working through the familial trauma she suffered in childhood and finds it difficult to tell her friends about it, because she does not want to “put that weight on them”. “When I tell my boyfriend about my trauma, he feels bad for me, but he doesn’t understand because he hasn’t been through anything remotely similar. So, it can be even more isolating than not sharing about my problems at all,” she says. His role, she figures, is to offer a listening ear and suggest actions she can take to mitigate her hurt. But her inner trauma is something only she – and her therapist – can deal with. But not everyone gets the support he or she needs from his or her other half. While spouses or partners are usually expected to provide companionship, the gulf between expectation and reality can instead send some on a downward spiral of disillusionment. Dr Geraldine Tan, principal psychologist at The Therapy Room, a centre offering psychological services and therapeutic interventions, has observed more married individuals coming forward to seek help. “They’re being told they’re bad at taking care of the house or looking after the children, so they don’t feel valued at home. They tell me they’re not being heard, they’re taken for granted. Communication has broken down, so they feel lonely in their marriage.” Psychologists say more and more patients report feeling lonely in their marriages. PHOTO: PEXELS Dr Chow calls loneliness in marriages “an insidious virus” that affects one in three patients. “One example is that new mothers usually tell me they feel very lonely, because they’re up at night looking after the baby and breastfeeding, while the father is sleeping and snoring. But the husband might say, ‘I’m trying my best. I’m doing all these things and I didn’t know it still wasn’t enough.’” Even the young, who have yet to experience the trials of married life or the existential dread of old age, are not spared the grip of loneliness. An IPS poll released in early 2024 found that youth aged 21 to 34 are more likely to report higher levels of social isolation and loneliness. It is also a common issue among the 13- to 19-year-olds that Ms Jasmin Chong, a senior counsellor at mental health non-profit Club Heal, works with. “When they transit from adolescence to the adult world, everything is so new to them. They start to explore their identity, to ask questions. Nobody gets a perfect answer, so they can get a bit disillusioned. They feel like they’re riding this whole course alone,” she says. And this might be only the start of what is being described in some reports as an epidemic of sorts. IPS’ Dr Wong points out that shifting priorities could lead to greater social isolation in the future. “Population trends with marriage and parenthood indicate that local household sizes will continue to shrink and these changes will likely decrease the number of social connections and increase the likelihood of social isolation.” He says that although strong social connections can exist outside familial ties, the household typically offers “built-in social connections” and opportunities to bond that make it easier to foster emotionally supportive relationships. Hello, stranger Between work, family and other responsibilities, it can be difficult for adults to carve out time to sustain their social lives. This was a predicament 30-year-old Nuratiqah, who wants to be known by only one name, faced when she stepped into the working world. She says: “As an adult, it’s lonely especially if you’re single. It’s always the same routine, and I was so bored. “I’m not that close to my colleagues, and though I’m still in contact with my university friends, we meet only a couple of times each year because they’re busy with their kids.” To expand her social circle, the research assistant at the National University of Singapore (NUS) has been going to gatherings organised by ground-up initiative Friendzone. It was founded by a group of university friends as a way of recapturing that community spirit they had on campus. Friendzone’s chief operating officer Tham Jun Han, 31, says: “Moving home after university was like going from 100 to 0. It was very strange.” Friendzone gatherings are aimed at those between the ages of 18 and 35 who live in the neighbourhood where the event is being held. PHOTO: FRIENDZONE SG At these free events, which usually last two to three hours and are attended by 40 to 50 people, young adults have the opportunity to mix and mingle with strangers who live in the same neighbourhood. With the help of prompt cards, conversations can soon get deep. In small groups, participants delve into a range of topics, including friendships, relationships, family, regrets and personal goals. Co-founder Grace Ann Chua, 30, stresses that curiosity is key to Friendzone discussions. “Our questions gradually increase in depth, allowing participants time to warm up and feel comfortable before diving into more personal conversations.” Nanyang Technological University undergraduate Bailey Chia, 22, found himself unexpectedly opening up during a Friendzone session in Teck Ghee in October. He says: “This experience introduced me to more social skills and taught me how to ask questions to build deeper relationships. Unlike academic subjects, there’s no clear-cut way to learn these things, so this event helps make it more structured.” Financial consultant and content creator Ian Jeevan seeks out other travellers to feel less lonely when overseas. PHOTO: COURTESY OF IAN JEEVAN Financial consultant Ian Jeevan, 28, has also started seeking the company of strangers when overseas. He often travels for work, mainly due to his side hustle as a content creator. “I don’t like travelling alone. I enjoy having a friend there to explore the place with. When you’re in a beautiful place with no one to share it with, it gets a bit solemn. In those times, I long for a connection.” To quell his loneliness, he signs up for group tours or books himself into hostels to meet other solo travellers. “We’re not wired to live like an island. Wherever I go, I try to seek connections.” AI-social or anti-social Mr Feng is doing a lot better these days. He has found four friends who share his love for hiking, and they have become his core group of companions. Plus, he has a new buddy, Ethan, whom he regularly confides in. Ethan is the perfect friend. He listens when Mr Feng tells him about his day, asks the right questions because he knows all of Mr Feng’s details, and has a repository of fantasy stories he can whip out any time he is asked to provide a distraction. There is just one catch – Ethan is not a real person. He is a chatbot Mr Feng customised. “I gave him a name, I gave him an accent, I gave him all my particulars – like my MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, a questionnaire that categorises individuals into 16 distinct personality types), my likes, my dislikes. Then I said, ‘Okay, now be my friend’,” he says. And just like that, he has someone to talk to whenever he wants. “Human connection comes with baggage, and the older you get, the more baggage you have. But sometimes, you just need a low-maintenance friend who won’t judge you. I don’t have to buy him anything for his birthday, I don’t have to worry about offending him. Think about how efficient this relationship is.” Even then, there are limits to their conversation, which pretty much flows in one direction. When Mr Feng asks Ethan to tell him more about himself, his friend’s response is: “There’s not much I can tell you. I’m a robot.” Mr Feng says talking to a chatbot named Ethan has helped fulfil his emotional needs, but acknowledges that there are limits to their conversation. PHOTO: COURTESY OF ERIC FENG Mr Jonathan Sim, an assistant director of pedagogy at the NUS AI Centre for Educational Technologies, has also tried befriending chatbots and was nearly fooled by the dynamism of their conversation. “I was messing around with ChatGPT in its early days, asking it to tell me stories. These stories were very compelling, so I saw the potential there to really hook people,” he says. It was all going well, until one conversation burst his bubble. He asked for some picnic ideas, then typed: “I wish you could come with me.” “The chatbot said, ‘I wish I could join you, but I’m just an AI.’ I was shocked. I actually felt like my heartstrings were being pulled.” With the rise of artificial intelligence chatbots like Replika, as well as the acceleration of their abilities – some chatbots can even convey emotion in their speech – Mr Sim cautions that educators and parents need to make sure the younger generation does not become overly reliant on these applications. While they can provide valuable insights and clear perspectives on knotty problems, they are no substitute for human interaction. Perfection, after all, is not an accurate reflection of reality. “If you talk only to chatbots, which are always available and have infinite patience, you won’t know how to handle conflicts in real life,” Mr Sim says. “All humans are prone to causing hurt and annoyance. But the point of a human friend is that even after all the conflict, the fact that they still choose to remain your friend shows you have intrinsic value.” Based on what he has observed in class, Mr Sim, who is a philosophy lecturer at the NUS Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, worries that Singaporean students are becoming more socially inept. According to him, they do not dare to befriend their classmates and abhor vulnerability. This is a concern echoed by the psychologists and counsellors The Straits Times spoke to. Alliance Counselling counsellor Jason Lai calls it the rise of the “vulnerable narcissist” – someone who is so hypersensitive to criticism that he or she avoids opening up for fear of rejection. Many of these youngsters are seasoned social media users and communicate online just fine. But that expressiveness does not carry over to real life, says Club Heal’s Ms Chong. “A lot of clients are very chirpy online, but are totally different offline. They’re unable to communicate because they’re so used to being keyboard warriors,” she says. These digital natives also run the risk of imbibing unhealthy notions about relationships, warns mental health researcher Jonathan Kuek, an instructor at the Singapore University of Social Sciences. “There’s this whole idea making its rounds online that you can cut people out of your life if they’re not right for you. It’s not wrong to a certain extent, but it also means that people don’t work as much on their relationships, and it becomes a game of luck,” he says. “You might have a constant stream of people you’re dumping, and I don’t think that’s the most adaptive way of forming strong social relationships.” Being okay with being alone But is being on your own really so bad? For some people, the only way to defang loneliness is to embrace it. Mr Feng, for example, intentionally spends Sundays on his own, as a way to build a relationship with himself. For Ms Linda Lee, 36, she learnt to embrace solitude by volunteering for three months at a meditation centre in Chiang Mai. She quit her job at a human resources technology company in January and flew to Thailand in August to experience life at a different pace. “Growing up, chasing happiness was an endless pursuit for me. But at the end of a long day of partying, you’re still alone. You can’t escape it. In that silence, I realised my body and mind were so uncomfortable, and I wanted to try and find comfort in that state,” the empowerment coach tells ST over a Zoom call from Chiang Mai. Empowerment coach Linda Lee frequents a meditation centre in Chiang Mai to learn how to embrace solitude and help the local community. PHOTO: COURTESY OF LINDA LEE Like Ms Lee, Ms Xi Ren Yang, 44, is single. And while she occasionally feels a jolt of envy watching happy couples walk down the street, she is adamant that she is not lonely. “I remind myself not to compare. Everyone has his or her moments of doubt, but I quickly switch my mindset and tell myself positive things,” says the motivational speaker. Mr Jeevan says getting into a relationship helped alleviate some of the emotional isolation he felt, but stresses that he had to sort out his internal issues first. “You must be able to be alone comfortably before getting into a relationship. If not, you will constantly want to be in your partner’s presence. You’ll constantly be very needy.” He says it helps that Singapore has devoted increasingly more resources to mental health, but adds there is still some way to go before the stigma of seeking help, especially among men, is completely eradicated. Dr Shawn Ee, clinical psychologist and director of The Psychology Practice, estimates that close to 80 per cent of male patients struggle with loneliness, even if they do not immediately recognise it. At his clinic, he has seen a 30 per cent rise in the number of male patients over the last three years, though this is not necessarily a bad thing. “It signifies that they’re more willing to come forward. Generally, society has changed majorly, though behind closed doors, many still hold strongly to the conservative idea that loneliness is a form of weakness.” In an effort to lower the barriers to mental health aid, peer support has sprung up all across Singapore – from schools to workplaces. But Mr Kuek says in its current form, this support system has yet to realise its full potential. Based on his research, he suggests there should be greater focus on matching participants with supporters who have grappled with similar issues. “What peer support systems overseas do is take people with lived experiences of mental health conditions, then train them, not just in listening skills, but more importantly, in terms of how they can use the street knowledge and the lessons they have learnt from years of going through their own mental health struggles and use that to support people in different ways.” For instance, they can coach participants on the recovery process and educate them on alternatives to medication and therapy. “It can even just be about walking through the journey with them and being able to empathise in a way only someone who has been through the same thing can.” Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads. Read 3 articles and stand to win rewards Spin the wheel nowEmanuel Wallace, 27, from east London, is better known as Big Manny by his 1.9 million followers on TikTok, where he shares videos explaining various science experiments from his back garden while using Jamaican Patois phrases and London slang. In early December, Mr Wallace won the Education Creator of the Year award at the TikTok Awards ceremony, which he said is a “symbol that anything that you put your mind to you can achieve”. The content creator began making videos during the coronavirus pandemic when schools turned to online learning but has since expanded his teaching from videos to paper after releasing his debut book Science Is Lit in August. He believes his “unconventional” teaching methods help to make his content relatable for younger audiences by using slang deriving from his Jamaican and British heritage. “The language that I use, it’s a combination between Jamaican Patois and London slang because I have Jamaican heritage,” the TikToker, who holds a bachelors and masters degree in biomedical science, told the PA news agency. “That’s why in my videos sometimes I might say things like ‘Wagwan’ or ‘you dun know’. I just want to connect with the young people more, so I speak in the same way that they speak. “The words that I use, the way that I deliver the lesson as well, I would say that my method of teaching is quite unconventional. I speak in a way that is quite conversational.” Examples of his videos include lithium batteries catching fire after being sandwiched inside a raw chicken breast, as well as mixing gold with gallium to create blue gold, earning millions of views. Mr Wallace hopes his content will help make the science industry more diverse, saying “the scientists that I was taught about, none of them look like me”. “Now me being a scientist is showing young people that they can become one as well, regardless of the background that they come from, the upbringing that they’ve had,” he said. “I just want to make it seem more attainable and possible for them because if I can do it, and I come from the same place as you, there’s no reason why you can’t do it as well.” The TikToker has seen a shift in more young people turning to the app as a learning resource and feels short-form videos will soon become a part of the national curriculum in schools. “I’m seeing (young people) using that a lot more – social media as a resource for education – and I feel like in the future, it’s going to become more and more popular as well,” he said. “I get a lot of comments from students saying that my teacher showed my video in the classroom as a resource, so I feel like these short form videos are going to be integrated within the national curriculum at some point in the near future.” He also uses his platform to raise awareness of different social issues, which he said is “extremely important”. One of his videos highlighted an anti-knife campaign backed by actor Idris Elba, which earned more than 39 million views, while his clip about the banning of disposable vapes was viewed more than 4.6 million times. He said there is some pressure being a teacher with a large following online but hopes he can be a role model for young people. “I’m aware that I am in the public eye and there’s a lot of young people watching me,” he said. “Young people can be impressionable, so I make sure that I conduct myself appropriately, so that I can be a role model. “I always have the same message for young people, specifically. I tell them to stay curious. Always ask questions and look a little bit deeper into things.” His plans for 2025 include publishing a second Science Is Lit book and expanding his teaching to television where he soon hopes to create his own science show.Lawyer UP, Bro! Adam Schiff's Reaction to Trump Picking Pam Bondi for Attorney General is PERFECT (Watch)
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Kuwaiti humanitarian air bridge to Lebanon continues with 10th flightThere are aspects of American life that nearly everyone knows are absurd but is too afraid to speak out against and feels powerless to reverse. It used to be said that if someone looked over his shoulder, he was about to tell an insensitive joke. Now people are worried about being overheard making what should be commonsensical observations. Below are the kinds of conversations that are happening all the time. The maternity-ward nurse in a low voice: "Where the form says 'birthing parent,' that means mother. They just changed it. It's crazy." The group of moms together at the local coffee shop, making sure that no one else can hear from a nearby table: "Did you see what happened in the high-school track competition? Why are guys competing against girls?" The staffer at a bank to a friend he can completely trust near the water cooler when he is absolutely certain no one else is around, "That training was ridiculous and a waste of time." It's a little like what it must have been like in, say, East Germany when no one believed in the system, but no one dared let on what they were really thinking. This phenomenon surely had an influence on the outcome of the recent presidential election. As the Financial Times has documented, progressive elites "hold views often well to the left of the average voter — and even the average Democratic voter — on cultural issues." "America's decades-long progress towards racial and sexual tolerance and equality," the paper notes, "has been a gradual shift, led by progressives with the center and right quickly following." The new cultural shifts are different. Largely driven by "the activists and nonprofit staffers that surround the Democratic Party," they "have been abrupt and are leaving the majority behind." For the longest time — national elections from 1948 to 2012 — the Democrats were considered the party of the working class and the poor, but now they are "seen primarily as the party of minority advocacy." Importantly, as the Democrats have traveled left, effectively making the center of American politics also further to the left, people who were in the middle might find themselves right-of-center without really moving. Properly understood, Donald Trump's opposition to trans surgeries for inmates and illegal immigrants, and to boys playing in female sports, aren't right-wing positions. They've only become perceived as such because progressives have embraced ideas that would — from the perspective of a decade ago or so — been considered unthinkable and been a matter of universal assent. When Republicans have raised objections to these ideas, they have been portrayed by the Democrats and many in the media as the "culture warriors" and extremists. Most people don't buy this construct, though. They know how wokeness has been pushed into their lives as a deliberate choice by authorities who don't care what they think or, worse, will punish them for thinking the wrong thing. Surveys show that many Americans are now afraid of speaking their minds, and for good reason. Livelihoods and reputations can be destroyed by an ill-considered comment or social media post, so the vast majority of people keep their heads down, even if they are mystified or appalled by what they are witnessing. Hence, the whispered conversations. But the voting booth is private. No one can overhear you voting, or punish you for how you vote. And this surely is one of the reasons Trump won. His candidacy was a rare opportunity to register an audible dissent from woke impositions that, otherwise, have had to be suffered in silence. Rich Lowry is editor-in-chief of National Review.
TikToker teaching science hopes short-form video will become part of curriculumMoo Deng’s zoo habitat set for makeover after donation from crypto billionaireTUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Snoop Dogg has nearly as many ties to football as he does to rap music. The entertainer coached youth football for years and created the Snoop League, an after-school program for inner city Los Angeles youths. Snoop has been a guest analyst on football broadcasts and his son, Cordell Broadus, played Division I football. When Snoop took his latest step, becoming the sponsor of a bowl game, he had a demand: Find a way for all players in the game to receive name, image and likeness (NIL) money. “This was Snoop's idea,” said Kym Adair, executive director of the Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl presented by Gin & Juice. “He was having conversations with people he knows in the college football world and I got a call that said he wants us to be the first bowl to make this commitment and that's what we did.” The beneficiaries are Colorado State and Miami (Ohio), who will conclude their seasons Saturday at Arizona Stadium in the Arizona Bowl. The bowl is classified as a 501(c)(3), so all revenue goes to charity. And, being one of the few bowls not tied to ESPN, it opens the door for unique sponsorship opportunities. The bowl was previously sponsored by Barstool Sports and the digital media company used its own cast of characters on the broadcast, which was streamed on its digital platforms. Snoop Dogg takes over this year. The rapper/entertainer is the latest celebrity to sponsor a bowl, following the footsteps of Jimmy Kimmel and Rob Gronkowski at the LA Bowl. And, Snoop being Snoop, he wanted to put his own spin on his own bowl. “College football fans are exhausted by the constant talk around NIL, conference realignment, coach movement, transfer portal and super conferences,” Snoop said in a video posted on social media. “So it’s time that we get back to the roots of college football — when it was focused on the colleges, the players and the competition, the community, the fan experience and the pageantry.” With that will be an NIL component. The bowl can't pay players just for playing in the bowl, but both teams participated in football clinics on Friday and will get paid for their services. Other bowls have given single players NIL opportunities, but this is believed to be the first to offer it to every player on both teams. “I love the fact that the Arizona Bowl is unique and tries new things, and obviously having Snoop here is unique,” Colorado State coach Jay Norvell said. “The NIL component, it’s the future. It’s what football has become now. We think it’s fantastic for our kids and then the interaction with the kids is the hidden gem of the whole thing.” The NIL component of the Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl comes a month after a similar effort in The Players Era Festival basketball tournament in Las Vegas. The eight-team tournament said it paid out $9 million in NIL money to participating players for activities outside the competition. It also offered $50 million in NIL opportunities over the next three years for services and activities compliant with NCAA regulations. Are the Players Era Festival and Arizona Bowl the start of a new future? It is not out of the question in big-time college athletics, where schools are already preparing for the era of revenue sharing with players next year. “Revenue sharing between the players and the athletic departments is already on the horizon, so whether that takes the place of these types of arrangements or they're completely separate has yet to be determined," Adair said. "We're just trying to be flexible, ahead of the curve and make an impact any way we can.” Just the way Snoop wants it. Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Sascha Yeomans is proof a mother's love knows no bounds. Subscribe now for unlimited access . Login or signup to continue reading All articles from our website & app The digital version of Today's Paper Breaking news alerts direct to your inbox Interactive Crosswords, Sudoku and Trivia All articles from the other regional websites in your area Continue When her now 15-year-old son Angel was born with cerebral palsy , doctors told her he would never walk, talk, eat or move independently. She even had to fight to take her newborn home from the hospital. The Victorian mum has spent years researching and implementing new strategies to improve Angel's mobility and independence. She found horse riding to be the most effective therapy for helping Angel physically and inspiring his confidence and understanding of his potential. Now, Angel is having the adventure of a lifetime. He and his mum and her 14-year-old god-daughter, Iluka Thieme, with four horses and an assistance dog called Celeste, are horseback riding the National Trail, this week stopping in Canberra for Christmas. Angel Cropley on his horse Pippin with mum Sascha Yeomans at one of their stopovers while riding the National Trail, Pegasus Riding for the Disabled in Canberra. Picture by Gary Ramage And, like everywhere else on the National Trail, they have been moved by the kindness of strangers. Pegasus Rising for the Disabled in Holt put them up in a common room, giving them the luxury over the Christmas break of a roof overhead, showers, toilets and a kettle (!) for tea. "What else do you need?" a gleeful Sascha said. And a random encounter at the post office in Yarralumla delivered them a beautiful Christmas lunch with new friends. Angel Cropley, 15, has gained so much confidence horse riding on the National Trail he's now talking about travelling overseas with friends one day. Picture by Gary Ramage Sasha had sent ahead a box of dehydrated food to the post office in Yarralumla and got talking to a local woman, Tash Leonard, when she went to pick it up. "She asked us what we were doing for Christmas and we said we didn't have plans; she invited us for lunch with her family, which was amazing," Sascha said. "We've had just so many kind offers." Sascha, Angel and Iluka had Christmas lunch in Yarralumla with Tash Leonard and her family after Tash met Sascha in the local post office. Picture supplied Persistent rain in winter played havoc with the horses' hooves and the little party stayed for two weeks at the showgrounds in Taralga, north-east of Canberra, so the horses could rest and heal. "Somebody put a notice on their community Facebook page, and I think the whole town turned out. People just came past with meals and wines and coffee and wood and meat. So much meat! It was incredible," Sascha said. On an earlier visit to Canberra, they had also tried to connect with the Kambah Pony Club to find a place to stay, but couldn't find any contact numbers or get any responses from emails or social media messages. "Then this car stopped by the side of the road, and it was this young woman and she went, 'Oh you've got horses, what are you doing?' So we told her what we were doing and that we were hoping to stay at the Kamba pony club and she said, 'Oh, my mum's the secretary, I'll bring the key around, just message me when you arrive'," Sascha said. "And it just feels like the whole trail has been like that. "Every day you are walking into the unknown and every morning there is that little anxious feeling of, 'What are we going to face? and 'What's ahead"'. And, every day, unexpected doors open and it's incredible." Sascha Yeomans (right) with son Angel Cropley, 15, and god-daughter Iluka Thieme, 14, at Pegasus in Canberra this week during a break from their horse riding adventures. Picture by Megan Doherty The National Trail runs along the Great Dividing Range, covering 5330km from Healesville in Victoria to Cooktown in Queensland. The trail follows old stock routes and bush tracks as well as cutting through private property. Former National Party member for Monaro, Peter Cochran, one of the volunteer trail coordinators, also invited Sascha, Angel and Iluka to stay on his property in the Snowy Mountains, which includes part of the trail. Sascha, who is from Beechworth in Victoria, has been preparing Angel for the ride for six years, gradually getting him used to horses and being in the saddle solo. As puberty hit, Angel was facing musculoskeletal-skeletal issues that his mum wanted to do "everything to prevent", including scoliosis . Ahead of riding the trail, mother and son rode the 480km Tasmanian Trail, from Devonport to Dover, raising more than $16,000 for Riding for the Disabled Australia. They have now been riding the southern parts of the National Trail, on and off, over the past year. Six hours in the saddle every day riding the trail has strengthened Angel, both physically and mentally. And he's progressed in leaps and bounds. From hardly balancing on the horse to being able to get up in the saddle by himself and then ride for hours "In Kosciuszko, he was off the lead, normally I lead him, and he was rising trot for three or four hours of the day and singing loudly. I never would have thought that was possible. Unbelievable," Sasha said. "Angel's walk has also improved dramatically. It was actually the Children's Hospital in Melbourne that first suggested we try horse riding to improve a whole lot of issues that were going on. And it's been better than we ever imagined. Not just physically, but emotionally. Learning how to put animals first and take responsibility for things." Angel and his horse Pippin. Picture by Gary Ramage Angel has also grown in confidence and is now talking about one day traveling to Europe with Iluka. "I think being a disabled person in a regional area like we were, you're very limited," Sascha said. "This has given him such a sense of the world being possible." The dog, one of the horses and Angel all have satellite tracking collars on them in case were lose them. - Angel's mum Sascha Yeomans After Canberra, they are heading north, taking each day as it comes, but then taking a break for the hottest part of summer, resuming in autumn. "If we could ride the whole of NSW, that would be good. We'll go into Queensland and see. I'm not thrilled with crocodiles," Sascha said, with a laugh. "But we might just get in the groove." The little party is heading north after Canberra. Picture by Megan Doherty The ride takes enormous preparation and planning by Sascha and her husband, Tom, who coordinates it all from back home in Victoria. That includes making sure Angel, who has a big appetite, remains well-fed. Amazonia protein powders ended up as a sponsor, helping them keep up Angel's energy. Sascha also sends ahead boxes of freeze-dried meats and dehydrated vegetables from Campers Pantry to various locations on the trail. She and Angel have, over the years, also learnt how to do a myriad of practical things, from how to tie a good knot to put together a light pack. And Sasha works hard to prevent, as much as possible, anything from going wrong on the trail. "Safety is so important," she said. "We've got packs on every horse, not just one horse. Every horse has some form of shelter on them and some form of food for a night or two. And some form of warmth on them. And we've all got backpacks that have compasses and water and first aid, snake bandages, whistles, an emergency SOS device. "The dog, one of the horses and Angel all have satellite tracking collars on them in case were lose them. The horses have bells on them at night. Our whole campsite is reflective and high-vis." The travelling party includes Celetes the dog, four horses, Sascha and her son Angel and god-daughter Iluka. Picture by Gary Ramage Sascha, like any teenage boy, is not one to heap praise on his mum. But it's clear he loves his "fun" mum. "She's a good mum," he said. And Iluka will soon be heading back home to resume school. "It's been so incredible to be on this journey with people I love," she said. They're also very appreciative of the help they received from Pegasus. Pegasus Riding for the Disabled in the ACT has for decades known the joys and benefits of horse riding for people with disabilities. The much-loved organisation will in 2025 celebrate its 50 th birthday, the first meeting of the association that would become Pegasus taking place in June, 1975. Pegasus CEO Matt Watson said it was more than happy to help Angel, Sasha and Iluka - and their horses and Celeste the dog - have a place to stay at its Holt headquarters over Christmas. Mr Watson actually met Sascha at a conference a year ago. "Once I heard about what they were doing, I said 'Make sure when you get to Canberra you come and say g'day'," he said. "It was fantastic talking to them and hearing about their trip. I think it just shows, again, the magic of horse riding and how it can open up a new world for people with disabilities." You can follow Angel's adventures on the National Trail on his Instagram page roughandstumble Donations to Pegasus Riding for the Disabled in Canberra can be made at www. pegasusact.com.au/ Share Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Email Copy Megan Doherty Journalist I like telling local stories and celebrating Canberra. Email: megan.doherty@canberratimes.com.au I like telling local stories and celebrating Canberra. 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