Families In Distress

Families in distress struggle with poor options

Do low income families make bad decisions?

What are the issues and challenges?

Low-income parents do not necessarily make more ‘bad choices’ than parents with higher income, but more of their practices turn out to have negative outcomes. It is more accurate to say that they have “bad options for managing the need for money and the need of their kids for care”
- You Yenn Teo, This Is What Inequality Looks Like

  • The causes and impact of poverty are complex.
  • Low income families may experience social exclusion if they lack the resources to participate in social and recreational activities that most of us take for granted.
  • Society often holds stereotypes of people who live in poverty, such as negative character traits or certain physical appearances.
What you can do?
  • Change your mindset about low income families. Most of them are resilient and resourceful people who make the best of their limited resources.
  • Poverty is complex and getting out of it requires intensive, long term interventions.
Support the MWS poverty alleviation programmes such as the MWS Family Development Programme, which empowers families to get out of debt and build assets.
  • Read more about our efforts here
  • Donate to give strength to families in need

Trauma hurts well-being – Sometimes for life.

What are the issues and challenges?

"Traumatic stress cuts to the heart of life, interfering with one’s capacity to love, create, and work - incapacity brought on not by poor lifestyle choices, moral weakness, or character flaws but by a complex interplay among biology, genes, and environment."
- Shaili Jain, The Unspeakable Mind

When a disturbing event impairs a person’s ability to cope, it is often considered to be traumatic. This includes abuse, assault, accidents, sudden loss of a loved one and chronic illness.
  • Unaddressed trauma can have a negative impact on family life, impacting areas such as:
    • Parenting style,
    • Ability to hold down a job and cope with tasks of daily living.
What you can do?
  • Read and share with others about how MWS walks with our clients and uses the Trauma-Informed approach in our work here.
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Learn more about how you can advocate for other impact areas
Seniors who are Socially Isolated
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Youths at Risk
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Children from Disadvantaged Backgrounds
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Chronically Ill and Destitute
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