Hong Kong Confidential

Professor Dan Lloyd is the Deputy Head of School of Biosciences at the University of Kent. We discuss his research into DNA damage, and how this relates to cancer and its treatment. We chat about targeted therapy in cancer research and how treatment can vary for different types of cancer. We explore the cultural and social issues that effect the diagnostic element in the treatment process and how some cancers fare better than others when it comes to funding and awareness raising campaigns. This is a fascinating conversation about science, creativity, values and ethics. Professor Dan explain some of the ethics related to studies in other scientific fields like mitochondrial donation, animal testing, medical marijuana and some of the social and ethical values surrounding this work. Professor Dan shares what he would like to see in the future when it comes to cancer research, including better diagnostics, increased targeted therapies and addressing the resistance to drugs that the sneaky cancer cells often build

Virginia Chan used to work in HR in banking, then one day she decided that she wanted to do something different with her life and she started her unique and quirky food tours in Hong Kong. Her tour company is called ‘Humid with a Chance if Fishballs’ and she runs the most incredible cultural food tours around the city that really take her guest into the heart of Hong Kong’s amazing cuisine and culture.  Virginia talks about how she started with a blog about Hong Kong and it morphed into her food tour company. She does small public tours, private tours and corporate tours with a focus on grassroots experiences that explore the old Hong Kong and its kindness and feeling. She aims to bridge East and West despite the language barrier. Her company is different, if that wasn’t obvious enough from their name. They don’t do cookie-cutter, run of the mill tours so what you can expect from Virginia and her team are fun, off-the-beaten path and informative not-tour like tours. Virginia

Hin Chun Chui is an accomplished body builder who is a member of the Hong Kong team. He is a vegan and he shares his secrets to building muscle mass as a vegan bodybuilder. Hin Chun talks about how he watched a video with animals being slaughtered for food and then he was haunted by nightmares about chickens for two weeks after watching this film. He also suffered from skin allergies, so these two factors inspired him to become vegan. Hin Chun struggled to find other body builders who were vegan in the beginning but now he explains that it’s RT becoming more common to find vegan athletes as they learn the health benefits of a vegan diet. He is a vegan coach and helps others to change their diet and lifestyle. He demonstrates that you don’t need to eat meet to be a success in the sporting world. Hong Kong Confidential Details Email: juleshannaford1@gmail.com Network: https://www.auscastnetwork.com/home/hong-kong-confidential Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hongkongconfidential/ Twitter: www.twit

Angela Hancock grew up in the U.K. and had a lovely early childhood with her single mother. One day, when she was 13, she returned home to find a man living in her house with her mother. This man went on to sexually abuse Angela and she now found herself living in a house full of violence and misery. She also did not fit in at school and felt like she was ‘on the outside looking in’. Angela was kicked out of home at 16 and developed bulimia which was eventually replaced with an addiction to exercise. Angela moved to Hong Kong and ended up marrying a violent and abusive man whom she could not escape from. She was given a reprieve when he died by accident. This is when Angela turned her life around. She read a lot of self-help books and did come visualisation work- focusing on achieving the life that she truly wanted and deserved. Angela met a gorgeous man and went on to become a health coach, where she coaches people in a wonderful nutritional program called Isagenix. Angela reminds us that everybo

Vincy Chan is a non-binary trans-activist who is passionate about music, art, culture and making a difference in the world. Vincy talks about gender, sexuality, labels and preferred pronouns whilst explaining their journey of self-discovery and finding their identity. Vincy wishes that they had access to the information that is available to young people today about these issues and they wished they could have made connections with other queer or trans folks when they were younger. Going to an all girls’ Christian school when they were younger meant that they did not have many avenues for discussions about sexuality and gender. Vincy talks about finding their place back in Hong Kong after living in Australia and the USA, and how that impacted their journey. Vincy shares their coming out story and the reaction of their Chinese parents. Vincy shares their experience with issues surrounding body image and how they rationalize these thoughts and fight any negative self-talk. We discuss cultural constructs, l

This is Sonya Yeung’s adoption story. She shares her and her husband’s journey of adopting a child in Hong Kong. She talks about the procedure for adopting a child and the highs and lows of the entire process. Sonya talks about her fears and concern and some of the cultural sensitivities that they faced surrounding adoption. Sonya and her husband had an open dialogue with friends and family and felt overwhelming love and support. Sonya shares the excitement and nerves associated with meeting their son for the first time. Then the visits for the next two weeks and the day that their son moved to live with them. Sonya discusses the unpredictability of parenthood and how they valued the advice and routine shared with them by the foster family. Sonya also reveals their philosophy when it comes to telling their son that he is adopted and how it is not his only story and is just one part of his identity. Adoptive Families of Hong Kong:  https://afhk.org.hk/considering_adoption_in_HK Mothers Choice:

Dr. Michael Eason is a psychologist who specialises in many different areas; one being affirmative therapy for members of the LGBTQ+ community. Michael explains the difference between gender identity and sexual orientation. We focus our conversation on transgender support and explore many of the challenges that trans youth and their families face.  Michael emphasises how important family support is for any LGBTQ+ youth who are in the process of exploring their identity. Families face many changes when a child expresses that they are transgender, and Michael gives tips on how to approach this new chapter in a child’s life. We also discuss how schools should develop diversity and inclusion policies and create a culture of acceptance and support for all LGBTQ+ teens. Michael shares his own coming out story as a gay teen growing up in the USA in a religious family. This experience enables Michael to really connect with the LGBTQ+ people that he works with today. We talk about the unethical practices of

Mel Patching used to suffer from binge eating disorder and she shares how she coped with this life changing ordeal and the steps that she took to overcome her disorder. Mel shares the desperate behaviours that she used to resort to, to be able to eat copious amounts of food. Mel suffered from guilt and isolation during these years and unfortunately, she could not afford therapy. Thankfully, Mel discovered some amazing self-help books that she was able to use on her path to self-discovery and recovery. Mel went through some dark days during her disorder and she is now able to reflect on why she became so ill and how her desire for love and acceptance fueled her disordered eating. Mel’s parents were missionaries in Zambia and Mel was sent to boarding school at the age of six. This changed her way of seeing herself, particularly throughout high school, where she felt that she did not fit in and her school days were a painful wrenching of her heart. She feels that she has spent her adult life healing from t

Darius Kokou Agbeko Dzadu was an asylum seeker and refugee in Hong Kong for many years, he is now married to his lovely wife and has residency and is finally able to work. He is an activist helping raise awareness of the plight of refugees in Hong Kong who struggle with equality and justice. He hopes to improve the living and working conditions of those living in marginalised communities, especially refugees and ethnic minorities, many of whom are his friends. Darius has done a TEDx talk and speaks at many conferences and events globally. Darius is from Togo and he did not speak Chinese or English when he arrived. He landed in China and then moved Hong Kong as an asylum seeker and applied for refugee status. He explains how the government support refugees in Hong Kong, but it is unfortunately not enough financial support for people to survive and they must rely on NGO’s to help them. Darius shares what it was like to feel like he had nothing to offer to people he met and how he was often sidelined when

Joy Tsien Koo speaks to us about life as a 50 something expat woman living in Hong Kong. She gives us an insight into some of the highs and lows of expat living. She discusses parenting, educating her children and helping them through dealing with mental health issues as teenagers. We discuss some of the pressures that couples can face when living the fast paced, glamorous Hong Kong lifestyle. She explores how it feels to have her children fly the nest and then having to reevaluate her own purpose and direction in life. We discuss many interesting topics, including affairs, aging and what’s most important as we gain more life experience. Joy shares her wisdom about how important it is to be happy in our own skin. A Listener Note: If you feel you need support, please visit your local GP, a counsellor or contact the Samaritans in Hong Kong on 28960000. If you live in another country, please contact your local Lifeline or Crisis Centre in your area. Hong Kong Confidential Details Email: juleshannaford1@gm

Mehek Gidwani talks to us about her journey with drug addiction and recovery as a teenager. She shares how she was bullied as a child in primary school and her self-esteem and self-worth were low. Mehek’s drug taking began at the early age of 13 to enable her to fit in and feel a sense of belonging. Her struggles with her sexuality added to her feelings of inadequacy and sense of displacement and she emphasises that her ‘mind was a painful place to be’. Mehek talks about spiraling out of control when she was at university and how her family tricked her in to going to rehab. After over 7 months in treatment, Mehek has been sober ever since. She has recently trained as a Recovery Coach and yoga therapist and has started her own addiction recovery program in Hong Kong where she uses a holistic approach, nurturing the mind, body and soul employing both Eastern and Western practices. Mehek has found her purpose in life, has hope again and is in a wonderful place. A Listener Note: If you feel you

Divya Samtani shares her wisdom related to parenting skills, being a teenager and how to live a life filled with compassion and gratitude. She has a company called Savvy Sapiens where she runs programs for creative, resourceful teens to help them become global citizens and entrepreneurs of the future. She also delivers parenting workshops to help parents hold space for their teens without judgement enabling them to build relationships and improve the family dynamic. Divya talks about her own personal journey and shares her experience participating in the Tony Robbins course “Unleash the Power Within”. This gave her the foundation to be able to impart all sorts of incredible wisdom to her clients and her people skills are phenomenal. This podcast will inspire you to make changes in your relationships with others and to work on your own personal development. It will be especially informative for parents and teenagers but there are wonderful, insightful takeaways for everyone in this podcast. Savvy S

Aaron Stadlin-Robbie suffers from panic attacks and anxiety. He talks about when he first realised that he was suffering from panic attacks after experiencing the most frightening event of his whole life. Eventually, he saw a psychiatrist and got to the bottom of what he was going through and began to receive treatment and support. He recognised that he experienced several red flags that he initially ignored which led to his panic attacks taking hold. He feels that dealing with anxiety is a battle and without the support of friends, family and professionals, he felt very alone. He acknowledges that it can be more difficult for men to discuss more personal issues with each other and he wants people to understand that every time he discussed his anxiety, it was a weight off his mind. Aaron is a rugby player and he found that when he opened up to his mates about his anxiety, they were very supportive and did not judge him. Aaron decided to start his own podcast ‘Talking Mental’ which will be released

Susan Lavender shares her life story with us. She is half Italian and half British and she moved to Canada and trained to be a lawyer in her 20’s. She moved to Hong Kong in 1990 to work as an advocate for refugees for UNHCR. She would interview Vietnamese asylum seekers and make recommendations to the Hong Kong Immigration Department as to whether they were deserving of being granted asylum. She visited detention camps on boats and on islands off Hong Kong and she shares some of the shocking stories that she heard from the refugees. After the handover in 1996, she had to reinvent herself so she re-trained as a lawyer and learned Mandarin and moved to Beijing where she worked for an Italian law firm. She moved back to Hong Kong and practiced law and also became a radio host for RTHK and eventually a news reader. Shares the story of how her mother met her father during the war and became a war bride. She talks about aging and the fears she has surrounding this given the fact that she does not have any fam

Emily Lola Tan has Leukemia. She shares her story whilst also raising awareness of the importance of bone marrow donations for Leukemia suffers- especially Asian people as they don’t seem to register as bone marrow donors as much as people in other countries. Finding a bone marrow match will significantly increase Emily’s chances of survival and she is on a mission to raise awareness for all Leukemia patients. We discuss why it is better for her to stay in Hong Kong to find a bone marrow match and we explore the lack of public awareness surrounding blood cancers as opposed to other more publicised cancers. Emily explains how she first discovered that she has Leukemia when she was travelling in Europe and how the diagnosis has changed her outlook on life. She shares her deepest secrets from her past where, as a teen, she was raped by her boyfriend and later, unable to cope with the shame and the guilt, attempted suicide. This is a heart wrenching disclosure that will impact all who listen. Emily go

I interviewed Kinny Au Barlow for International Podcast Day and we spoke about growing up in a Chinese family and some of the long standing traditions and values that Kinny feels are important to impart to her children. She explains how she balances her own Chinese culture and her husband’s Western culture when raising her children. She shares some stories from her childhood and explains how she was different to her peers and the unique way that he parents embraced and encouraged her to be different. We talk about traditional expectations in Chinese families ranging from gender roles, to caring for the elderly and fundamental practices that are a part of belonging to a Chinese family. We discuss helpers in Hong Kong, racism and how we can think about contributing to our families and the community. Kinny is one of the organizers of Clockenflap, one of Asia’s biggest music and arts festivals. She talks about how amazing it is to work on such a fabulous event and shares some of the exciting aspects&n

Tiffany Huang began Spill Stories as a story telling platform for women of colour to share their experiences. She was unhappy with the superficial nature of social media, so she created content on Instagram that offers comfort to others in their personal struggles. The stories, written by a diverse group of people, evoke empathy, catharsis and healing through sharing more deep and meaningful aspects of life. “Social media can enhance our sense of isolation” and Spill Stories provides a platform for us to feel connected. Tiffany suggests that we should “screw the narratives that we are supposed to play into and be yourself!” Spill Stories have many different themes ranging from ‘Sex and Power’ to ‘Insecurities’. These stories promote creativity and provide a voice for women of colour. Writing can empower people and Tiffany hopes that her platform will connect people across the globe. Tiffany shares a story from a woman in the UK called ‘Am I too dark?&rsquo

Tash Jain suffers from a chronic illness called POTS- Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome. This is a syndrome where there is an imbalance between your blood pressure and your heart rate. Symptoms include fainting, memory loss and fatigue, all of which affected Tash. She was so ill that she has to quit her job and was on bed rest for months. There was no specific treatment for her illness, so it was a matter of trial and error as she experimented with different treatment methods. Being unwell took a toll on Tash’s mental health and she found herself feeling isolated, anxious and often in a very low mood. We discuss mental health in relation to living with chronic illness.  Tash felt that being sick gave her the opportunity to reassess her priorities and really look at her core values. She is a changed person due to suffering from POTS and she shares how she has reevaluated her notion of success and what is most important now in her life. Tash is an inspiration and she provides many tips on sel

Siufung Law is a genderqueer bodybuilder who competes in both local and international competitions.  He shares his gender and sexuality journey, and how his identity has evolved to where it is today. He is open and candid about being raised as a young girl in Chinese culture and the challenges he faced being at school where his dad was the Vice Principal. Siufung explains how he felt that he needed to suppress his sexuality and gender journey from his family whilst at school, but he was lucky to find a group of friends where he could be truly himself. Siufung did research in Gender Studies at university and this helped him to learn more about the labels, genderqueer and gender non-binary and he felt that these terms described him more than the term transgender which was how he was identifying at that time. Siufung explains the meaning of generqueer and the pronouns that he is happy to use. We discuss the lack of sex education in local Chinese schools and how Siufung would have benefited from more open di

Sofie Jacobs is a midwife from Belgium who lives and works in Hong Kong. Sofie and I discuss all things related to pregnancy and birth. We discuss postpartum depression, home and hospital births, birth plans and parenting. We explore the pressure that women face to get their post baby body back and Sofie explains that this is impossible as our bodies change after giving birth. You need to prepare for the birth in all aspects of mind, body and soul and Sofie gives us tips on how to do this. Did you realise that men can also suffer from postpartum depression? There are several reasons why this can occur. Sofie advises us on parenting skills and how women can look after their health after the baby is born. Sofie has been a midwife for 20 years and runs antenatal, coaching and childcare education classes. Sofie has a company in Hong Kong called Urban Hatch. A Listener Note: If you feel you need support, please visit your local GP, a counsellor or contact the Samaritans in Hong Kong on 28960000. If you live in ano