
Zhong Pei Rong is the founder of Bakery Wellness, a social enterprise which aims to raise awareness about mental health issues through baking. Diagnosed with mild bipolar disorder, Pei Rong drew strength from her family and friends, as well as her passion in baking during her recovery process. She is a firm believer that food can serve as a valuable means in opening up greater conversations about mental wellness amongst the general public.
Having gone through the struggle of managing a mental illness herself and drawing from her own personal experiences, Pei Rong hopes to inspire other individuals with mental health challenges to seek help. She does this by actively sharing her story on various outreach platforms and also by using baking to empower others suffering from mental illness. In doing so, she provides them with a safe space to share their stories, thereby giving them the impetus to kick-start their own journey towards recovery. In 2016, Pei Rong initiated the ‘Baker’s Mind’ project, which gave caregivers and their loved ones the opportunity to work together on the fun task of baking, through which they could understand one another better. There is no doubt that Pei Rong’s work at Bakery Wellness has been significant in helping to remove the stigma surrounding mental health issues in Singapore, and thereby making the world a more accommodating place for our friends with mental illness.