Commentay:Do the youth really need 'Dr Love'?

Text: Facing heartship? See the love doctors.
Publication: The Straits Times
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Who are ‘Dr Love’s?

Basically, these doctors are all young men. Most of them are from universities. The authors, Eugene Tan , Chelestiar Kong Jing Wen and Chung Pin Soon, are all medical students who aged 25 or 26. Actually, none of them is an expert on psychology. These young men didn’t have any experience, and one of them did not even have a girl friend himself. However, three boys gathered and produce a book and a website, and become popular and fashionable amongst the young people.

What are they doing?

Till now, they have already written a book and set up a website dispending skills such as dating strategies. They teach people how to create opportunities, dating strategies, communication skills and how to maintain the relationship. This detailed and well-organized information can all be found on their website and book.

Why are they popular and successful?

The book and website have been great successful since they were produced, but why are they so popular among the youth, and even the middle-aged people?

These young authors are really hard working. Because there lack of credentials, they talked to over 100 other people about their relationship and read a lot of works of authors like Barbara De Angelis instead. They said that they have been gathering examples since their secondary school time which was in Raffles Institution. They also took down their friends’ dating records and analyzed. By using this method, they were able to invent their own method of approaching those they liked. Due to the detailed and careful preparation, the book is considered to be effective and efficient.

Ms Anna Goh, deputy director of the Social Development Unit, said it gives informal, personal and relevant examples young people can identify with.

Furthermore, there are a great amount of young people who need such kind of guidance.

Mr. Tan, who shared his experience in the book, said it is good to organize his idea and share with others. He and his girlfriend also found the way to maintain their relationship in the book.

Do we really need them?

As the book and the website become more and more popular, it leads to more reflection on this issue: Shall we solve the love problem ourselves or always ask love doctors?

Mr. C.K. Goh, 25, who is doing national service, says he would not use the book as a guide.
He said it’s too clean and unrealistic. Love can never be so simple like that, but a lot more complex.

Personally I think that the young people should try to deal with problems by themselves.

As Mr. C.k. Goh said, life is full of complexities and challenges. Not everything can be listed in the book or on the website. The youth must have the capability to solve new problems instead of depending on books.