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Why I am doing this
Eight years ago, I woke up and couldn't get out of bed. What started as back pain from weightlifting had developed into severe back pain and sciatica. The pain became so intense that there were moments when I honestly felt like I couldn't take it anymore.
One morning, as I tried to get down from my bed, I felt an immediate, sharp pain shoot through my lower back. It was so severe that I had to ask my mum to call an ambulance. I was taken to Changi General Hospital. I still remember lying in the emergency department, frightened and wondering:
“What if I never walk properly again?”
The pain was so severe that the doctors had to give me morphine. After the pain subsided, I was told that my X-ray did not show anything seriously wrong with my back. If I wanted further investigation and consultation with an orthopaedic specialist, I was told that the waiting time could be three to six months because of the number of patients on the waiting list.
For the time being, the solution was simple: Painkillers. But when I went home, the pain didn't go away. I couldn't simply wait months for an answer, so I started looking for one myself. I tried everything I could think of — chiropractors, TCM tuina, sports massage and other alternative treatments. For months, I experimented with different treatments. Some gave temporary relief, but the pain kept coming back.
Eventually, I decided to seek a second opinion at a private clinic at Mount Elizabeth. That decision changed everything. An MRI finally revealed what was wrong: I had a slipped disc. For the first time in months, I felt a sense of relief. There was finally an answer. The doctor told me that I could undergo keyhole surgery as early as the next day.
The cost? About $40,000.
At first, I wasn't worried. I assumed my medical insurance would cover it. Then came the phone call that I will never forget. I discovered that my insurance policy had an exclusion for my lower back. The surgery that I thought was financially covered suddenly wasn't. I had to call the doctor and cancel the surgery. I simply wasn't in a financial position to pay $40,000.
At that moment, I felt completely helpless. I had the medical problem. I had the solution. But I didn't have the financial resources to access that solution comfortably. The doctor was kind enough to tell me that we could still proceed and that he would try to reduce the surgical fee for me. Eventually, I went ahead with the surgery as I discovered that I had purchased a small personal accident policy years earlier. That policy was able to cover part of the bill. For the remaining amount, around $15,000, I had to use my own savings.
The surgery went well. But the experience changed the way I looked at insurance forever.
During my recovery, lying in bed, I made a promise to myself. When I recovered, I would go into the insurance industry. Not simply to sell policies. But to help people avoid experiencing the same fear and helplessness that I experienced.
Because I learned something firsthand
Medical problems are already difficult enough. Financial problems shouldn't make them worse.
Singapore has excellent healthcare, but treatment, surgery, rehabilitation and recovery can still come with significant financial consequences. And sometimes, the biggest problem isn't whether treatment exists. It's whether you are financially prepared when you need it. I've lived it. I've felt the fear. I've had to make that decision. And that experience became the reason I chose this profession.
Perhaps the biggest lesson my injury taught me wasn't about insurance. It was about never taking your health or your body for granted. We spend so much of our lives working, earning, building businesses, raising families and planning for the future. Yet sometimes, we forget to protect the one thing that allows us to do all of it: Our health.
I don't want my story to simply be a story about a slipped disc. I want it to be a reminder. Because if sharing my experience can encourage even one person to review their protection, prepare for unexpected medical expenses or avoid falling into financial difficulty because of an illness or accident, then my experience would have served a purpose. I lived through it.
And today, I find my purpose in life to help others prepare for the possibility that one day, they might face something similar.
I've lived through that uncertainty, and I am sharing my experience so you can avoid the same missteps.
I'm Dennis. I learned the hard way.
You don't have to.
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Talk to Dennis →Let’s have a conversation.
If my story resonates with you and you’d like to talk about your own financial protection, I’d be happy to speak with you.
