Karma Hotel

About the Book

Karma Hotel is in one reality, the Mood Disorders Unit (MDU) of the infamous Institute of Mental Health (IMH) formerly known as Woodbridge Hospital in Singapore. What goes on behind the locked doors of the hospital, especially inside the patients’ minds is a mystery to even the best psychiatrists and psychologists. In Yohanna Abdullah’s creative mind, MDU is a NASA space station on Mars. This is a peek into the mental universe of one writer diagnosed with bipolar disorder (Type 1) in 1998. Karma Hotel is Yohanna’s cryptic code name for the basement ward where up to 40 patients are treated for various mood disorders. While admitted there for three manic episodes within a year in 2022 and 2023, she wrote about 60 poems The book also features some of her raw illustrations of the space and people at the karmic staycation. Enjoy the poetic stops in Karma Hotel which takes you to the author’s universe, from Mars to Uranus, to Earth and even to the Andromeda Galaxy.

About the Author

Yohanna Abdullah is a well-established writer in Singapore focusing on mental health issues including Shattered, We HEAL, Shattered, We HEAL II. Mind at Peace, A Place in the Sun and Patience and Gratitude – Stories of Healing. The former journalist with The Straits Times lives with bipolar disorder which gives her a unique view of life. She is a mental health advocate, scriptwriter, playwright, editor and poet. Islands of Mania (2021) was her successful debut novella It was a raw and unforgettable story based on her true marital and mental health struggles. Yohanna conceptualised a touching story about a mother and daughter who struggle with the latter’s manic depression. The telemovie for Suria, Bonda (2018) won a Gold Award at the World Media Festival in Hamburg Germany (2020) and a Bronze Award for Best Actress at the New York Film Festival (2019). She also wrote an acclaimed monologue, Naked, performed by Teater Kami, a leading Malay theatre company, to local and international audience. A cat lover without a cat who cares for two green budgies, she loves sky-gazing, forest bathing and befriending. She happily bought her birds while on a Mood 10 (Ecstasy) as she did an octopus-shaped chandelier, and an OSIM massage chair, a keris and paid a downpayment for a car when she could not drive. The Sociology (Honours) graduate from the National University of Singapore also has a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Sociology and English Language with a minor in Philosophy. She enjoyed her subjects of Sociology of Language, Religion and Gender. She has a penchant for Indian Philosophy and Philosophy of the Mind which she studied at university. A Programme Executive and an advocate at a local mental health organisation, Club HEAL, she inspires her clients, friends and strangers alike to heal and recover, despite life’s challenges. She believes when life throws lemons, just make lemonade. And make it purple, her favourite colour!