Stress is a fact of life in a hectic city like Hong Kong. But for many women, the situation may be worse because of the multiple roles they are expected to take on.
Consider 38-year-old housewife Fong. Her troubled relationship with her rebellious elder son bothered her so much she became suicidal about a year ago.
'At the worst time, I hit my son with a stick and he fought back by holding the other end of the stick,' she said.
'I desperately held on to the other end of the stick. I didn't know how to deal with him. Once I banged my head on the wall in front of him.
'My younger son was so scared that he rang his father whenever something happened between me and his brother,' she said.
Keen to fulfil her role as a dutiful mother, she was highly concerned about her son's performance at school and worried about him hanging out with people who would have a bad influence on him.
'I know my son loves me and I love him too. He is not naughty and does spend a lot of time studying. Strangely, he gets on badly at school and his performance is so disappointing that his school social worker has asked to see me,' she said.