Samaritans Availability at Christmas

Samaritans, Ireland’s largest provider of dedicated emotional support, is reminding the Cork public that their service will be available, as always, over the Christmas period and into the new year. Pio Fenton, Director of Cork Samaritans, says that it is important that people are aware that there is support available throughout what can be a tough time for many people. “Christmas can be stressful for many people, while others find it lonely. It can be hard to be open and honest about this at this time and so some people can end up repressing what can be difficult feelings rather than talking them out. For some people it might be helpful to talk to Samaritans if they feel there is no body else they can open up to.”

Samaritans answered over 400,000 calls in the past 12 months. This was the hightest number of calls ever recieved in Ireland and according to Mr. Fenton it highlights the enormity of challenges facing people at this time. “We haven’t seen anything like this in some time. There is an enormous amount of pressure on people.” He suggests that people need to reminded that there are options available to those who are experiencing distress or despair. “Our service is a 24 hour a day service and it is available to anyone who wants to talk about what is going on for them. It is sometimes just helpful to know that there is someone on the other end of the phone.”

Samaritans will be marking its 40th year in Cork in 2012. In Cork there are over 180 volunteers, many of whom will be donating their time over Christmas to be available to others. In the past year Samaritans volunteers in Ireland provided over 55,000 hours of listening support to people in distress. The branch in Cork City is located in Coach Street near the Mercy Hospital and it will be open each day over the Christmas period from 10am to 10pm for visitors to drop in.

Samaritans can be contacted 24 hours a day on 1850 609090 or by email on jo@samaritans.org