Increase in young people seeking counselling

A LOCAL counsellor has this week told The Echo about the increase she has noted in young people requiring her services.

Helen Roberts, who runs the Listening Ear counselling service in Springfield in Tallaght alongside her colleague Yvonne McKenna, has been helping adults and children as young as ten with a number of concerns.

The qualified counselor and psychotherapist specialises in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, and Listening Ear also offers counselling services to people who may encounter difficulties relating to a number of issues, including depression, child abuse, alcohol abuse and anxiety.

Ms Roberts told The Echo: “There are a lot of teenagers coming to me with depression and self-harm.

“For me, you can definitely see the change from someone who first comes into us and they’re staring at the wall.

“The majority of the time people come in and say ‘Can you fix me?’, but they’re not broken.”

Ms Roberts added that usually people just need help or a listening ear.

When asked how her clients change after using the Tallaght-based counselling service, Ms Roberts said: “I suppose they have a better outlook on life, they start to look brighter and they have more enthusiasm.”

Adding that she gets great satisfaction out of helping people through her work, Ms Roberts said that the services of Listening Ear counselling are “open to everyone”.

According to Ms Roberts anyone who’s considering counselling but feeling a little apprehensive is encouraged to give Listening Ear a call.

“If you do feel that you might need a little bit of help then pick up the phone and have a chat with us,” Ms Roberts concluded.

Listening Ear is located at 1 Alderwood Park in Springfield, and you can contact Yvonne McKenna on 086 229 1031 or Helen Roberts 085 736 4698, or find out more about Listening Ear online at www.listeningear.ie