Young people’s text Helpline receives 120 appeals daily

A TEXT helpline aimed at young people with problems has been getting 120 appeals for help per day since its launch last August.

HeadsUp went on-line on August 13 to offer confidential advice to teenagers and young adults faced with a wide variety of issues.

From teen pregnancy to mental health problems, sexual abuse to drug or alcohol issues, the service can act as the first staging post towards getting the help a young person in difficulty might need.

Established by Rehab with support from Meteor, up to this week it had received 7,564 text messages from people concerned about relationships, suicide, sexual health, and mental health services, as well as many other situations.

The helpline is designed to provide guidance to young people who feel they can’t turn to family members and friends. The confidential and fully automated service is the first of its kind in Ireland.

“I think there’s a lot of pressure on young people at the moment,” said Rehab suicide prevention project manager Collette Ryan. “Suicide rates are so high and there are high rates for deliberate self-harm. They put high expectations on themselves and other people put high expectations on them.”

The HeadsUp service was piloted in three Dublin regions last year and the response it received gave Rehab an indication of the demand, according to Ms Ryan.

“They were quick to tell me what was rubbish and what should be in there,” she said. “Also, young people said they wouldn’t be able to use the service if it wasn’t free.”

With the help of Meteor, HeadsUp is free of charge to all mobile phone users on all networks. It works by replying to an initial text, offering information on how to access support services.

“The fact that we cover 12 different topics is important — a lot of the time people might know one number, but that would be all, but at least now they have a range and they know they’re going to get someone who knows about their problem.”

Once a text is sent, the user is sent a list of 12 options to choose from including suicide, alcohol, drugs, mental health, debt, sexuality, abuse, gambling, sexual health, parenting, and teen issues. The user chooses the topic and instantly receives a list of appropriate helpline numbers to their mobile phone.

Among the many organisations included in the list of services are the Samaritans, Women’s Aid, the Rape Crisis Centre, Narcotics Anonymous, Alcoholics Anonymous, the Gay Switchboard, Childline, and Bodywhys. In all, up to 30 support services are available.

“Our whole purpose is trying to get to people before it [their problem] becomes too big,” said Ms Ryan.

* HeadsUp: Text 50424.