It’s ok to be vulnerable and to ask for help when you need it. Aberdeen Samaritans is the helpline to dial whenever you need someone to talk to.
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When life throws you a curveball (or several), it can be hard to find your way. It helps to have someone to open up to and listen to what you’re going through. They don’t necessarily have to help you out with solutions. Just being there to listen without any judgment helps.
Samaritans is a national organisation that provides a listening service to people dealing with emotional problems or any other issue they feel they can’t talk to anyone else about.
It has 200 branches covering the whole of the UK and Ireland, providing its service in both English and Welsh.
The organisation ultimately aims to help reduce the alarming number of suicides.
Samaritans reaches out to young men
While everyone needs someone to listen to, Samaritans wants to reach out particularly to young men.
In Scotland, males are three times more likely to die by suicide than females.
Sue Harrison, Samaritans Aberdeen branch director, explains: “The biggest population that does not call anyone for support is young men between 18 and 30.
“We understand that, especially for men, it is very difficult to talk about their feelings. We would not think any less of them if they contacted us.
“Culturally, men are told to be strong and brave and not show emotion. It’s not manly to have feelings.
“Women will share their problems. They’ll chat about what’s going on in their lives and they’ll talk to their friends about it.
“Men talk about football. They don’t talk about personal things. So for a lot of them, they struggle with all these thoughts and feelings with nowhere to take them.
“You need to be able to unburden yourself or whatever emotional issue it is you’re struggling through.
“Men struggle with feeling inadequate, not earning enough money, not being the man they think their wife wants them to be, failing at work, having problems with losing their job and not being able to tell their partners about it.
“So there’s a whole raft of things that men struggle with and we want to show young men there’s another way of dealing with those emotions rather than maybe getting absolutely hammered and get themselves into trouble.”
Samaritans provides round the clock, year-round service
If you find yourself wrestling with these issues, call Samaritans on 116 123 free of charge.
Sue says: “When there’s no one else to talk to, we’re always here. It doesn’t matter if they want to ring in the middle of the night and talk. We’re here 24 hours a day, every day.
“We provide a safe place to talk. All our volunteers are specially trained to help them work through those problems.
“We don’t tell you what to do or offer solutions. We allow you to come up with your own solutions. So you are in charge of what you’re going to do.”
Do you prefer writing over calling?
Sometimes writing down your thoughts and feelings can help you understand them better.
If you prefer writing instead of calling the Samaritans, email jo@samaritans.org or you can send your letters via post for free. Just address them to Freepost Samaritans Letters.
To volunteer, whether in listening or support roles, email aberdeen.branchrecruitment@samaritans.org
To donate to Aberdeen Samaritans helpline, visit their website.
Follow Samaritans on X to get updates on their work.
