Changing attitudes to relationships in Ireland have created unprecedented demand for the work of the Marriage and Relationship Counselling Services (MRCS), the organisation's annual report claims.
Ms Elizabeth Everett, chief executive of MRCS, said Irish people were now more willing to seek help when relationship problems arose. "Couples are demanding more of their relationships, particularly in the isolation of urban living," she said.
Ms Everett said factors such as the recognition of women's equality had led to a refusal by many people to suffer in silence if marriages or partnerships were not going well.
MRCS would continue to help people decide how to identify, tackle and solve these problems, she said.
Ireland's prosperity had brought previously unexperienced problems for couples, claimed Ms Everett.
"We are mindful of the increasing pressures upon couples and families as time becomes a scarcer commodity and the demands of the workplace become even heavier," she said.