With the Leaving Certificate exam results around the corner, emotional support charity the Samaritans is inviting stressed students to make contact with them to talk about it.
Echoing the ethos that a problem shared is a problem halved, the organisation says exams and studying stress were within the top 12 reasons why people contacted the humanitarian organisation last year.
The charity offers 24-hour confidential support with 2,000 volunteers available across 20 branches throughout Ireland to take calls from students and parents showing the signs of stress, which include:
- Lack of sleep
- Loss of appetite or irregular eating
- Panic attacks and difficulty breathing
- Low energy and lack of concentration
- Loss of interest in things around you.
Samaritans spokeswoman Suzanne Costello said: "Panic, anxiety, fear about the future, guilt and despair are just some of the feelings students might be going through. Coping throughout this stressful time can be difficult and without anyone to confide in, feelings of apprehension can become unbearable," she said.
"When young people have been told for years that good exam results are the ticket to the rest of their life, it is no wonder they feel stressed about their results. Exam results can feel like a measure of people's intelligence, sometimes even of their value as a person, rather than what they should be, namely a measure of knowledge and skills on a particular subject matter.
"Young people shouldn't be made to feel their whole life hangs in the balance based on their exam performance. Parents, teachers and friends need to help them take a step back and remember life doesn't stop," Ms Costello said.
"There are lots of options available to help them make a positive start to the next phase of their life, whatever that piece of paper says," she added.
The Samaritans can be contacted on 1850 609090 (08457 909090 in the North) for the price of a local call.
An online exam support page is available at: http://www.samaritans.org/talk/exams/results.shtm