Benefits of talking to someone

Talking about your concerns can give a different perspective

Sorting through your feelings

Talking about your feelings can help. Telling someone you trust about what is upsetting you may help you sort through your feelings, or make the situation clearer.

Putting things in perspective

If you have been keeping things to yourself a situation may appear to be more overwhelming than it actually is. The person you tell may help you see the situation in a new or different perspective. Someone outside the situation will be able to be more neutral about what is going on. The outcome won't affect them personally. They may suggest options that you had not thought about before.

Releasing tension

Talking through your concerns can also release a lot of pent-up tension and give you new insights into what is going on.

Deciding who to talk to

Deciding who you want to talk to is an important first step. You need to feel that you trust the person you are talking to.

Explore the Who can help you section about how to choose who to talk to.

If you have a particular concerns and want to talk it through with someone outside the situation there are also counsellors who specialise in particular issues.

Some of these speciality areas include:

• mental health
• young people
• families
• alcohol and other drugs
• pregnancy
• family issues
• schooling and careers
• abuse.

Check out the links on the left for more information.