Three Calls A Minute Expected By The Samaritans At Xmas

New research shows one in five people feel stressed or anxious about Xmas as The Samaritans launch a Viz-style comic book to get blokes to "open up"

The Samaritans, today 11th December, launch The Bloke's Own Paper, a Viz-style comic book about men's problems supported by comedian Sean Hughes, Radiohead drummer, Phil Selway and lead singer of indie group Embrace, Danny McNamara. The comic book aims to reach young men in crisis during the most stressful time of year.

A new MORI survey commissioned by The Samaritans reveals the extent of negative feelings towards Xmas as the charity gears up for a 10% increase in calls, with an expected rise to three calls every minute in the week 25th-31st Dec.

Simon Armson, chief executive of The Samaritans, said:

"People expect men to be strong and cope with problems on their own. But the reality is that blokes, like everyone else, can feel stressed, anxious, angry and inadequate. The tragedy is that so many young men don't use helplines when they need to talk, particularly at Xmas time when feelings of stress and depression can become overwhelming. We're here to make sure everyone has someone to talk about those feelings of crisis."

Sean Hughes said; "Sometimes telling jokes is the last thing on my mind, you just want to tell people to sod off and mind their own business. But bottling things up never solves anything."

The Bloke's Own Paper is being distributed via youth clubs, schools and sports clubs with cartoons and advice for young men on how to deal with feelings of crisis. The Viz-style cartoons feature emotions including anger, feeling inadequate, loss of appetite and using drugs to cope with problems. The comic book will be used alongside advertising featuring games such as table football and space invaders to offer help to young men in crisis over the holiday period.

Results of the MORI survey:

• Nearly one in three people (32%) have negative feelings about Xmas including feeling depressed, alone or angry (compared to 79% of people who expressed positive feelings)*
• One in five (22%) find Xmas stressful or a source of anxiety
• 7% (representing over 3 million people) say they feel depressed at Xmas time
• Women were more likely to express negative feelings towards Xmas (38%) although one in four men (27%) felt negative about Xmas
• Those who are widowed, divorced or separated are most likely to feel negative about Xmas (38%) and are twice as likely as the national average to feel depressed at Xmas
• Although around half the people questioned love Xmas, almost one in ten hate Xmas

* The results revealed that some people expressed positive and negative feelings towards Xmas

Events being organised by The Samaritans over the festive season include:

• Samaritan volunteers will giving up their time to gift wrap books for donations at Waterstone's booksellers all over the UK and Ireland over the festive season. Every 1631 donated will go towards keeping the local Branches of The Samaritans open 24 hours to people in crisis.
• Posters, drip mats and TV and radio advertising will feature games including Space invaders, Superstriker and Buckaroo, to get the message across to young men that you don't have to deal with it on your own.

Notes to the Editor

1. The Samaritans is a registered charity, founded in 1953, which provides confidential emotional support to people in crisis. The Samaritans' vision is that fewer people will take their own lives because Samaritan befriending is available, at any hour of the day or night for everyone passing through personal crisis and at risk of dying. The Samaritans provide society with a better understanding of suicide, suicidal behaviour and the value of expressing feelings that may lead to suicide
2. Across the UK, you can call The Samaritans on 08457-90 90 90 (1850-60 90 90 in the Republic of Ireland) for the price of a local call. You can also write to The Samaritans at Chris, PO Box 9090, Stirling, FK8 2SA, send an e-mail to [email protected] or use the single national textphone number 08457-90 91 92 (1850-60 90 91 in the Republic of Ireland)
3. MORI interviewed a representative quota sample of 2,033 adults (920 men and 1113 women) aged 15 years + in 195 sampling points in Great Britain from 23-28 November 2000. All interviews were conducted face-to-face in the home and data has been weighted to the known profile of the British population.

The Samaritans, 10 The Grove, Slough Berkshire, SL1 1QP 01753-216 500 f: 01753-775 787