Alex's Answer

Welcome to Ask Alex and thank you for reaching out to us with your question “How do you tell you’re not ok? “. 

You have shown great bravery in starting the conversation by reaching out to Ask Alex.  Sharing our feelings with the people in our lives can be a difficult thing to do sometimes because we are never sure about how the other person will respond, what they will think or what they will say to us. However not talking to others creates its own difficulty as things can “snowball” in our heads and this can lead to a build-up of negative emotions. Carrying the weight of our problems alone and not sharing them with others can be more harmful to our wellbeing than letting them out and telling someone what we are thinking and feeling. Also, other people may never realise that we are not ok if we don’t say it out loud! You might find this article on our website useful: https://www.childline.ie/3-ways-talking-can-improve-your-mental-wellbeing/.

We would suggest that you consider the people that you trust in your life such as friends, parents, cousins, teachers, aunts, uncles etc. Think about how you would respond if one of these people came to you with a problem – what would you say to help?   

We are wondering if there is a person in your life who would be able to offer you the same level of support with how you are feeling. If you are nervous about starting the conversation it might be helpful to write it down on paper or even practice the conversation in the mirror. Writing things down in itself is a little release and can help lighten the load. When you feel ready, ask the trusted adult or individual if they can sit down and have a conversation about what is going on for you. You can read more about how to go about asking for help here:  https://www.childline.ie/not-sure-how-to-ask-for-help-heres-what-to-do/.

If you feel that you are not ready yet to talk to someone you know quite yet, you would be very welcome to give us at Childline a call on 1800 66 66 66 or you could text us on 50101 or contact us online for a web chat at  https://www.childline.ie/. All of our services are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, are free, confidential and are a space for you to talk about your thoughts and feelings without being judged in any way.    

Thank you for getting in touch with us today.  We are here to help if you have any other questions.  

Take care,   

Alex