Society - Telephone counseling in times of war and crisis: many contacts
As the year drew to a close, more than one million people once again contacted the telephone counseling service with their worries, needs and fears. The war in the Middle East and Ukraine, loneliness and depressive moods often triggered the calls, as Ludger Storch, Chairman of the nationwide telephone counseling working group on statistics, explained.
There is not yet a detailed final evaluation for 2023, but the number of contacts will be in the same order of magnitude as in the previous year with around 1.2 million calls. More than a quarter of the calls - around 27 percent - were made in North Rhine-Westphalia, said Storch, who is also the head of the Bochum telephone counseling service.
Contact also via chat or email
In addition to calls, anonymous contact is also possible via chat or email. In recent years, there have been well over 30,000 chats and well over 41,000 emails exchanged. Over 7,700 volunteers work for the telephone helpline across Germany.
According to Storch, 2023 was another year marked by crises, which "affected the feeling of life in ever-changing crisis situations". "The war in Ukraine and the war in the Middle East have left many people worried and anxious." The consequences of the coronavirus pandemic are still reverberating, as is particularly evident in social contacts and frequent social anxiety. The price increases have also often left their mark on everyday life, Storch told the German Press Agency.
The topic of loneliness
Loneliness was still the number one topic on the telephone, with more than one in five callers talking about it. Fears and depressive moods are very frequently discussed. Suicidal thoughts are also mentioned in many contacts. A particularly large number of people in the 30 to 69 age group are represented on the telephone, while the age structure tends to be somewhat younger in chat and email.
According to an initial preliminary assessment, the number of counseling sessions at Nummer gegen Kummer, which covers the target groups of children, young people and parents, also remained at the high level of 2022 (around 121,500 counseling sessions). The Ukraine helpline for people who have fled the war continues to be in high demand.
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- Despite the ongoing crisis in Ukraine and the Middle East, the telephone counseling service in Germany saw a significant increase in calls during the Turn of the year, with over 1 million contacts.
- In the North Rhine-Westphalia region alone, around 27% of these calls were made, highlighting the high demand for this service in the region.
- The war in Ukraine has undoubtedly contributed to the heightened sense of loneliness and anxiousness felt by many individuals, leading them to seek pastoral care and support through this service.
- Bochum, home to a well-established telephone counseling service, has seen its share of these calls as well, with volunteers working tirelessly to provide assistance to those in need.
- In a year marred by crises, including the coronavirus pandemic, price increases, and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, loneliness remains a pervasive issue, with over one-fifth of callers expressing concerns about it.
- The German Social sector continues to provide critical support in these times of crisis, with over 7,700 volunteers working diligently to offer telephone counseling, chat, and email support for those feeling isolated and in need of assistance.
Source: www.stern.de
