Pieta House prepares for further call surge as blocking measures are eased

Mental health charity Pieta House is stepping up for a further surge in calls in the coming weeks and months as the shutdown measures ease and people struggle to cope with the new circumstances.

Tom McEvoy, finance and advocacy manager for the charity, said he was already dealing with an “unprecedented” increase in calls since February, the number had “doubled at least” to more than 14,000 in the same period of the year past.

“It should not be unexpected that this period of confinement is causing anxiety in our community,” he said.

“People are in crisis, depending on their own personal circumstances, and some may not be equipped to handle and deal with this unusual period we are going into, and that is why we are there, offering them that help to get through. this period.”

Pieta House offers free therapy to those who self-harm, have suicidal thoughts, or commit suicide.

McEvoy said the charity is preparing to be “needed more than ever” in the coming weeks.

“We feel in the not too distant future, when people start to come out of the confinement that there will be a further increase in elevated anxiety,” he said.

“We are preparing for that with our service, and we look forward to dealing with it.”

The charity was forced last month to postpone its annual Darkness Into Light fundraiser due to the Covid-19 crisis, resulting in a loss of around € 6 million.

However, it is expected that a “dawn call” in which thousands of people rose before dawn on Saturday “to join in the fight against suicide and self-harm” could raise € 3 million.

“It has been overwhelming, the support it has received,” McEvoy said.

“We are very grateful to the Irish community. They flocked out. We weren’t sure where this event would take us. “

People across the country gathered, socially estranged, on beaches, harbors, parks, and on the streets, while others walked or ran to mark the sunrise, with many posting spectacular images of the sunrise on social media.

Up to € 2 million of the € 3 million was raised through a special Late Late Show on Friday night, with appearances by the actor Pierce Brosnan and the musicians Mary Black, Sharon Shannon, Frances Black and Mary Coughlan, who dedicated themselves to charity.