Samaritans
Samaritans is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to anyone who feels they need emotional support at any time over the festive period. When many other services are suspended over Christmas and New Year, Samaritans is open all hours for anyone experiencing emotional distress.
Christmas is the time of year when most people are immersed in parties with family, friends and work colleagues, but for some it can be an emotionally challenging period which triggers feelings of intense loneliness and isolation.
For those who have lost someone close, for the elderly living alone and for people living far away from their own families, Christmas can be alienating. It can also be a testing time of year for those with large families who feel the financial burden of the festive season and the pressure of having to entertain lots of people.
Martin Lewis, TV money saving expert, says: "People often get themselves into money worries at Christmas time. You should ask yourself, 'What can I afford to spend this Christmas?', and then plan your celebrations around that. Christmas is just one day, and it's far more important to be financially stable throughout the New Year.
"We need to recognise that Christmas has become a marketing dream with shops and adverts pumping out a 'spend, spend, spend' message. Don't allow commercial pressures to drive you into debt. It will leave those with limited cash feeling worried that they can't give their family every last dream present." TV Agony Aunt Denise Robertson gives her top tips for surviving the Christmas period:
"Remember it's only two days - you will survive it. I dreaded last Christmas because I'd just lost a son, but when it came I gave thanks he had been in my life and it was comforting.
"If we only spent sensibly at Christmas we'd be carving an Oxo cube, not a turkey, but don't think it has to cost a bomb. Hugs and laughter are what we remember, not presents or rich food.
"If you are spending Christmas alone use the time to make plans to make next year better and remember there are people out there who understand and will help, whatever the problem. If family are fractious and give you trouble, Christmas Day is not the time to argue but resolve to make better arrangements in the new year."
Dominic Rudd, Chief Executive with Samaritans says: "No one is immune to feeling lonely. We can be surrounded by family and friends and still feel the need to speak to someone who doesn't know us.
"At Christmas and New Year everyday problems become amplified but it is important to remember that however low you are feeling there is always someone there at the end of the line and Samaritans is totally confidential. People can contact Samaritans about a variety of emotional issues and the sooner you make contact, the better, so that emotional worries don't spiral into worse situations."
As always, Samaritans is open throughout the Christmas period - Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. Its 16,800 volunteers offer confidential, non-judgmntal support to everybody, everywhere in the UK and Ireland.
Samaritans has a third party referral system, if anyone is concerned that they know someone who might need emotional support they can contact Samaritans and as long as they give their details, volunteers will make contact with the person to see if they would like support. This would, as usual, be done confidentially without any report being made back to the initial caller.
Last year, 93% of contacts to Samaritans were by phone - a total 2.5 million calls in all. This season Samaritans expects more calls and emails than ever before and trained volunteers will be there to answer every one of them.