Gumboot Friday data shows anxiety reaches primary school children

I Am Hope says anxiety appears in every age group it supports through Gumboot Friday counselling, including primary school children.

Young people under 25 can book a free counsellor through Gumboot Friday, and no GP referral is needed. I Am Hope looked through its Gumboot Friday reporting and noticed how young some children are when certain problems begin.

The organisation stresses that the figures come only from Gumboot Friday, so they do not represent every child in New Zealand. It describes them as a snapshot of what young people coming for counselling are struggling with.

What younger children bring

Alongside anxiety, younger children are showing anger, family conflict, trauma and difficulty coping with change, I Am Hope says. Adults can quickly decide a child is naughty or disruptive. In the organisation’s view, there may be a lot going on in the child’s life, and behaviour can be the only way the child knows how to show it.

What changes as they get older

Depression appears more often in the reporting as young people get older, I Am Hope says. Bullying, body image, social anxiety and eating difficulties also show up more.

The organisation points to the pressure that arrives when school finishes. Young people are expected to find a job, pick a career, pay bills, find a partner and work out who they are.

I Am Hope also notes that different groups of young people come with different concerns. It wants to understand those differences properly before drawing conclusions from the data, and says it has more work to do.

What young people need from adults

I Am Hope says young people do not need adults to have all the answers. Most of the time, they need to know they can talk about what is happening without being judged, lectured or told how lucky they are.

Its advice to adults is simple: when a young person starts talking, stop and listen.

Free counselling through Gumboot Friday is open to young people under 25. A separate I Am Hope page says young people can pick their preferred counsellor from a team of professionals.

That page describes the sessions as being with a registered mental health professional, with no waiting list or referral. It gives the age range for Gumboot Friday counselling as 5 to 25 across Aotearoa.

Sessions are booked on the Gumboot Friday website, gumbootfriday.org.nz.

I Am Hope also advises anyone who needs urgent medical attention, for themselves or someone they know, to call 111.