ALMOST 500 children in Northern Ireland have received counselling for anxiety in the last two years from Childline, the NSPCC has said.
The Childline service delivered 258 counselling sessions to children suffering from anxiety in 2016/17, up from 209 the previous year.
The NSPCC has warned that the true number could be higher with hundreds of young people not telling the service from where they have contacted counsellors.
Across the UK, Childline carried out almost 14,000 counselling sessions - the equivalent of 38 every day to anxious children and teenagers.
In more than 3,000 of those, the young people talked about having panic attacks as a result of anxiety levels. In some cases, they talked about turning to self-harm.
The NSPCC said the figures highlighted the importance of children being able to have open conversations about their feelings with a parent or trusted adult.
However, some who experienced persistent or worsening symptoms told Childline they did not fit the criteria for mental health support, or had been left on waiting lists for months.
Neil Anderson, head of NSPCC Northern Ireland, said: "Anxiety is a growing problem in young people’s lives today, and it is not going away. We all need to help children and teenagers find ways to cope with their anxious feelings and not dismiss them as an overreaction.
"One of the most important ways to help those that are struggling is to make sure they know they always have someone to talk to and they never have to suffer alone, which is why Childline is so vital."
