Interview with Roz from the Irish Cancer Society's counselling service

• How does remote counselling work exactly?

Most callers get in touch first by ringing our Support Line 1800 200 700 or contacting one of our cancer nurses at our 13 Daffodil Centres nationwide. The person can avail of either having their sessions with their local Cancer Support Centre (supported by Irish Cancer Society funding for counselling) or with the Irish Cancer Society Remote Counselling Service. The nurse will send a referral form to our counselling service who will refer appropriately. A person can undertake up to 6 sessions with us. We can additionally refer them to speak to a clinical psychologist if this is warranted.

• Who is remote counselling for?

Remote counselling is for primarily for cancer patients, their family members and carers. Children can also avail of the service. Many people feel remote counselling is only for those have just been diagnosed, to help them through this period of adjustment, but this is not the case. For many people, it can be when their treatment is finishing up, it can be post treatment or it can be a year or two down the line when there are worries or fears of a reoccurrence. Many family members and carers may wish to access the service as they deal with fatigue and isolation.

• How can remote counselling help a person?

Remote counselling will help create a supportive relationship with a professional outside their own family and friends. The counsellor will ask what is going on and how they can look to help. It gives the client the time to talk about what’s happening for them, they can discuss their fears and their worries, feel heard and listened to with no judgement. Each person is different. If a person is feeling angry or afraid, the counsellor will be there to allow them to express and acknowledge this and help normalise what they are experiencing. The counsellor will help the client find ways to reduce distress and better adapt, whether this be teaching new skills like short meditations or looking at the situation from another perspective. Some people may only wish to undertake 2 or 3 sessions, others may need more, each person’s worry is different.

• What do you find are some of the things that people are confused by or maybe unsure about with counselling?

I think that many people feel, “Oh there is no point in talking about this with someone I don’t know, what good will talking do?” That is a big belief. However, bottling away those feelings or worries won’t help. Another belief is that counselling is only for people who have something in particular they want fixed, or that it is a sign of weakness if they cannot resolve a worry themselves. Many feel that the counsellor will judge them for what they say. Of course this is not the case. Counselling is a support like anything else, it helps to look at what is going on in our minds and release it, look at some of those worries and beliefs and see if they are really true. Many people find talking over the phone can help, people are met in their own space and feel more at ease. Everything discussed during remote counselling is entirely confidential, there is no recording and anything said stays with the counsellor unless in exceptional situations where there is a safety issue present.

• Have you noticed any difference in the counselling service since Covid-19 began? Are more people calling?

Without a doubt, Covid-19 has had an extremely negative effect on those using the remote counselling service. Whether a person is newly diagnosed or the cancer is already there, the stress is higher than usual. Before the concern for many was, how will I get through treatment? Now it is, how will I get through treatment safely? Many people also have questions about the vaccine and their treatment. People’s anxiety levels around cancer treatment were high to begin with, but now they are much higher. Many are at home isolated and fearful and many felt they were pushed to their limit. The remote counselling service has been incredibly beneficial in this regard.