Ask Sam letter

Hi there,

You can talk to Childline about anything at all and our counsellors will listen without judging you. It's important that you feel able to share whatever you want - it can be big, small, good or bad. We are here to listen and to support you, no matter what's going on.

Lots of people worry that they can only talk to Childline about abuse or suicide. This isn't true,  you can talk to us about anything at all! Our counsellors  hear a lot of young people tell them that they’ve  been worried about talking to them because they didn't feel their problem was ‘big enough’.

But if there’s  something  on your mind enough to want to come and share it, then it is a big enough problem. No matter what it is, if it's important to you then it's important to us as well.

It can be tempting to look at some of the other problems people are going through when reading my letters or posts on the message boards, and then to compare their problem to yours. But you can't really compare two people's problems and say which is worse or better. Everyone is affected in different ways and has different ways of coping.

We’re here for you, no matter what - and you can talk to us in a way you feel comfortable.  If you’d prefer to talk online you can connect for a 1-2-1 chat or send an email. Or if you'd rather use the phone it's free to call us on 0800 11 11. That's free from all phones and shouldn't show up on your phone bill. Remember to clear the recent call list on your phone if you want to keep your call to us hidden.

I hope this has helped you and encouraged you to get in touch, no matter what you have to say.

Thanks for your letter, take care.

Sam