People in crisis situations: “You can see people’s insecurity”
“The topics change at Christmas,” says Josef Demitsch, head of outpatient crisis intervention in Salzburg.
SALZBURG. The knocking is soft and hesitant before people open the door to the treatment rooms of the Salzburg outpatient intervention for the first time. The best thing about his job, says Josef Demitsch, head of outpatient crisis intervention in Salzburg, is when this knocking after sessions gets louder and more self-confident and at the end visitors say: “It makes sense.”
Free and anonymous help
The outpatient crisis intervention is free and anonymous to all people who are simply reminded – “”. The visitors are diverse: some find it all too much, some suffer from chronic mental illnesses and some need someone to talk to in the event of a severe blow to fate or relationship problems.
In outpatient crisis intervention, the cause of the crisis is determined. Therapists supervise, advise and accompany. Where appropriate, people are directed to the right place for them.
topics change
According to Demitsch, the number of people seeking crisis intervention does not increase noticeably at Christmas. However, the themes change during the holidays: family, loneliness and relationships become more important. “For some of those affected, the discrepancy between their own reality and the illusion that is created is so great that it also becomes problematic,” says Demitsch.
about crises
In general, the number of visitors to the crisis intervention is increasing year by year. You can feel the insecurity of the people due to the crises. “The economic problems, the price increases. You hear again and again that there is a certain lack of prospects,” says Demitsch.
“One senses the insecurity of the people through these mutually dependent crises.”
-Josef Demitsch
For someone who is mentally unstable, the current situation is much more difficult to endure. In general, Demitsch notes that the case histories are becoming more and more complex. More appointments than before are necessary.
Talking is golden
Demitsch appeals both to people who are about to experience a psychosocial crisis and to their relatives: “Everyone feels easier when you talk about it.” Psychosocial crises or mental illnesses are often caused by social withdrawal. “We, as absolutely social beings, are dependent on social contacts in every respect,” says the head of the outpatient crisis intervention.
Demitsch has been working in this area for 25 years. A lot has changed for the better, but some things are still in deficit. In recent times, according to Demitsch, more and more young people are attending outpatient crisis intervention. There are far too few offers in Salzburg, especially for children and young people. “More child psychiatrists, child and youth psychiatrists in private practice and more child and youth therapists. That would be my wish for Santa,” says Demitsch.
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