KOPFHOCH – Help for young people.

Back in 2019, we presented the online and telephone counseling service for children and young people Kopfhoch.de on RegensburgNow.de. Now that stress has increased due to coronavirus and the war in Ukraine, we would like to present this great project again. By calling 0800-5458668, a team of around 40 volunteers and two full-time specialists offer anonymous, free and professional help and advice for children and young people up to the age of 21 every day. You can write online around the clock and get an answer within 24 hours.
Not only that, Kopfhoch.de also has a forum and even offers advice in one-to-one chats. No matter what the issue is, problems in the family, school/work or training, eating disorders, addiction, crises – Kopfhoch.de helps.
Whether it’s a minor problem or a real crisis: the staff at Kopfhoch.de are there and also have contact to all counseling centers in the Upper Palatinate and can therefore also competently refer children and young people. By the way, Kopfhoch.de is a project of the Deutscher Kinderschutzbund Kreisverband Regensburg e.V. in cooperation with the Mehrgenerationenhaus/Elternschule Amberg e.V. A great project! Last year, Kopfhoch.de won the Versicherungskammer Foundation’s Volunteer Award. More than deserved!

We asked the Kopfhoch team a few questions.

Regensburgnow.de: Please briefly introduce the Kopfhoch.de project.
Kopfhoch.de: The project is about providing children and young people in all kinds of difficult situations with low-threshold, free and anonymous direct help in the form of advice. We want to create a contact point that is directly accessible outside of the family and school and open to all kinds of concerns and problems.

How long has Kopfhoch been around?
Kopfhoch has had its roots, so to speak, since 2004; the telephone counseling service originally emerged from the Kinder- und Jugendnotruf in Amberg. The online counseling service, Kopfhoch.de, was then created in Regensburg in 2009. Kopfhoch has existed in its current form since April 2015, i.e. the forum and online advice service at Kopfhoch.de and the free telephone advice service on 0800 545 8668. We are also active on social media, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.

Please briefly describe your work?
First and foremost, it is our job to offer young people a sympathetic ear and a safe space for their concerns. We work according to the principle of “helping people to help themselves” – in other words, we provide support, pass on information and pass on the skills they need to deal with the problem themselves. We try to provide guidance on how to deal with difficult situations, solve them and prevent them in the future. We also use our social media channels to provide information on all kinds of topics that concern children and young people. On Instagram (@_kopfhoch_), for example, our team provides the “tip of the week” to make everyday life easier and information, quizzes and expert interviews on monthly changing topics.

Who is part of the Kopfhoch team?
In addition to the project manager Anna Wachter (Dipl. Psych.) and Julia Mathes (educational scientist, M.A.), we have full-time supervisors and support for our public relations work. Then, of course, there is our team of counselors: there are currently around 40 volunteers, all specialists in the fields of psychology and education, who work with us to counsel children and young people alongside their studies or professional activities.

The Kopfhoch.de team also remains anonymous

On your homepage it says “if you don’t know what to do…”, “if you are sad…”, “if you feel lonely…” and “if it is difficult…”. – You help. What problems do children and young people approach you with?
It can really be anything that kids and teenagers are worried about! We often help with everyday problems that everyone is familiar with, such as lovesickness, stress with parents or at school or dissatisfaction and insecurity with oneself. However, it’s also not uncommon for someone with less everyday problems to contact us.
We are also here to help with depression, self-harm and suicidal thoughts, bullying, abuse or eating disorders.

At what times can you be reached?
Online counseling is available at any time. On Kopfhoch.de, you can submit a request for advice around the clock and receive a response from our advisors within 24 hours at the latest. Direct counseling by phone is available daily, including weekends and public holidays, between 6.00 am and 10.00 pm.

Many thanks for this fantastic work!

We also think the Kopfhoch playlist on Spotify is great.
The income generated by the title track “Bad Habits” goes to Kopfhoch.de

It certainly makes sense to pass the phone number on to many children and young people. Even if they don’t need the phone number,
perhaps they know someone who needs help.
In any case, we hope that we have been able to contribute a little to spreading the word about this wonderful project.

Here again the contact details of Kopfhoch:

(anonymous & free of charge)

You can also find lots of tips and information on the website www.kopfhoch.de.

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