The best way to help is often just to listen | Sophie Andrews

A 24-hour helpline in the UK known as Samaritans helped Sophie Andrews become a survivor of abuse rather than a victim. Now she's paying the favor back as the founder of The Silver Line, a helpline that supports lonely and isolated older people. In a powerful, personal talk, she shares why the simple act of listening (instead of giving advice) is often the best way to help someone in need.

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32 Comments on The best way to help is often just to listen | Sophie Andrews

    • You’ve deflowered the virgin, and now must marry it. Word travels fast, and great shame will fall upon the family. If you refuse, honour killing will result. No man of dignity will wife up your sloppy seconds. He will always question whether any future offspring will be his own seed. This should not be taken lightly.

  1. This woman needs to hold her head up! She has done more with this talk alone than most do in a lifetime.
    We have all done wrong but she is not that person anymore, nor am I.
    Be proud, be strong and continue to lead those that will listen.

  2. A catcher is someone extremely important. He/she doesn’t have to say much, but just by listening, they can change your life completely. I was lucky to have the right people at the exact time I needed to be saved. It has changed my views, and helped me move on. Good luck, and thanks for the hard work! I hope the call line can help as many as possible.

  3. Is there a similar program in the U.S.A.? If so, do you know what it’s called? The Silver Line sounds like a dream come true.

  4. “Loneliness does not come from having no people about one, but from being unable to communicate the things that seem important to oneself.”
    ~ Carl Jung

    • seems like not having people about one would ensure you can’t communicate what is important to you so surely its both

  5. How can you understand another person unless you listen about what he is trying to tell you? We are vailed in our opinions & prejudices already. It is hard enough just to undestand another person’s point of view.

    The fact that a person is from an earyier generation may isolate them.They may have had expierances a younger person may find hard to identify with.

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