The Uneducated PT Podcast - Ep. 144 Paul Tracey Youth Worker - No Such Thing As Normal.

Episode Date: March 20, 2026

In this ep we speak to Paul Tracey, youth worker in Bray on his work with the community.

Yeah, so my name is Paul Tracy. I am a youth worker in Bray. I've worked in the Valley Volta Marry of Bray for just over 21 years. When COVID hit, I decided to upscale and trying to become a counsellor and psychotherapist. So I do a little bit of that now in private practice as well. I guess my history is I would have started helping out in new clubs in when I was about 15, 16 and some of projects like that, just in a voluntary capacity. I didn't know what I wanted to do when I left school. I knew I wanted to work with young people, but I knew it wasn't in the role of a team. teacher. It was too authoritarian, if that makes sense. There was a youth work was only kind of kicking off and so I didn't know what I want to do. I went to college, arts, that's where you were told to go if you didn't know what you wanted to do back in school and ended up dropping out fairly rapidly and worked in Tesco for a while and eventually got a first job as a special

age assistant and then I worked as a youth worker, Paratine worker in Bray and Dunleary and eventually got a call to apply for a role in the body waltrum area in winter 2004 and I've been there ever since I was 24 when I started and if you had to tell me that I'd still be there 21 years later I'd have I'd have said no way but um it's it's been good to me I've been good to it and um yeah so that's that's where I am at the moment tell me about that role in that community center and the kind of what like what goes on on the on the daily occurrence and yeah so it's it's a you project it's very informed by young people there's no point in us putting on things that young people that want their needs so it's kind of needs assessed our

aim is to kind of meet the needs of young people in the area so whether that be drop-ins whether that be incorporating a little bit of sport weekly groups if people need one-to-one support and all that kind of stuff is there we always encourage members you know that when they get to 18 daily school sometimes people think that's the end of me in that you project so a big part of the work recently has been you know if you need anything come back if you need a CV made if you need to be guided anywhere if you need to be signposted towards supports that you may need in your life and to drop back in that once you're part of the crew up there, you're part of the family

and your part of the furniture and it'll always be your space so that's kind of what I kind of say to people. What are some of the challenges you've seen over the years that you are facing and that that come through the door of that community centre? It's not the job I walked into. I think when I walked into it was kind of an element of keeping young people off the streets and keeping them busy and I think as you get to know people and families and you know organisations in the area has become a little bit different in recent years the mental health stuff is definitely a big thing I think there's been improvements made of course there has across the country just been campaigns to to get people to open up and talk more and it's definitely

happen a little but we're not there yet and I think young people's coping strategies as well and can be hard because when your brain is still grown and you're finding your feet and finding who you are in the world and you have these challenges and you don't know how to cope with them you know you see a lot of anger under anger generally is sadness a lot of the time but um definitely young people's coping strategies with anger they don't know how to express it a lot of times so it might be punching a punch in a wardrobe punching somebody else have but in a wall or substance use so for me it's not all the time it's not young people using drugs it's why young people are using drugs and a lot of the time it's to cope which must be a very hard place

to be. So it's trying to have conversations with young people that show you care. I think the impact you can have with somebody of just having a conversation. If I say to you on a Monday after weekend Carl, house school this morning, what do you get up to the weekend? And for a young person to feel that they're generally cared about and wanted and they're respected and they're talked to rather being talked at, which a lot of people, you know, and a lot of structures and even historically young people were talked at, not talk to. So I think just the empathy of being able to walk with them and talk to their matter

and talk at them and do your best for them and show them their wanted and show them their value and show them to have a space. For me, that's quite powerful. I think in, and it's the same with the counselling work for me from what I've experienced. I think the relationship that you can develop with people.

It goes a long way. Yeah, I think kids are ensured if they know whether you actually care or not by the conversations that you have with them. Is there anything that you've seen even over the last year or two in the bright community that needs improvements for young people who obviously are suffering with mental health? Obviously you're seeing people on a daily basis. What are some of the other challenges that you see that?

Obviously we can talk about it from a personal conversation that you're having that can make a difference to kids, but maybe from a structural point, what are we lacking for young kids that seem to be struggling with their mental health? I think it's all well and good sign to open up, and I think there can be a risk for young people in that, because if you open up, what's the next step?

And the next step can be scary, you know, when you have your structures and your system around you, and I've come to hate the word normal, because everybody's normal is different. The word normal for me is redundant, but if you're brave enough to speak out that you need help, there's an anxiety of well what does that look like? What happens if I go somewhere and I don't click with that person?

What happens if the doctor sends me to somewhere and I don't click with that person. I have to go somewhere else. Trust I think is a big thing and it can be hard for a young person as I say who's still growing and developing to be kind of pushed different places and not really sure where they're going or why. So I think just having the conversations, I think having more awareness in organizations, sometimes for young people, say if you play football, they're not just going to whatever club,

play football. It's an outlet. It's to connect with people. It's to interact. It's to have fun. It's to exercise. So I think we need to realize that what young people are doing are their hobbies. It might not just be for that reason. It might not speak to play football or to go boxing. It might be a boxing could be an outlet to get the anger out of your body by punching a punch in a punch bag as opposed to punching a wall. So there's a lot of just understanding that every organization can have a very important role with young people by just checking in and saying, how are you? And that to me is so, so, and I've seen it work,

I've seen, you always ask us how school on Monday? I'm like, yeah. And at least there's something else, at least, how's the weekend, or how's life, did you have a match? What did you do at the weekend? We out with the lads, where'd you go? We out with the girls, whatever it was.

But it just can lead to so many positive conversations. And in a youth work perspective, you know, you work is supposed to be structured, and it is. But some of the deepest conversations you can have is when you're playing a game with who. or playing PlayStation when no one has to have eye contact

with you. Do you think that's important for boys? Yeah, and I think I keep going back to a relationship but, you know, I've been lucky some groups you connect with more than others and, you know, you can have a conversation

I was doing an exercise yesterday with a group and everybody had the same color pan, the same size piece of paper and some of the questions always, when was the last time you're really happy? And everyone throws in their answer and I read them out. When was the last time you're really sad?

When was the last time you're really angry? And it builds a picture that I'm not the only one here that's feeling this way. And it's mad. I've done that exercise so many times over the past year. If you've a group of 10,

generally at least seven, eight out of 10 will say they've been sad in the past week or two. But they're still coming and that mask goes on, I'm fine, I'm great, I'm happy, I'm smiley,

where they're not. There's stuff going on. Might not be massive stuff, but to them, it's massive stuff because it's there-lived reality and it's just breaking down those barriers and realizing that

it doesn't always have to be psychologists, psychiatrists, counselling it can just be a little bit of love and an arm around somebody's shoulder saying how are you, mate, you okay? Yeah, I think that's, they're the things that aren't emphasised enough or put on the pedestal that they probably deserve.

When you were speaking there, I was only thinking back to my own childhood whereas I still, now in my 30s have fond memories of like a coach who, even if we lost a game, 10-0, he'd come over and give you the biggest high-five, and it's like them little thing, them little memories are just imprinted in your brain even as an adult.

And for some young people when your life is chaotic to get out of bed and turn up on a Sunday morning or if your girls going to your dance class or whatever it is or your Irish dancing, whatever, that in itself is an achievement. And it's prides in every little achievement

that every young person has and saying, you know what, no matter what's going on, you're doing okay, you're doing your best. And sometimes that's the best that they can do. And a little pat in the back every now and then saying, you know what? You're trying hard. What have you learned about human behaviour since your studies? Well, that's the word normal.

That's the biggest thing. One of the biggest things I've taken. I hate the word normal now because you're normal, my normal, Andrew behind the camera, it's normal. Everybody's normal is different and that's okay. So not to judge people or to tell people they should or shouldn't do something or be a certain way because what right has anybody got to do that when everybody's reality and everybody's day to day is different.

So I think that's a big piece of learning. And to understand that, understanding an empathy are a massive thing that I think goes missing a lot in society to realize that yeah, everyone's different, everyone has their own challenges. A lot of people go to work and put that fake smile on. And it's hard and you go home at night and maybe life's great but maybe you cry yourself to sleep.

And there's so many different walks of life out there and it's just shown a little bit of understanding to everybody out there. How do you think we become, this is just the last question and then we'll talk about the event real quick, but how do you think we become a society that's more understanding

or has more empathy around people being a unique way? It's so hard. And at our event coming up that you're running currently put so much work into it. I think that's something that I'm looking forward to hearing other people's views on because I don't think any of what we've talked

about or any of any of the other guys and girls that we're in today. I don't think we have answers. But I think if we can all get together and explore and maybe come up with ideas. Yeah. I think that in itself is a massive thing. Yeah. Yeah. I think that's something that I've taken is not trying to have any answers, but have curiosity.

Yeah. Curiosity is so healthy and to be able to explore. Yeah. So I think that's exciting. And you've so many people in the same wavelength and are so passionate about, about, Obviously, mental health young people, but I think mental health in general. And I think getting together with like-minded people, I think, is so powerful.