Parents play a vital role in keeping anxiety to a minimum during exam times, according to St Patrick's Mental Health Services.

According to Colman Noctor, adolescent psychotherapist with St Patrick's said Leaving Cert anxiety, for some students, can be a series of worries wrapped up into and channelled through this one event.

"These young people are on the cusp of adulthood, they have just completed the graduation ceremonies and the goodbyes to their school and institutions where they've been for the whole of their adolescence. Now the big bad world of adulthood awaits and this often holds as much trepidation as excitement even to the most apparently confident young person."

With the Leaving Cert starting today, parents are advised to:

* Always remember to support the effort. At this stage there is little value in going over what the young person could have done or discussing the option to repeat. Acknowledge and focus on the work that has been done and provide reassurance.

* Be careful to get the balance right between acknowledging the momentous occasion that these exams are for the young person without getting caught up in the hysteria or histrionics. Admit that it's a big deal but one that you believe that they are able for.

* Reassure the young person at this stage that the work they have done will emerge on the day. Some people will enter panic mode where the belief that all of the things they have learned have vanished from their memory. The more relaxed they are the better the chance they have to remember.

* Reassure the young person that the examiner wants to find out what they do know as opposed to what they don't know. Young people can feel overwhelmed and anxiety tends to focus the mind on the gaps as opposed to the work completed.

* Remind the young person that after this evening anxiety will reduce. Once the first one is over the natural familiarity with the process will serve to reduce the panic levels for the remainder of the exams

* Remind the Young Person that 'this will pass'.

Paul Gilligan, CEO at St. Patrick's said: "It is vital that we keep the Leaving Cert in perspective. Stress and hopelessness are normal during exam times but our job as parents is to protect our young people by supporting them, building their confidence and self esteem and by letting them know that the exams are not the ‘be all and end all'."

"The Leaving Certificate should not be allowed to be the catalyst for the development of what could become a long term mental health challenge. Emerging from the exam processes with their emotions and psychological well-being intact should be our aim and core expectation."