"You need to say what you feel to someone - angry, depressed, sad, useless or whatever - otherwise you'll never move on"

True. Many unemployed people, especially when they first lose their jobs, feel extreme anger with what has happened to them, sometimes guilt because they imagine it's their fault and just can't get over it. This stops them doing much about getting another job and makes it more likely they'll be unemployed for a long time.

Then the problem gets worse - long-term unemployed people often feel worthless, useless, and fear they will never work again.

One way to deal with this is to talk about it to a sympathetic person. Everybody doesn't find it easy to talk to their family - part of the problem is you feel guilty for "letting them down" or a failure for not being able to meet all their needs. They may even be angry with you themselves.

Try to find someone who'll listen without judging you, just let you talk and get it off your chest. It may be a trained counsellor who doesn't charge a fee to unemployed people, or it may be a minister or priest of a church, a voluntary worker, or a good friend or relative. Talking it out can be a relief, can help you understand yourself better, and can let you move on to do something positive and practical instead. Bottling it up can paralyse you.

Some unemployed people find it helpful to get together as a group and listen to one another. If there isn't a self-help group where you live, could you perhaps start one up? You need to be careful that that doesn't just make everyone feel more miserable but it can help a lot to realise you're not the only one. Make sure everyone is given a clear space to talk in, and then make sure you all get down to discussing how to help one another do something active and positive to overcome the problem of unemployment together.