A Co Galway rape helpline was contacted by more than 600 people last year, an increase of 20 per cent, according to its annual report.
The Galway Rape Crisis Centres said the rise in the numbers seeking counselling services came at a time when both Government and private funding had fallen.
The organisation's executive director Aoibheann McCann said more than 60 per cent of the calls to the centre were from survivors of child sexual abuse, with a significant number aged between 50 and 59 years.
"People are more aware now that rape is a crime. And they hear people talking about it more on the radio, people saying counselling helped them so they contact us," she said.
Ms McCann also said the recession had impacted on people's ability to cope and that a report on sexual abuse and violence in Ireland had found that "one in four people live with some form of abuse".
"Another crisis comes along, a death or losing their job and people's coping skills are strained," she added.
The percentage of men contacting the service rose from 12 per cent to 14 per cent while 40 per cent of victims in recent assaults were teenagers.
The centre was forced to reduce its expenditure by over €80,000 due to cuts in Government funding and a corresponding drop in fundraising.
State funding for the centre has been cut by 10 per cent over the last three years, Ms McCann said, and its full-time staff had fallen by three.
A backlog has since developed for those seeking counselling services with 33 people on waiting lists this week.
"We tried to make cutbacks that would lessen the impact on clients including pay cuts and non-replacement of staff but ultimately clients were hit with less counselling available," Ms McCann said.