Calling 988 Can Save Your Life

The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline provides free and confidential support for people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress. Anyone who needs emotional support can call, text, or online chat with a compassionate expert 24 hours a day.

The 988 Lifeline is a priceless resource for people experiencing a mental health crisis. The people answering the calls, texts, or chats provide immediate counseling and emotional support to anyone who may need it.

Friends and loved ones can also call 988 for help if someone they know is struggling through a mental health crisis.

It’s also OK to reach out for mental health help, whether you’re thinking about suicide or not. No matter what mental health challenges you’re facing, if you need someone to talk to for emotional support, the nationwide 988 Lifeline is available 24/7.

Who Should Call 988?

People call 988 to talk about all kinds of troubling thoughts, feelings and experiences. Besides thoughts of suicide, people call about substance misuse, financial worries, relationship difficulties, identity issues, abuse, depression and other mental health concerns.

How Does the 988 Lifeline Work?

People can choose to call, text or chat online with a compassionate counselor.

Call 988: You will hear a greeting message and music while your call is routed to a local crisis center within the Lifeline network.

Text 988: You will first complete a short survey telling the crisis counselor about your situation. Then, a trained crisis counselor will respond to your text.

Chat 988: You will first complete a short survey telling the crisis counselor about your situation. Then you will see a wait time message until you are connected.

Whether you call, text or chat, the 988 Lifeline crisis counselor will listen to you, discuss what you are experiencing and interact with you to understand how the problem is affecting you. They will provide support, share helpful resources, and connect you with local healthcare providers, therapists, or groups who can provide further support.

Additional Ways to talk to someone now include:

• Línea 988 de Prevención del Suicidio y Crisis (Spanish)
• 988 Lifeline Options For Deaf + Hard of Hearing
• Disaster Distress Helpline
• Veterans Crisis Line

We Can All Help Prevent Suicide

Knowing the risk factors and warning signs is the first step toward preventing suicide. Some particular behaviors can signal that someone may be struggling with a mental health issue, especially if the behavior is new or has recently increased.

Risk factors, in no particular order, that make it more likely that someone will consider, attempt or die by suicide include:

• Mental health disorders (mood disorders, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, certain personality disorders, etc.)
• Substance use disorder
• History of trauma or abuse
• Major physical illness
• Previous suicide attempt
• Family history of suicide
• Job or financial loss
• Relationship trauma
• Feeling isolated

Warning signs are clear indications that someone is at risk. These signs include talking about planning suicide or self harm, believing that nothing matters and that things will not improve, extreme social isolation, believing that the friends/family would be better off without them, suddenly telling people goodbye and giving away possessions, taking unusual risks, expressing extreme emotions or mood swings.

If you recognize any of those signs in yourself or a loved one, call 988 immediately to speak with someone who can help.

Concerned about yourself or a loved one? Call 988 for emergency mental crisis support. Call 911 in the event of a physical emergency. Talk to your primary care provider about any medical condition that is causing you to feel depressed. Find a provider today.