What Happens When You Call The Suicide Hotline?
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline was launched in 2005 but was revamped in July 2022 to the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Now it’s easier to remember the number to the lifeline- you simply dial 988 on your phone or text 741741. Suicide prevention is more important than ever due to an increase in suicide rates. According to the CDC, Almost 50,000 people in the United States died by suicide in 2022. This was a 2.6% increase from 2021. “The greatest increase was seen among adults aged 65 and older, which was up 8.1% from 2021, and the second highest increase was in those aged 45 to 64, with a 6.6% rise.” There has been an increase in all genders and most racial and ethnic groups. If you have suicidal thoughts like: you no longer want to live, you would be better off dead or you plan ways to die, the suicide hotline may be a good resource for you. Calling 911 or going directly to your local emergency room is an option that is always available to you. Continue reading this blog to learn about what happens when you call or text the suicide hotline.
Is It OK To Call The Suicide Hotline?
Yes! It is more than ok to call or text the suicide hotline. The suicide hotline exists to provide free help and support to you. Asking for help is a sign of strength rather than a sign of weakness. Reaching out to the suicide hotline can save your life!
Suicide Warning Signs
One of the main warning signs of suicide is suicidal thoughts. Suicidal thoughts are defined as thoughts about ending your own life. Sometimes you might feel overwhelmed by suicidal thoughts while other times these thoughts may feel soothing or comforting. Regardless of how these thoughts make you feel, suicidal thoughts are serious and should never be ignored.
Sometimes, you might feel overwhelmed by difficult emotions like sadness, anger, or hopelessness. You might start to think that life is too hard and that things will never get better. These negative thoughts can result in a desire to escape the pain by considering suicide.
There are many different forms and examples of suicidal thoughts including but not limited to:
Thinking about death: You think about dying or imagine what it would be like to not exist anymore. You also might wish you never were born.
Feeling hopeless: You believe that there's no way your problems will ever improve and that life will always be this hard.
Thinking you’re a burden: You believe that their loved ones would be better off without them.
Planning ways to end your life: You think about ways you would end your life and when.
It's important to take all suicidal thoughts or suicide warning signs seriously. Suicidal thoughts are a sign that you are struggling and need more support. There are people who care and want to provide support, whether it's through talking, therapy, or other resources. If you have plans and/or have started taking actions towards ending your life, it is time to contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, call 911 or go to your local emergency room.
How Does The Suicide Hotline Work?
Hotlines are numbers you can text or call when you need someone to talk to. They are different than normal numbers because the people on the other end are trained to help with certain things, like suicidal thoughts. According to their website, they have a specific hotlines for Veterans, translators for up to 240 languages and counselors specifically trained to support LGBTQ+ individuals.
Here's what happens when you call the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline:
Dial 988: You start by dialing the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline number: 988.
Talk to a Crisis Counselor: A crisis counselor will answer who is there to listen and help. Their job is to not judge or tell you what to do. You can tell them whatever is on your mind and they won’t interrupt!
Share Your Thoughts and Feelings: You can talk about your thoughts, feelings, or problems. This is a place you can be honest about what is going on in your life.
Get Support: The crisis counselor will offer support and resources for what you could do to feel better and help you find ways to cope. They will assess for your safety because they want to make sure you are not going to hurt yourself.
It’s Confidential: What you talk about with the crisis counselor is usually kept private. The only time they will tell anyone else about your conversation is if they are worried about your safety and need to get you help.
Hang Up When You're Ready: You can hang up and end the call whenever you want. You can talk for as short or as long as you like! The hotline is open 24/7 so in the middle of the night if you are feeling alone, you can reach out and seek support. The hotline is there for you, no matter what time of the day or night.
Is Suicide & Crisis Lifeline Confidential?
Yes, the suicide prevention hotline is confidential. When you call or text them, your conversation is completely private. They will not tell anyone else what you say unless they are concerned about your safety. If a crisis counselor thinks you might be in danger and need help, they might need to get you the support you need. However, in most cases, what you talk about is a secret. The important thing is to reach out if you need someone to talk to – it’s their job to help!
What is 741741?
Texting 741741 connects you with the Crisis Text Line which is a free, 24/7 crisis intervention service. If you text ‘HOME’ (or any word) to this number, a trained crisis counselor will provide you with help, support and resources. The text line is a good option if you prefer to text versus talk over the phone and need to talk about your feelings or what is going on in your life.
What Happens When You Text 741741?
Instead of searching online to find what happens when you reach out to the Crisis Text Line, I decided to find out myself. Below is a real conversion I had with the Crisis Text Line with timestamps.
5:08pm: HOME (Sarah)
5:08pm: Hi, this is Crisis Text Line. You’re not alone. By texting further with us, you agree to your Terms: https://www.crisistextline.org/privacy/. Si hablas espanol y quieres hablor con una persona voluntaria entrenada envia la palabra ESPANOL via mensaje de texto ahora. We can’t receive msgs > 160 characters. (Crisis Text Line)
5:08pm: Resources while we connect you: https://www.crisistextline.org/resources/. (STOP to cancel convo). What’s your crisis? (Crisis Text Line)
5:08pm: I don’t feel good (Sarah)
5:08pm: Thanks for sharing. It might take a moment to assign you someone. (Crisis Text Line)
5:08pm: Hello, (Crisis Text Line)
5:09pm: Hi, I feel very depressed (Sarah)
5:09pm: My name is *** and I’m here to listen. I’m hearing you aren’t feeling well. Would you mind telling me more about what’s going on? (Crisis Text Line)
5:10pm: I feel overwhelmed and sad (Sarah)
5:11pm: Reaching out today was a great first step. I know it takes courage and for that I appreciate you. (Crisis Text Line)
5:11pm: Do you have suggestions of what I should do to feel better? (Sarah)
5:13pm: I have several resources that I would be happy to share with you. First I would like to know a bit more about what’s going on. How long have you been having these feelings? (Crisis Text Line)
5:13pm: About a week (Sarah)
5:15pm: Did something change in the past week that you think brought these feelings on? (Crisis Text Line)
5:15pm: Not really. Maybe stress at work (Sarah)
5:16pm: Work can often times cause a lot of unwanted stress. What has been going on at work to make you feel stressed? (Crisis Text Line)
5:17pm: I’m worried I might get fired (Sarah)
5:17pm: What makes you say that? (Crisis Text Line)
5:18pm: My boss put me on a performance improvement plan (Sarah)
5:19pm: It sounds like your boss is trying to work with you to make improvements. Do you agree with what your boss says or do you feel like they are unrealistic? (Crisis Text Line)
5:20pm: I don’t know, I’m just stressed. I can’t lose my job. (Sarah)
5:21pm: It is completely understandable that this would cause so much stress. I would like to monitor your safety. Have you had thoughts of suicide during all of this. (Crisis Text Line)
5:22pm: No. I just want some ways to cope. (Sarah)
5:25pm: I’m glad to know you’re safe. I have several resources i can share regarding coping mechanisms. Would you like me to share some with you? (Crisis Text Line)
5:25pm: Yes (Sarah)
5:26pm: Of course. Just give me a minute (Crisis Text Line)
5:29pm: https://dialecticalbehaviortherapy.com (Crisis Text Line)
5:29pm: https://drive.google.com/file/d/17bNH6zm5vub-Euj5v3QKkgoQmqrSZPbP/view (Crisis Text Line)
5:30pm: Thanks, do I just look at this website? (Sarah)
5:30pm: Yes, I sent two different links. (Crisis Text Line)
5:30pm: Ok, thanks. If I feel bad again, can I text later? (Sarah)
5:32pm: Of course! We are available 24/7. I will close out this conversation when we are done but you can reach out the same way you did today. (Crisis Text Line)
5:33pm: Also, do I have to be suicidal to text? (Sarah)
5:33pm: Absolutely not. We deal with any kind of crisis you might have but we always risk assess for safety. (Crisis Text Line)
5:33pm: Oh okay. Thank you. (Sarah)
5:33pm: DELETE
5:33pm: The request to remove your data has been received. If you text us again, you will have to request that your data is deleted again. (Crisis Text Line)
5:33pm: Please answer a few questions about your experience so we can better help others? Thank you. (Crisis Text Line)
5:34pm: Thanks for texting Crisis Text Line. The Crisis Counselor has closed the conversation. You matter. (Crisis Text Line)
My Experience as a Therapist Texting the Crisis Text Line:
Pros:
According to the privacy policies that are sent to you at the beginning of the conversation, “You may ask us to delete all of your data (including your conversation records and contact information) by texting or messaging the word “DELETE” to us.”
They have services for Spanish speaking individuals.
They immediately send you a very comprehensive list of free resources (I attached them above!)
I thought the representative who helped me responded very fast, was polite and did not judge me for reaching out.
As much as it didn't feel good be asked about safety, I think it’s important that the crisis counselors always has to assess for safety concerns.
I like that you can contact the crisis line even if you are not suicidal.
Cons:
The crisis counselor felt somewhat robotic to me.
I don’t know if this is a pro or a con, but it felt like I had to lead the conversation, which could be overwhelming if I was really suicidal or depressed.
I didn't like that the crisis text counselor wanted to know what was going on with me before they gave me tools because the tools were very generic. If they were going to ask me what was going on in my life, the tools should have been specific to my situation.
The websites that the counselor sent to me for resources would have been difficult for me to do on my own. It would have been helpful if the counselor offered to explain a few of the tools instead of giving me over 72 pages of resources to figure out myself.
Therapy for Suicidal Thoughts
If you are experiencing suicidal ideation, you may benefit from therapy for suicidal thoughts. This is particularly important if you have chronic or ongoing suicidal thoughts that do not seem to go away. Therapists that are trained in suicide can help you recognize your triggers such as when, where, how and why you typically start to think about dying. In therapy for suicidal thoughts, the goal to prevent suicidal behaviors or actions and reduce the overall risk of suicide. Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) is an evidenced based treatment that has been proven to be effective in reducing suicidal thoughts! If you have a plan or are taking steps towards killing yourself, call 911 or go to your local emergency room before starting therapy. If you are in the Ann Arbor, Michigan area and unsure if you should go to the hospital, you can call Michigan Medicine Psych Emergency Services (PES) at 734-936-5900 for advice!
Start Therapy for Suicidal Thoughts in Michigan
Are you ready to live a life free from suicidal thoughts? Are you unsure if you are depressed or anxious? Well, you have come to the right place! At Embodied Wellness, PLLC, we can support you no matter how you feel. Discover the power of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and how your suicidal thoughts will no longer have a hold on you.
Start your healing at Embodied Wellness, PLLC with therapy for suicidal thoughts.
Embrace a life without depression and anxiety.
Other Online Counseling Services We Offer Throughout Detroit & Ann Arbor
At Embodied Wellness, PLLC we also specialize in online therapy for anxiety, OCD, and depression. We provide empath therapy and ofrecemos terapia en español en Michigan.