National Suicide Prevention Hotline
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The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), is a free, 24-hour hotline that is available to anyone who is in emotional distress or a suicidal crisis. Callers are immediately routed to the nearest certified crisis center. For those interested in obtaining more information, and to download materials, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline maintains a website at http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org
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Lifeline Available in Other Languages
The lifeline also offers Spanish-language line at 1-888-628-9454, as well as Tele-Interpreters service so that the crisis centers can support more than 150 languages.
TTY Services
For the hearing impaired, there’s TTY capability through the national call center at 1-800-779-4TTY (4889), as well as TTY calls accepted directly from 25 local call centers.
Veterans Suicide Prevention Hotline
Veterans can call the same toll-free number 1-800-273-TALK (8255) and press option 1 to be routed to the Veterans Suicide Prevention Hotline. A Veterans Chat Live Online is available 24/7 through the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline website at http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/Veterans/Default.aspx
How Crisis Centers Provide Geographic Coverage
Each crisis center participating in the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline advises their capabilities in terms of number of phone lines, staff and geographic coverage areas. This helps the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline to develop an appropriate routing plan. Crisis centers are requested to not cover areas they don’t feel capable of covering. Many crisis centers provide services in their direct local areas, as well as statewide or nationwide. Others, however, serve only local counties and provide backup for neighboring crisis centers.
Warning Signs of Suicide
Persons thinking about or intending to commit suicide may exhibit some or all of the following warning signs. If any of them are present, seek the help of a mental help professional immediately or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK. Suicidal warning signs include:
• Feeling hopeless
• Increasing use of alcohol and/or drugs
• Feeling trapped, a sense of there being no way out left for the individual
• Incredible rage, anger or seeking revenge
• Noticeable withdrawal from family, friends or society in general
• Anxiousness, agitation, inability to sleep or sleeping constantly
• Dramatic mood changes
• Feeling like there’s no sense to live, nothing to live for
• Acting reckless or engaging in high-risk activities – without thought for the danger
• Suddenly talking or writing about death, suicide or dying – when these are not normally subjects the person discusses
• Talking about wanting to or threatening to kill or hurt oneself
• Searching for ways to kill oneself by checking out or trying to get access to firearms, pills, other methods
Veteran Suicide Warning Signs
Specific factors may increase the risk of veterans thinking about or planning to commit suicide, including:
• Frequent deployment
• Deployment to hostile environments
• Exposure to extreme stress
• Physical and/or sexual assault while in the armed services (not limited to women)
• Service-related injury
• Length of deployments
Grant Funding
The Lifeline grant is funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), www.samhsa.gov.
--Suzannekane 01:12, 22 October 2009 (UTC)
