If the National Suicide Hotline puts you on hold, where else can you call?

In light of Anthony Bourdain and Kate Spades’ suicides, both discussion of suicide and calls to suicide hotlines have peaked. I have heard some people share that when they call the National Suicide Hotline (800-273-8255), theyย  are put on hold. If you do not want to wait, there are alternate suicide hotline numbers that are local/state-wide or population-specific that can be more accessible since they are targeted to a smaller population.

For example, for people who are local to Southern California, an alternate suicide hotline number that is more accessible is Didi Hirsch’s Suicide Hotline: (877) 727-4747. It’s specifically to serve Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura, San Bernardino, Riverside and Imperial Counties, which is why it’s less in demand. Their counselors are very well trained and they spend a good amount of time with you. I have received training from Didi Hirsch and am very familiar with this organization so I highly recommend them.

There are also population-specific hotlines, like for Asian Americans, LGBTQ youth, veterans, kids, teens, and families, phone lines in Spanish and other languages, and there are texting hotlines. I’ve pasted a few below.

I’ve listed the most prominent ones below:

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org
๐Ÿ“ž 800-273-TALK (8255)
๐Ÿ“ž TTY: 800-799-4TTY (4889)

Crisis Text Line
https://www.crisistextline.org/how-it-works
Text 741741
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/crisistextline

Lifeline Crisis Chat
http://www.crisischat.org
1:1 Online Chat: http://www.crisischat.org/chat (12:00 pm – 12:00 am EST)

IMAlive Crisis Chat
https://www.imalive.org

Red para la Prevenciรณn del Suicidio USA
๐Ÿ“žย 888-628-9454
Se Habla Espaรฑol 24/7

Spanish-Speaking Suicide Hotline USA
๐Ÿ“ž800-SUICIDA (784-2432) Suicida.Hotline
Se Habla Espaรฑol

Suicide Hotline in Spanish USA
๐Ÿ“ž800-273-TALK (8255), Press 2
Se Habla Espaรฑol 24/7

Asian American Suicide Prevention and Education
http://www.aaspe.net
๐Ÿ“ž 877-990-8585 (Cantonese, Mandarin, Japanese, Korean, and Fujianese)

Boys Town Suicide and Crisis Line (for teens/parents/families)
http://www.boystown.org/national-hotline
๐Ÿ“ž 800-448-3000
Text, Chat Email: http://www.yourlifeyourvoice.org/Pages/ways-to-get-help.aspx

Vet2Vet Veterans Crisis Hotline
http://www.yourlifecounts.org/crisis-line/vet2vet-veteran%E2%80%99s-crisis-line
๐Ÿ“ž 1-877-VET-2-VET (838-2838)

Veterans Crisis Line USA
๐Ÿ“ž800-273-TALK (8255), press 1

New Hope Now USA
๐Ÿ“ž714-NEW-HOPE (639-4673)

Postpartum Depression Hotline USA
๐Ÿ“ž800-PPD-MOMS (773-6667)

Kids Helpline USA
๐Ÿ“ž1-877-KIDS-400
Kids under 18

Teen to Teen Peer Counseling Hotline USA
๐Ÿ“ž877-YOUTHLINE (968-8454)

The Trevor Project USA: LGBTQ Youth 24/7
๐Ÿ“ž866-4-U-TREVOR (488-7386)

Your Life Your Voice USA
๐Ÿ“ž800-448-3000 YLYV Teens/Youth Phone 24/7
Live Chat Mondays โ€“ Thursdays 8:00 pm โ€“ 11:00 pm CST / Email

More lists are here: http://suicideprevention.wikia.com/wiki/USA

For state/county-specific hotlines and non-U.S. hotlines: http://suicide.org/suicide-hotlines.html

If you are struggling, please reach out! Help is there, even if it doesn’t seem that way.

Please share! You may never know who you will help with this information.

You can also view my TEDx talk which discusses my history of suicide, subsequent recovery, and lessons that we can ALL learn here: https://youtu.be/GVkL3glwL8g

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