Be a Lifesaver | 988 Crisis & Suicide Lifeline Awareness Necklace

The 988 Lifeline is our national Crisis Lifeline and it is for everyone. Through the 988 Lifeline, you have access to free, quality, one-on-one assistance. Our skilled, judgment-free counselors are here to provide compassionate support. You deserve to feel heard and cared about anytime, anywhere, 24/7/365.

988 is now active across the United States. This new, shorter phone number will make it easier for people to remember and access mental health crisis services. When people call, text, or chat with the 988 Lifeline, they are connected to trained crisis counselors who are part of the existing 988 Lifeline network, made up of over 200 local crisis centers. These crisis counselors are trained to provide free and confidential emotional support and crisis counseling to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress and connect them to resources. These services are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, across the United States.

There are ongoing efforts to improve cultural competency training for 988 Lifeline crisis counselors. Some examples of related improvements to the 988 Lifeline are that:

• Spanish-speaking crisis counselors are answering calls, texts, and chats in Spanish.
• LGBTQI+ trained crisis counselors answer calls, texts, and chats in a specialized LGBTQI+ youth and young adult service.
• Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing people can communicate with counselors in American Sign Language.
• The 988lifeline.org website has expanded information related to mental health wellness in the Black, Hispanic/Latino, and AANHPIcommunities.
• The 988 Lifeline has specific tools and trainings for crisis counselors, such as Spanish-language clinical guidance resources, Deaf and Hard of Hearing best practices for callers/chat visitors, a training course on cultural responsiveness in crisis counseling, an LGBTQI+ guidance document, guidance and webinar trainings for supporting people in rural communities, and an American Indian/Alaskan Native tip sheet.

Callers who follow the “press 1” prompt are connected to the Veterans Crisis Line. A Spanish Language line is available by pressing 2, and more than 240 languages are supported through a Tele-Interpreters service. Callers now also have the option of following a “press 3” prompt to be connected to a crisis counselor specifically trained in supporting LGBTQI+ callers.

Numerous studies have shown that callers feel less suicidal, less depressed, less overwhelmed, and more hopeful after speaking with a 988 Lifeline crisis counselor.

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As some of you know, I am a suicide prevention advocate. As a suicide loss survivor and as someone who really struggled with my mental health my entire life, this topic and creating access to free public training classes, on identifyibg crisis and how to help, as well as supportive, healing, safe spaces is so important to me.

Each necklace sold, I will be donating a portion to Warwick Cares (a nonprofit mental health crisis and suicide prevention organization geared towards support, outreach, and community training) to continue our free public mental health crisis and suicide prevention training classes; as well as more of our signs of hope, love, and support all around town. 🤟🏼

 Hope, help, and healing is possible. 

Chain is 925 silver.