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Independent provider profile

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline

Immediate crisis support by call, text, or chat for people in emotional distress, experiencing a mental health or substance-use crisis, or worried about someone else.

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Decision facts

What to confirm before choosing this service

Published as available 24/7. Recheck the official service page if a route does not connect.

Operated by
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Coverage
United States and territories
Contact
Call · text · browser chat · ASL videophone and accessibility routes
Hours
24 hours a day, every day
Languages
English and Spanish routes are documented directly. Phone interpretation and accessibility options are described in the official 988 FAQs; confirm the current method before contact.
Eligibility
People in the United States and territories seeking support for themselves or someone else during emotional distress or a mental-health, suicide, or substance-use crisis.
Cost
The 988 network does not charge for contact. A phone plan, emergency response, or an outside referral may create separate charges.

Quick answer

Is this the right kind of help?

It may fit when

Immediate emotional distress, suicidal thoughts, or a mental health or substance-use crisis.

It is not designed for

Ongoing therapy, routine medical care, or a guarantee that a particular local service will be available.

Service role: Crisis counseling and connection to local crisis centers

What the service can help with

  • Connects a caller, texter, or chat visitor with a trained crisis counselor.
  • Provides support for emotional distress even when a person is not certain whether the situation “counts” as a crisis.
  • Can connect people with local crisis resources when appropriate.

What to expect when you make contact

Getting started

A call, text, or chat is routed through the 988 network to a participating crisis center.

During the contact

A trained crisis counselor asks about the immediate situation, listens, and works with the person on a safer next step.

What comes next

The counselor may discuss local resources or emergency support depending on the conversation and the network’s current policies.

Privacy considerations

Confidential is not the same as anonymous. The network may receive a phone number or IP address and counselors document conversations. Identifiable information can be shared in limited imminent-harm, consent, legal, coordination-of-care, or payment circumstances described by 988; local centers maintain their own policies.

Privacy rules belong to the outside provider. Read its current terms before sharing information that could affect your decision to use the service.

Accessibility and practical checks

  • Call, text, and browser chat provide different ways to communicate; the official site also explains Spanish and accessibility routes.
  • Coverage is tied to the United States and its territories. People elsewhere should use a service for their physical location.
  • Before contact, review 988’s current privacy and emergency-services information if those policies affect whether or how you reach out.

Questions to answer before relying on it

  • Which contact method feels most usable and private right now?
  • Do you need a language, relay, videophone, or other accessibility option?
  • Is there an immediate physical-safety emergency that requires local emergency services?

Important limits and safety notes

  • 988 is a crisis service, not ongoing therapy or a general medical provider.
  • Privacy and emergency-intervention practices belong to the 988 network and participating crisis centers.
  • Use the emergency service appropriate to your location when there is an immediate threat to physical safety.

Backup routes

Alternatives to compare

Crisis Text Line — text-first supportThe Trevor Project — eligible LGBTQ+ young peopleSupport outside the U.S. — country-based search

Original contribution

What YouMatter adds

YouMatter combines contact modes, costs, eligibility, confidentiality limits, service boundaries, and population-specific alternatives that the provider distributes across its main page, FAQs, terms, and confidentiality pages.

How this option differs

Best used as immediate U.S. crisis counseling. Crisis Text Line may better fit text-first contact; Trevor may better fit eligible LGBTQ+ youth seeking a dedicated affirming route; neither changes the need for local emergency help during immediate physical danger.

Primary-source trail

Official information used for this profile

Each link goes to the provider or program owner. The note beside it identifies which decision fields it supports.

Verification record: Primary sources were manually checked on August 25, 2026 and must be rechecked by October 9, 2026 to remain eligible for indexing. Manual field-by-field comparison of the provider’s service page, FAQ, terms, and confidentiality statement. Services can change sooner; confirm the current official terms before contact.