Important: If you or someone you know is dealing with a serious mental health concern, please reach out to one of the following crisis intervention resources for assistance.
Background:
Too often, we hear stories of young people taking their own lives, prompting questions about prevention strategies. Suicide is a public health crisis in this country, particularly among youth aged 10-18, where it is the second leading cause of death. According to the CDC, suicide rates have significantly increased across age groups and states between 1999-2016.
Psychiatric Emergency Criteria (Source: American Academy of Children & Adolescent Psychiatry):
Reasons to bring your child for an emergency mental health evaluation include:
Risk of harm to self, such as:
Saying in person or online that they want to kill themselves
Searching online about how to kill themselves
Taking steps to end their life, like stockpiling pills, making a noose, or getting a weapon
Writing a suicide note
Giving away belongings or making a will
Cutting or hurting themselves with the intent to die
Risk of harm to others, such as:
Saying in person or online that they plan to kill a person or large groups
Becoming more violent towards others
Starting fires, destroying property, or harming animals
Threatening a person with a weapon
Changes in behavior or thinking, such as:
Acting strangely or not making sense
Losing touch with reality
Seeing or hearing things that are not there
Becoming paranoid
Mental Health Crisis Lines:
For immediate help, call 911 for a life-threatening emergency.
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Call, text, or chat 988 for confidential, free support 24/7/365.
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: Dial 988, call 1-800-273-8255, or visit the website.
Local Suicide Crisis Line: 24/7 Crisis Line: 1 (877) 266-1818 or visit the website.
Crisis Text Line (Recommended for Youth): Text START to 741-741.
For Mental Health, Counseling, Substance Use, Depression, Anxiety Crisis:
SAMHSA’s National Helpline: Call 1 (800)-622-HELP (4357) or visit the website.
For Substance Abuse Crisis: Call 844 252-8347 or visit the website.
For Eating Disorder Crisis: Call or Text (800) 931-2237, or visit the website.
SAMHSA’s Disaster Distress Helpline:
24/7, 365-day national hotline providing immediate crisis counseling related to natural or human-caused disasters.
Call 1-800-985-5990 or text TalkWithUs to 66746 for trained crisis counselors.
Spanish-speakers can press “2” for 24/7 bilingual support.
Learn more and download information about the Disaster Distress Helpline in 30 commonly-spoken languages in the U.S.
Local Mental Health Services:
Frontier Behavioral Health: Walk-in assessments or call 509.838.4651, Ext. 012082.
Providence Psychiatric Center for Children and Adolescents (PCCA): Call (509) 474-3213.
Providence Behavioral Emotional Skills Training (BEST): Call (509) 474-2223.
Providence Rise Program: Call (509) 252-6446.
Other Crisis Services:
Crisis Shelter for Women and Children (Union Gospel Mission): Website
Women's Recovery at Anna Ogden Hall: Website
Vanessa Behan Crisis Nursery: Call 535-3155.
Child Protective Services: Call 363-3333.
The H.E.A.R.T. Program (YWCA of Spokane): Call 326-1190, ext. 117 & ext. 152.
NE SNAP Food Bank: Call 487-1114.
Crosswalk (Temporary Shelter for Teenagers): Call 838-6596.
Salvation Army (Temporary Shelter for Married Couples or Families with Children): Call 325-6814.
SAFeT (Sexual Assault & Family Trauma Response Center): Call 747-8224.
At Risk Youth/CHINS petition (Juvenile Court): Call 477-6408 or 323-1166.
SNAP Homeless/Housing Programs: Call 456-7106.
Family Care Resource and Referral: Call 509-362-2521 or visit Website.