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Crisis Resources

For Immediate Emergencies, Call 911

Too often, we hear stories of young people taking their own lives and we find ourselves asking what could have been done to prevent these tragedies. Suicide is a public health crisis in this country, and youth suicide rates are striking and concerning: It is the second leading cause of death among youth ages 10-18 and according to the CDC, suicide rates have increased significantly for all age groups across most states between 1999-2016.

WHAT IS A PSYCHIATRIC EMERGENCY? (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 kill themselves like stockpiling pills, making a noose, or getting a gun or other weapons
      - Writing a suicide note
      - Giving away favorite belongings or making a will
      - Cutting or hurting themselves in order to die or not talking about why

Risk of harm to others, such as:

- - - - Saying in person or online that they plan to kill a person or large groups of people
      - 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