What happens when you call a crisis line

A crisis line is a phone, text or chat service staffed by trained people whose only job during the call is to listen to you. You do not need a diagnosis, a referral or a reason anyone else would consider serious enough.

It is free and confidential

National crisis lines are almost always free to call from within the country, and most do not appear on an itemised phone bill. What you say stays with the service. Volunteers and staff are bound by confidentiality, and the narrow exceptions are about immediate danger to life: if you are in the middle of a medical emergency, or a child is being harmed, the service may need to involve emergency help. Most lines will tell you their limits at the start if you ask.

Who answers, and what they ask

A trained volunteer or counsellor answers, usually within a few rings or a short wait. They will introduce themselves by first name, ask what has brought you to call, and let you set the pace. They may ask whether you are safe right now and whether you have thought about acting on what you are feeling — not to judge you, but because talking about it plainly is how risk is assessed. You can decline to answer anything. You can swear, cry, be silent, or change your mind and hang up; none of that is a problem, and calling back later is normal.

Phone, text or chat

Phone is the fastest route to a human voice and is best when you are in immediate distress. Text lines and web chats are often quieter and easier to start, especially if you cannot speak safely where you are, but they can have longer queues and limited hours. Many services now run all three, and a few — such as 988 in the United States and Canada — answer calls, texts and chats through the same number.

What a crisis line is not

A crisis line is not emergency services and cannot send an ambulance, so if someone is in immediate physical danger, is unconscious, has taken an overdose or is about to, call your local emergency number first — 112 in most of Europe, 999 in the UK, 911 in the US and Canada, 000 in Australia. A crisis line is also not ongoing therapy: it is a single conversation, and a good volunteer will help you think about what support to put in place next, whether that is a GP, a therapist, a friend, or a specialist service.

Finding the right number

Numbers differ by country, and calling a foreign line from abroad often will not connect. Our country directory lists the main national line for each place, with text and chat alternatives where they exist. If your country is not listed, the page includes international referral directories that can point you to a service that answers.