How Crisis Text Counselors Help Children Feel Safe Again
Eating disorder crises are more frequent on Mondays. Substance abuse is at its worst at five in the morning. Keep in mind that if someone writes an emoticon with a crying face or the word “ibuprofen”, this could be a predictor of suicidal risk.
Crisis Text Line employees keep this in mind by responding to the thousands of text messages that come in every day, mostly from young people in distress. The reasons people seek help cover the board (“If this is a crisis for you, this is a crisis for us,” the website says). Loneliness, bullying, LGBTQ + issues, self-harm, sexual assault, scary news in the news. After each highly publicized mass shooting, there was a splash of lyrics. In the hours after the presidential elections, there were eight times more reports on the crisis line. When Zane left One Direction, there was a splash.
All you need to do is send a text message at any time and you will be answered by a trained crisis counselor. Seventy-five percent of text operators in a crisis are under 25. Ten percent are under 13.
Your kids may not talk about the intimate details of their despair to people they know in real life, but they may silently receive help from strangers on the other end of their phones. If you’re unsure, worrying about it or feeling relieved is okay. As Dr. Shyri Turner, chief physician of the Crisis Text Line told me, “This is the generation of text messaging.” Counselors simply get to know young people where they are and where they are, on their devices.
There are other reasons why helping kids and teens with text messages just works. First, except for those whose parents are secretly spying on their kids’ messages ( bad idea ), it’s confidential. Textile workers can get instant help wherever they are without inconvenient meeting schedules. There is a burst of messages on the telephone line every day at lunchtime. The # 1 place to be texted in a crisis is the school.
And while you can’t see pain through facial expressions or body language on a blank screen, counseling is still very human. When you are free from many external social factors, it can sometimes be easier to get to the heart of the story. “We do not hear the words” like “,” um “, hyperventilation or crying,” – explained Nancy Lublin, founder and CEO of Crisis Text Line in his speech at the TED . “We’re just getting the facts.”
The goal of the thousands of consultants, all volunteers who have completed 30 hours of online training, is to take text professionals “from a hot critical moment to a cool, calm moment,” explains Turner. They want to help people develop a personal care plan and find resources tailored to their specific needs. If the counselor or supervisor is unable to de-escalate the text operator and the person is actively committing suicide with a plan of thought (for example, they have a gun and a time frame), Crisis Text Line will call the local 911 emergency services. Such “active rescues” occur from 15 up to 20 times a day.
Other Crisis Text Line data important for parents, teachers and school officials to know:
- Self-harm is most commonly reported by text messages aged 13 and under.
- Textile workers aged 12 and under who identify as Middle Eastern report more bullying than any other demographic.
- Young text translators who identify as heterosexual black males are 35% more likely to tell a CTL consultant that they have never asked for help before, compared to the general texting population aged 24 and under.
- 47.3% of students who send text messages identify themselves as LGBTQ +.
Turner shared with me what makes text conversation useful and supportive for someone in a crisis, and what not. Here’s what we can all learn from Crisis Text Line consultants.
Don’t define what a crisis is for another person
Turner explains that it’s not a person’s circumstances, but a person’s reaction. “Where one person is potentially coping with a very stressful week of work and family and balancing, the same set of circumstances can be out of control for the other person,” she says. It is important to be empathetic, non-judgmental and non-stigmatizing. Listen to whatever they want to talk about.
Don’t ask too many questions in a row
According to Turner, it makes people feel overwhelmed.
Do not promise the future
“We can’t promise anything will get better,” says Turner. “We can only reflect the strength that a person must overcome in a situation. I have no control over whether your parents are going to continue yelling at you. But I can tell you: “You are very brave and strong that you have turned to us tonight.”
Draw conclusions from your experience, but don’t think about yourself
Crisis Text Line does not encourage volunteer consultants to share any personal information. However, they encourage them to use their own experiences, possibly traumatic ones, as experiences in formulating questions for the textualist. And again sympathy.
Learn the coping strategies the person has used before
“We help people identify their strengths and look at coping strategies they already have that they can use in a given situation,” says Turner. This helps the lyricist to remember that they have gone through rough times before and can do it again.
Crisis Text Line serves everyone in any crisis situation free of charge 24/7. If you have a crisis, HOME, send text to the number 741 741 from anywhere in the US.