Suicide Hotline at Mental Health Sanctuary

If you are presently in a crisis and/or feeling suicidal, you will find a list of telephone numbers and /or email addresses below of caring volunteers. Though these volunteers have received some training, they are not mental health professionals and are not a substitute for professional assistance. They are not and am not assuming the role of your physician or therapist. They are also not aware of your medical problems and psychiatric diagnoses, which usually has a dramatic effect on medication and other treatment recommendations. You must make a medical and treatment plan with your physician and therapist.

However most of these volunteers have psychiatric diagnoses and have been in the trenches just as you are now. They truly know and understand how much pain you are in. They have been screened and report that they are well into recovery and are stable. You too can find this stability in your life, but right now, let's get you out of crisis and out of risk for self harm.

Feel free to call any one of these people only during the days and hours that they list as being available. Calling them any other time is not acceptable unless you have their direct permission.

You must call direct. No collect calls will be accepted unless the person's bio states it is ok. Please do not ask the volunteers to call you back unless you read it in their bio.

If you do not own a phone, I suggest buying a "phone card" and using a pay phone or a friend's phone.

If you are drunk or high you are still encouraged to call if you feel you are at risk of harming yourself. However no abusive behavior will be tolerated and your call will end immediately.

The times listed below are all Eastern Standard Time, United States of America.

If you wish to email a Chaplain who has volunteered her time to write folks at the Sanctuary, you will find Cheryl here. Cheryl is NOT here to deal directly with high risk suicide situations. If you are at high risk of hurting yourself, call 911 and write her AFTER you are safe.

my name is angi and i have had mental problems. at the age of 14 i was officially diagnosed with bi-polar 2 and borderline personality disorder.

i am a very good friend or even a shoulder to let your tears fall. i have been there, i used to self injure, and i have tried to commit suicide and a few times i got pretty close to be dead, i have a good support system and i would like to add you too, i am 25 and i have been there where you are now, never give up....i have a saying called : Never deprive some one of hope for that may be all they have. i did grow up in a dysfunctional family i went thru abuse by a medical dr. i have had some days just a huge giant sitting on me. i am the only one in my household who has a mental illness and it has been tough for them as well.

i am now in full recovery even though those thoughts of self injuring and overdoses will always be there you just have to lean to cope with it. just a few month i finally decided that i have to acknowledge the fact that i will have it the rest of my life, it's just like being diabetic, but you know that we can overcome this illness and be able to be able to speak out on behalf of others who have BPD and are really down right at this moment.

i hope that you got all of what you need from me....i already have the list for crisis centers and psych. wards, and mental health centers

3) Joyce in Arizona. Available to take calls on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, both all day and all night. 480-251-7284

Hi I am a 36 yr.old female who has been diagnosed with PTSD, eating disorder (ED) and self injury (DI) and am also a survivor of domestic and child abuse. I successfully left my abusers both my childhood abusers and my ex for the things that they have done to me. I realized that the main thing that got me through all of these situations is starting to believe in me. When I started to know that I was worth something and that I deserve to be treated with respect is when the ball to my recovery started to roll. I realized that my ED and SI were only ways of me coping that actually took over when I was not being abused by someone else.

When I realized this my problems with them ceased....why did I want to hurt me when others where doing it already? I had to learn to respect myself....it took lots of hard work....going in patient....going to groups and having a one on one therapist to work through all of my issues and to find the core of my low self-esteem. Even though it was hard work and I felt like giving up at times today I am happy that I didn't and I could start to help others in their recovery process.

I have worked as a crisis counselor on two separate teen lines and also at a women's domestic violence shelter. I also did work at a local children's hospital where I worked with families of terminally ill children....this really opened my eyes and gave me a great will to live and want to be apart of helping others.

I found that in my recovery that I needed to be both firm with people at times and at other times be vulnerable and be able to cry with them because I understood where their pain was coming from and how deep it really is. I feel I am a compassionate person and I have a great respect for life and a great will to live and help others feel the same.