Helping Online Community Members Experiencing a Mental Health Crisis
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Crisis Text Line\\xa0offers free, 24/7 support via text message to anyone facing a mental health crisis. Some organizations partner with Crisis Text Line to develop co-branded text lines for their community, but starting today, you can make Crisis Text Line part of your policy and response strategy if anyone in your community or on your team shares or shows signs that they\\u2019re experiencing a mental health crisis.
The other part of your response strategy leverages a skill that you likely practice everyday \\u2013\\u2013 empathy.\\xa0Becka Ross, the chief program officer at Crisis Text Line, reminds us that \\u201canybody can be empathetic. When somebody is expressing or showing signs of mental illness, it\\u2019s not the expectation that somebody steps up into a role of a psychotherapist or a doctor or any other mental health professional, but all humans can be empathetic to one another.\\u201d
Crisis Text Line is powered by a team of 39,000 volunteers. Their community, training, and volunteer opportunities call on people from all walks of life to work together to help those facing mental health dilemmas. In our discussion with Becka, you\\u2019ll learn not only how the team supports one another through community, but also how you can do the same for your own community members and the people you care about.
Becka and Patrick discuss:
- How Crisis Text Line partners with organizations and offers itself as a resource to anyone in need
- Forming a mental health crisis policy for your community
- Using machine learning to respond quickest to those most at risk
Our Podcast is Made Possible By\\u2026
If you enjoy our show, please know that it\\u2019s only possible with the generous support of our sponsor:\\xa0Vanilla, a one-stop shop for online community.
Big Quotes
An example of how Crisis Text Line partners with other organizations (03:12):\\xa0\\u201cThe state of Ohio\\u2019s mental health and addiction services [have] a keyword that they share with their residents [who text it] to our crisis line, linked with our trained crisis counselors, who support the residents in crisis. We provide the state of Ohio with anonymized and aggregated trends about how their constituents are using our service, which, in turn, can help them to create better policies, more services, and support in specific areas.\\u201d \\u2013Becka Ross
Establish a mental health crisis policy to support your team and community (08:29):\\xa0\\u201cIt\\u2019s a great idea to have a [mental health crisis] policy in place before you need it so that you can have something to fall back on. It can be alarming or even scary to hear somebody else say they want to hurt themselves or somebody else. Having a policy that\\u2019s written before you\\u2019re in that situation can be helpful in ensuring that you can offer support in a meaningful way.\\u201d \\u2013Becka Ross
Reacting with empathy makes a difference (09:30):\\xa0\\u201cAnybody can be empathetic. When somebody is expressing or showing signs of mental illness, it\\u2019s not the expectation that somebody steps up into a role of a psychotherapist or a doctor or any other mental health professional, but all humans can be empathetic to one another.\\u201d \\u2013Becka Ross
Reacting with empathy makes a difference (09:30):\\xa0\\u201cOne of the bravest things you could do as a human is reach out to somebody who you feel like is struggling and just ask if they\\u2019re okay.\\u201d \\u2013Becka Ross
How Crisis Text Line reaches those at the most risk within 24 seconds (19:30):\\xa0\\u201cWe have a machine learning algorithm that triages our incoming conversations based on risk. We are able to respond to the highest-need texters the quickest. On average, [we get to them] within 24 seconds.\\u201d \\u2013Becka Ross
Boundaries on the Crisis Text Line team and how the team members support one another (20:50):\\xa0\\u201cWe\\u2019re not therapists. We\\u2019re not doing clinical long-term work. We\\u2019re short-term, helping somebody get to a calm state, and then offering resources. Our supervisors are there for \\u2026 in-the-moment support if it\\u2019s needed. If things escalate [or] if we hear about abuse or any other high-risk situation, then our staff intervene and really support volunteers so they\\u2019re not alone.\\u201d \\u2013Becka Ross
About Becka Ross
Becka Ross\\xa0is a licensed clinical social worker with over 15 years experience in mental health, working in direct practice as a psychotherapist, managing a residential program for young men transitioning to adulthood, providing teletherapy in a medical setting and currently the chief program officer at\\xa0Crisis Text Line; free, 24/7 crisis support through a text based service. Becka is a passionate advocate for access to quality mental health and suicide prevention.
Related Links
- Sponsor:\\xa0Vanilla, a one-stop-shop for online community
- Becka Ross on LinkedIn
- Crisis Text Line
- The Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services Crisis Text Line partnership
- LivingWorks Start Suicide Prevention training
- The Jason Foundation
Transcript
Your Thoughts
If you have any thoughts on this episode that you\\u2019d like to share, please leave me a comment,\\xa0send me an email\\xa0or a\\xa0tweet. If you enjoy the show, we would be so grateful if you spread the word and supported\\xa0Community Signal on Patreon.
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