Toll free crisis hotline
NAMI HelpLine | NAMI: National Alliance on Mental Illness
Because we’re in this together, you are not alone.
During this difficult time, the NAMI HelpLine is here for you. HelpLine volunteers are working to answer questions, offer support and provide practical next steps. The resources on this page provide information to address many needs and concerns.
Let’s stay connected, text, chat, call or email the NAMI HelpLine today.
The NAMI HelpLine can be reached Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. – 10 p.m., ET.
Call 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), text "HelpLine" to 62640 or email us at [email protected]
Find Help & Support
Text the NAMI Helpline
Text "HelpLine" to 62640.
Connect with a HelpLine Specialist when you need support, information and resources via text message.
Call the NAMI HelpLine
To talk with a NAMI HelpLine Specialist, please call 800-950-NAMI (6264).
Chat with the NAMI HelpLine
To chat with a HelpLine specialist on NAMI.org
Click "Chat with us" below
The NAMI HelpLine is a free, nationwide peer-support service providing information, resource referrals and support to people living with a mental health condition, their family members and caregivers, mental health providers and the public. HelpLine staff and volunteers are experienced, well-trained and able to provide guidance.
- They understand, many from their own experiences, listen and offer support.
- They are informed on NAMI Programs, NAMI Support Groups and how to locate your local NAMI Affiliate.
- They are trained to help identify the best resource options for your individual concern.
- They are knowledgeable and a source of accurate information about relevant topics.
- They care.
To become a NAMI HelpLine volunteer, please visit I want to make a difference.
Unfortunately, the NAMI HelpLine is unable to provide mental health counseling, advice, personal advocacy or referrals to mental health providers or lawyers. The NAMI HelpLine does not provide individual casework, legal representations or any type of individual advocacy.
The NAMI HelpLine is not a hot line, crisis line or suicide prevention line. If you or someone you know is experiencing a crisis, please see the resources below.
What to Do in an Emergency
Need Immediate Help In An Emergency?
If you or a loved one is in immediate danger calling 911 and talking with police may be necessary. It is important to notify the operator that it is a psychiatric emergency and ask for police officers trained in crisis intervention or trained to assist people experiencing a psychiatric emergency.
Need Immediate Help In A Crisis?
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline – Call 800-273-TALK (8255)
If you or someone you know is in crisis—whether they are considering suicide or not—please call the toll-free Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) to speak with a trained crisis counselor 24/7.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline connects you with a crisis center in the Lifeline network closest to your location. Your call will be answered by a trained crisis worker who will listen empathetically and without judgment. The crisis worker will work to ensure that you feel safe and help identify options and information about mental health services in your area. Your call is confidential and free.
Crisis Text Line – Text NAMI to 741-741
Connect with a trained crisis counselor to receive free, 24/7 crisis support via text message.
National Domestic Violence Hotline – Call 800-799-SAFE (7233)
Trained expert advocates are available 24/7 to provide confidential support to anyone experiencing domestic violence or seeking resources and information. Help is available in Spanish and other languages.
National Sexual Assault Hotline – Call 800-656-HOPE (4673)
Connect with a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area that offers access to a range of free services.
Crisis chat support is available at Online Hotline. Free help, 24/7.
HelpLine Online Knowledge & Resource Center
The HelpLine Online Knowledge and Resource Center is available and offers an extensive library of valuable information and answers to our most frequently asked questions.
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Volunteer Opportunities
We are seeking specialists to help connect individuals and families with essential mental health resources and services. Currently, volunteers are working from home and connecting with help seekers via phone, web chat and text messaging. Volunteers are required to have a computer and a high-speed internet connection.
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COVID-19 Resources
NAMI released the NAMI COVID-19 Resource and Information Guide to answer frequently asked questions regarding the intersection between Coronavirus, or COVID-19, and people affected by mental illness, their caregivers and loved ones.
More
Preparing For and Navigating a Mental Health Crisis
Taking steps to prepare for the possibility of a crisis can help you act quickly, ease your mind and lessen the impact if a crisis situation occurs. Navigating a Mental Health Crisis: A NAMI Resource Guide for Those Experiencing a Mental Health Emergency provides important, potentially life-saving information for people experiencing a mental health crisis and their loved ones.
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COVID-19 Information and Resources | NAMI: National Alliance on Mental Illness
Message from NAMI's CEO
We recognize that people affected by mental illness face additional challenges dealing with COVID-19. Now, more than ever, it’s important to remember that there is no health without mental health. During these difficult times, we encourage you to take care of yourselves and check in on loved ones. You are not alone, and we will get through this together.
—Daniel H. Gillison, Jr.
COVID-19 Resources and Information Guides
NAMI COVID-19 Resource and Information Guide
NAMI released the NAMI COVID-19 Resource and Information Guide to answer frequently asked questions regarding the intersection between Coronavirus, or COVID-19, and people affected by mental illness, their caregivers and loved ones. The guide features FAQs on a variety of topics from managing anxiety and social isolation to accessing health care and medications.
View Guide
La Guía COVID-19 de información y recursos está disponible en español. Tiene información sobre preguntas frecuentes y recursos para que encuentres apoyo para ti y tus seres queridos. Incluye temas relacionados a la salud mental, como encontrar comunidades de apoyo en línea, ayuda financiera, y más. Para acceder, presiona el botón descarga (en español).
Descarga
The Effects of COVID-19 Related Social Isolation on the Mental Health of Racialized Communities
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.
S. systems addressing mental health services were already in crisis due to demand and insufficient services. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, we are now facing a “loneliness epidemic” exaggerated by the isolation required by COVID-19 pandemic. While the restrictions imposed by COVID-19 are preventative and necessary, they have social consequences and have created many subsequent stressors that disproportionately impact underrepresented groups within the U.S. NAMI’s document on the effects of COVID-19 related social isolation on the mental health of underrepresented communities provides insights and recommendations.
Download
Public Service Announcements for AAPI families facing COVID-19 Discrimination
Along with economic, social and personal hardships many of us are facing due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Asian American and Pacific Islander communities are also facing racist attacks and discrimination. The Society for the Psychological Study of Culture, Ethnicity and Race, a division of the American Psychological Association (APA), released two PSAs and corresponding flyers in many different Asian languages as well as in English.
These resources provide ways to cope and helpful tips for AAPI families facing COVID-19 discrimination.
Important Updates
NAMI is here to help and will continually update our website as issues arise. NAMI strongly encourages people to not only check the CDC website daily for updates, but to also listen for updates from local news and public health care providers.
1/28/2021: Recording Available: NAMI Ask the Expert — Vaccine Science: A History of Distrust and Discrimination for People with Mental Illness
As COVID-19 vaccinations are becoming more available nationwide, NAMI recognizes that people with mental illness may have different concerns or questions regarding the vaccine.
This January, NAMI's Ask the Expert Webinar engaged a variety of field experts to open a conversation on the evolving science of vaccines, barriers to access, and the presence of medical skepticism in marginalized communities. Click here to view.
12/31/2020: Vaccine information added to the NAMI COVID-19 Information and Resource Guide
New section added "What do I need to know about the COVID-19 vaccine?"
To address questions, we have updated our COVID-19 guide with helpful information regarding the COVID-19 vaccine.
10/10/2020: NAMI Frontline Wellness
The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on everyone’s mental health. But for those in jobs that are already demanding and stressful – like public safety and health care – the toll can be even heavier. To meet the needs of our frontline professionals, NAMI has developed the Frontline Wellness Initiative, with resources and support to help those who take care of us.
9/16/2020: Updates to the NAMI COVID-19 Information and Resource Guide
New section added "How can I support my child going back to school?"
Children across the country are heading back to school, both virtually and in person, under circumstances that can be challenging for students. Learn what you can do to support children's mental and emotional well-being during this time of continued uncertainty due to COVID-19.
New resource added under subsection “I’m having a lot of stress or anxiety because of COVID-19. What can I do?” [contained under “What are the health implications”]
NAMI has partnered with the CDC Foundation’s “How Right Now” initiative – HowRightNow.
org – which offers resources in both English and Spanish to address feelings of grief, loss and worry by increasing coping skills and providing strategies for reducing negative behaviors. The site includes a video with NAMI board member Dr. Charma Dudley on how to have meaningful conversations about how we are feeling and ways to reduce stress.
4/23/2020: NAMI’s Ask the Expert Webinar: Supporting the Emotional Needs of Youth During COVID-19
Dr. Meghan Walls, a pediatric psychologist, provides an overview of the kinds of emotional reactions we can expect from children and youth during the COVID-19 pandemic. Watch the replay.
4/17/2020: NAMI Releases Spanish-language COVID-19 Information and Resource Guide
The Spanish-language NAMI COVID-19 Information and Resource Guide is now available. We encourage NAMI State Organizations and Affiliates to share this with their local communities. This guide can help Hispanic and Latinx community members find COVID-19-related information and support for themselves and their loved ones. It addresses frequently asked questions and lists resources available in Spanish. The guide features a variety of topics, including managing anxiety, finding online communities, getting financial assistance, and more.
4/7/2020: NAMI's Ask the Expert Webinar: COVID-19 and Workplace Mental Health
Darcy Gruttadaro, Director of the Center for Workplace Mental Health, American Psychiatric Association Foundation, will share valuable information on maintaining our wellness, specifically in the workplace, as we adjust to changes in how we connect to our coworkers and work during this time. Watch the replay.
3/25/2020: NAMI's Stance on COVID-19 Discrimination
NAMI condemns all acts of discrimination directed against any specific community or population. The same way we fight discrimination against people with mental illness, we stand against racist acts against individuals of Chinese descent and any member of the Asian diaspora and Asian American communities.
We will reinforce this message across our entire Alliance, and to the public, by circulating fact-based information and dispelling any misinformation.
We remain committed to serving all.
3/20/2020: NAMI Responds to COVID-19
NAMI encourages tips recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to help prevent the spread of the Coronavirus. In addition, NAMI released mental health tips to help people cope with an extended quarantine period at home.
- NAMI Updates on the Coronavirus
In the Media
- WFXT Boston 25 News Interview with Dr. Ken Duckworth
- BBC World News Interview with Dr. Ken Duckworth
- Is there a right way to worry about coronavirus? And other mental health tips – The Guardian 3/19/2020
- Coronavirus reveals everything that's wrong with our mental health care system – Mashable 3/13/2020
With generous support from our COVID-19 Support Fund Partners
Psychological Help Hotline, Psychological Help Helpline, free hotline 8-800
Psychological Help Hotline is a critical social service.
No one is immune from a negative Psychological situation or a stressful situation, during which there is no possibility to receive outpatient Psychological assistance, at such moments the hotline is the only way to get help and support in order to overcome difficulties.
Psychological help line (helpline)
Who may need emergency Psychological Help by telephone?
Working Principles of the Helpline Hotline
Other Ways to Get Emergency Psychological Help
Competence of Operators and Response Time
Psychological Helpline (helpline)
8 (800) 333-44-34
Calls are free throughout Russia.
Hotline for Psychological Assistance EMERCOM of Russia
8 (499) 216-50-50
Toll-free 24-hour emergency Psychological assistance for Moscow residents
051
Who may need emergency Psychological assistance by phone?
- People who experience a very strong emotional experience of an intolerable nature, which requires the help of a specialist;
- People who have suffered psychological trauma;
- People who experience severe stress and want to find ways out of this state;
- People who have suffered the loss of a loved one or faced grief and who, due to circumstances, do not understand how to live on;
- Persons who cannot understand themselves;
- People who are depressed and have suicidal thoughts;
- Those people who have come to the conclusion that they need professional Psychological help, but who, for various reasons, put off visiting a specialist.
- Teenagers, in whose personal life there are difficulties in relations with a partner, and they see their solution only in a fatal act.
How the hotline works
- Anonymity. The caller and the consultant may not give their real name and provide another personal information about themselves during the conversation. This also applies to the phone number from which the call came;
- Privacy. All information received during a conversation with a hotline consultant is not transferred and is not used in the future, and the data received during the conversation is anonymized as much as possible;
- Tolerance. Whatever opinion, views and beliefs the caller holds, he is not criticized or condemned. The consultant in any situation will try to understand the subscriber.
- Call management. A caller to a hotline number can end the conversation at any time or abruptly change its subject, without explaining the reasons.
Other ways to get emergency Psychological assistance
On the website of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia, you can contact the Internet service of emergency Psychological assistance with a question or problem, which is located in the appropriate section.
In it, you can create an anonymous appeal without registration and get an answer to the question as soon as possible, which will be written in the general journal.
Competence of operators and response time
The hotline answers the subscriber's call as quickly as possible, the waiting time for communication with a consultant takes about a minute.
Professional Psychologists work in the Psychological Assistance Service, who will help to cope with the problem, give advice on how to overcome life's difficulties in the right way, or simply allow the subscriber to speak out.
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FREE EMERGENCY PSYCHOLOGICAL SUPPORT SERVICES:
Using these numbers you can apply for free psychological help in crisis situations
Helpline for Russia free of charge 8-800-333-44-34 Emergency psychological assistance of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation. Children's helpline 8-800-2000-122 was created to provide psychological assistance to children, adolescents and their parents in difficult life situations. The call is free and anonymous. Psychological assistance service for adolescents and youth (under 23 years old) free and anonymous online consultations Center for social, legal and psychological support for women "Nadezhda". Hotline – 8(499)492-46-89, (499) 492-26-81, (499) 492-06-48. All-Russian helpline for women subjected to domestic violence: 8-800-7000-600. Women's Crisis Center: hotline: 8 (499) 977 20 10, appointment for a consultation: 8 (925) 855 85 31, 8 (499) 977 17 05. Crisis center for pregnant women and women with children " Home for Mom” (project of the Orthodox Help Service “Mercy”): 8 (495) 678-75-46. Helpline for terminally ill people of the Vera Foundation Sisters, an independent charitable center for helping survivors of sexual violence. Helpline: 8 499 901-02-01 (working days from 10:00 to 20:00). 
Hotline 8-499-216-50-50
Moscow psychological assistance service at 051.
Face-to-face psychological free consultation for Muscovites in Moscow: 8-499-173-09-09.
Emergency psychological assistance in Moscow: 8-499-177-34-94.
"Your Territory"
The Russian Red Cross hotline for first psychological aid. Phone: 8 800 250-18-59 (daily from 10 am to 9 pm) 
Phone: 8-800-700-84-36
The 24-hour hotline of the Vera Charitable Hospice Foundation and the Hospice Care Association provides assistance to terminally ill people. Through this phone, those in need of palliative care and their loved ones can receive informational, legal, social, psychological and spiritual support, as well as advice from specialists in the care of terminally ill patients.
Counselors helpline provide psychological assistance and emotional support 
Learn more
