The hustle and bustle of the holiday season can be difficult for many due to a variety of factors, including financial hardship, seasonal depression, anxiety, and a lack of connectedness. For those who may already be struggling to stay positive and mentally well, these factors can create further difficulty. 

If you or someone you know needs crisis response and support, it’s important to know that the University of Iowa has resources to help.

911

• For life-threatening emergencies, call 911. You will be immediately connected to trained dispatchers who can send the appropriate emergency responder to address the situation. As many first responders in our community are trained in Crisis Intervention, it’s also appropriate to ask dispatch to send a trained crisis intervention team member if one is available. 

Call or text 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline

• If you are not in an immediate emergency situation, the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline offers free, 24/7 call, chat, and text support.  This includes support for those experiencing suicidal ideation or individuals who are experiencing a degree of mental stress or issues related to substance use.  
• Callers are connected to trained crisis counselors who can provide support and connect you with emergency services if necessary. The vast majority of those seeking help from this lifeline do not require any additional interventions at that moment, and currently only 2% of lifeline calls require connection to emergency services. 
• 988 is not only there to provide support during suicide-related crises, as they are there for any kind of emotional distress an individual may be experiencing.  Lifeline crisis centers follow a policy focused on working with callers to create a plan for staying safe, rather than forcing decisions on them. This means emphasizing the caller’s wishes, needs, capacities whenever possible to maintain safety before resorting to dispatching emergency services for hospitalization. 

The University of Iowa Support and Crisis Line (844-461-5420) 

• It offers chat, phone, and text options in partnership with CommUnity Crisis Services and provides around-the-clock mental health crisis and support.  Those callers willing to share their name and University status (employee/student) during the call can receive additional support from campus partners, including University Counseling Services, Employee Assistance Program, and Student Care & Assistance.  
• The decision to share names rests with the callers, and the callers have the option of receiving anonymous and immediate crisis support without the need to identify oneself.

As students, staff and their families navigate their way through the holiday season, we hope that they do so knowing that crisis support and resource options are readily available in a variety of formats when needed.  You are not alone.