Why I Advocate for 988
November 13-14, 2023, I attended the Florida Mental Health Advocacy Coalition’s Mental Health Day of Hope and Healing in Tallahassee, FL. I shared my story about why reaching out for help is important at the Welcome Reception and then participated in advocacy at the Capitol. My main concern as an advocate was ensuring recurring funding for 988.
“MY WHY”
March 24, 2019—that is the date I became a three-time suicide attempt survivor at the age of 20.
To be honest, I did not start off as a depressed child with the intention to end her life. I was a high achiever; I had perfect grades; I started an inspirational blog in middle school; I was a cheerleader; I graduated undergrad in 2.5 years. Essentially, everyone knew me as the bubbly young girl with an intense level of determination and a lot of potential who would probably change the world. But underneath all of that, I was a kid who was invalidated to a point where silence became my only option to survive.
People often ask why I did not reach out for help.
“Stop crying, you are acting like a child.”
“Big girls don’t cry.” (Side note: I love that song, but hate that saying)
“Suck it up.”
These were the responses I received when I expressed sadness. People expected me to know how to advocate for myself, yet the messages I received at a young age made me believe that silence is the answer. Just think back to Elementary School, if someone picks on you and you respond, then they will feel satisfied knowing they upset you. If you tell an adult, then you are a tattletale or dramatic. Thus, over time I convinced myself that the best option was to suffer in silence while putting on a fake smile and excelling in everything so that no one would know my dirty little secret:
I did not want to be alive anymore.
When I look back at my journey, the piece that sticks out the most is how suffering in silence almost killed me. I was tired of being yelled at, laughed at, invalidated, and called weak whenever I cried. I did not have the language to express what was happening to me, it was like a deep sadness that made adolescent me question if I was good enough, dream about how much better off people would be without me, have severe pains in my chest, cry uncontrollably, and feel physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted.
I wish I knew back then that there were other options. I wish I had known about the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and if I was not able to talk to the adults in my life about what I was feeling I still had somewhere else to turn. I never needed to end up in a space where dying felt like the best option. I never needed to end up in a psych ward.
I needed to reach out without the fear of disappointing those around me.
If you are struggling, please reach out for help. Because I was and still am able to get help, I went from being a terrified 20-year-old in a psych ward barely hanging on to life to a 25-year-old with one master's degree, pursuing my second one in clinical psychology with the intention to become a licensed therapist, the founder of a nonprofit organization called Inspiring My Generation where I’ve created over 150 conversations on mental health and donated over 12,000 handmade encouragement cards to patients in psych wards, the author of four published workbooks that act as guides to help others build essential tools to support their mental health (such as the language to reach out for support, coping tools, checking in with yourself and others, and self-care practices), and a keynote speaker sharing my story to spread hope to people around the world.
Knowing that I can reach out and someone will be there for me, whether it is a loved one or a stranger who has volunteered with 988, has and continues to save my life because I finally know that I am not alone in any of it.
WHAT IS 988?
On July 16, 2022, 988 became the universal telephone number nationwide for the national suicide prevention lifeline.
988 is a 24/7, free confidential hotline for behavioral health.
My favorite part is that you do not have to be suicidal or in crisis to call 988. The trained volunteers not only provide support for people in distress but also prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones. This means that as a friend or family member, you can call 988 to learn more about what resources are available for your loved ones and receive resources to support you as a caregiver.
Because many people do not receive intervention early on (because of the stigma, limited financial resources, long waiting lists for behavioral health services, etc.), many individuals end up receiving help for the first time in the emergency room or a psych ward during a severe crisis. For so long, our mental health care system has been so reactive that many people do not receive help until they are standing on the ledge. As someone who has been involuntarily held in a psych ward, I wish I received intervention earlier in my mental health journey in a community-based resource rather than in an underfunded facility that offered limited resources and no follow-up care following treatment in an emergency room following a suicide attempt.
With 988, callers are connected to resources immediately, which can help alleviate the burden of long waiting lists; especially because someone in crisis cannot afford to wait weeks or months to receive help. Think about it, we would never expect someone with a broken arm to wait months before getting a cast or send someone home while in cardiac arrest because it does not seem serious enough.
When someone calls or messages 988 before entering a crisis, they can receive early intervention avoiding years of unnecessary pain and trauma that comes along with not receiving help. When connected to resources in your community that are appropriate for your needs, you can also access help quickly to avoid years of struggling to find the right resources for you.
With appropriate funding, more calls can be answered that connect more people to resources in their community, reduce expensive hospital stays when other community-based resources and options are appropriate, reduce the number of 911 calls for behavioral health that do not require dispatch of a responder, reduce years of struggle to find appropriate resources, improve prognoses through early intervention, and prevent loss by suicide.
I advocate for recurring and sustainable funding for 988, because…
recurring funding ensures we all have access to support when we need it
navigating the mental health system without knowing what resources are available to you is overwhelming and causes years of unnecessary suffering that comes without treatment
the stigma has made many people feel afraid to reach out to loved ones and think silence is the only option
better behavioral health starts with the hope of knowing support is available to you
everyone deserves access to care
strengthening our behavioral health crisis response system saves lives
If you or someone you know is struggling, please call 988 to get the help you deserve.
