Crisis Text Line vs Help Texts
What's the difference?
Both deliver support to your phone. But they do very different things.
Crisis Text Line vs Help Texts
Understanding which service is right for you depends on what you're facing right now.
What Crisis Text Line does
Crisis Text Line provides a real-time conversation with a trained crisis counselor. It helps with suicidal thoughts, self-harm urges, panic attacks, loneliness, and acute mental health crises, and can connect you to local emergency resources if needed. It's completely free and anonymous, no sign-up required, and available anytime, day or night.
Who it's for
Crisis Text Line is designed for moments when you need someone now. If you're having suicidal thoughts or are in acute distress, Crisis Text Line provides immediate human connection when you need it most.
The model
Volunteer crisis counselors who are trained in active listening and de-escalation techniques provide support via text. These are one-time, brief conversations to get you through your immediate crisis.
What Help Texts does
Help Texts sends expert-written text messages twice weekly for as long as you need support. Messages provide practical coping tools, validation, and evidence-based care and are written by world-leading grief and mental health experts.
Who it's for
Help Texts provides consistent support over time for grief, caregiving, burnout, pregnancy loss, pet loss, healthy aging, depression, job loss, and more.
The model
Every text is written by world-leading experts and personalized to your specific situation: losing a parent to Alzheimer's is different from losing a child to suicide, and the support you receive reflects that. You can also invite friends and family members who want to help — they'll receive their own texts with tips on how to support you.