What happens when you call 988?

When  someone calls 988?

They first hear a greeting message. You are given choices of who to connect with in the greeting; the 988 Lifeline has specially trained counselors for veterans (through the Veterans Crisis Line operated by the Veteran’s Administration), Spanish speakers, and LGBTQI+ youth and young adults. Your call is then routed to one of the national networks or a local 988 Lifeline network crisis center based on your selections and then based on your phone’s area code.

A trained crisis counselor answers the phone, listens to you, works to understand how your problem is affecting you, provides support, and shares resources if needed. If your local crisis center is unable to take your call, you are automatically routed to a national backup crisis center. All these services are available in English and Spanish. The 988 Lifeline uses Language Line Solutions to provide translation to callers in more than 240 additional languages.

SAMHSA.GOV