Help for Adults

As adults, we are expected to know it all, be able to handle it, after all, we’re adults, all grown up now. Though more mature, life comes at us with things we don’t expect. Being an adult comes with pressure as we are expected to juggle relationships, kids, careers, success and growth. Experiencing increased responsibilities and expectations can often feel overwhelming. Additionally as we work towards taking care of this increased load, we can neglect ourselves in consequence.

There’s a lot going on in the life of an adult. Life is hard but manageable. Sometimes we need help, and it’s OK to ask for it. We can’t always do it ourselves, but that doesn’t mean that it can’t be done. Asking for help doesn’t mean that we are weak or a failure; it just means we are human.

Some of the signs that you might need to ask for help or get help for someone else are:

  • Feeling hopeless, helpless, worthless, pessimistic and/or guilty
  • Substance abuse
  • Fatigue or loss of interest in ordinary activities, including sex
  • Disturbances in eating and sleeping patterns
  • Irritability, increased crying, anxiety or panic attacks
  • Difficulty concentrating, remembering or making decisions
  • Suicidal thoughts
  • Persistent physical symptoms or pains that do not respond to treatment
  • Sense of purposelessness
  • Anger
  • The feeling of being trapped
  • The feeling of hopelessness
  • Persistent sad or “empty” mood
  • Withdrawing from family, friends, work, school or your favorite hobbies
  • Recklessness or high-risk behaviors
  • Preoccupation with death
  • Losing interest in things that you care about
  • Drastic mood changes
  • Making arrangements or setting your affairs in order
  • Giving things away, especially prized possessions

If you or someone you know is exhibiting these risk factors, it is important to know that there is hope and help available. Once you have recognized the signs, you need to respond to the risk in asking about suicide. If you are thinking it, they might be as well. Once you are aware that there is a risk for suicide, there are many opportunities for you to REACT in seeking help in:

  • Actively encourage the person to see a physician or mental health professional immediately.
  • Removing firearms, prescription medication and other potential means from the area.
  • Stay with the person until they get additional help.
  • Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline number for additional assistance.

Remember There is HOPE, Ask for HELP, Choose LIFE.

Resources for Adults

The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is a national network of local crisis centers that provides free and confidential emotional support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If you need help, call or text 9-8-8 now. You will be routed to the closest possible crisis center in your area.

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Crisis Text Line is free 24/7 support at your fingertips where every texter is connected with a real-life, trained Crisis Counselor. All Crisis Counselors are volunteers, who donate their time to helping people in crisis. Text 741741 or send a message on WhatsApp.

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An interactive website featuring blustery and manly therapist “Dr. Rich Mahogany”, Man Therapy seeks to counter the stigma associated with therapy by reaching out to men with humor and manly banter. Visitors to the site can take an “18 point head inspection,” watch videos about men who have overcome serious challenges in life, and also find ways to seek help for themselves or someone else. Dr. Rich Mahogany along with the Colorado Office of Suicide Prevention, Carson J Spencer Foundation and Cactus, Man Therapy is giving men a resource they desperately need; to help them with any problem that life sends their way, something to set them straight on the realities of suicide and mental health, and in the end a tool to help put a stop to the suicide deaths.

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Mental Health America (MHA) – founded in 1909 – is the nation’s leading community-based non-profit dedicated to helping all Americans achieve wellness by living mentally healthier lives. Our work is driven by our commitment to promote mental health as a critical part of overall wellness, including prevention services for all, early identification and intervention for those at risk, and integrated care and treatment for those who need it, with recovery as the goal. Much of our current work is guided by the Before Stage 4 (#B4Stage4) philosophy – that mental health conditions should be treated long before they reach the most critical points in the disease process.

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The National Council is the unifying voice of America’s community mental health and substance use treatment organizations. Together with our 2,000+ member organizations employing 750,000 staff, we serve our nation’s most vulnerable citizens – more than 8 million adults and children living with mental illnesses and addiction disorders.

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The National Institute on Drug Abuse’s mission is to lead the nation in bringing the power of science to bear on drug abuse and addiction. This charge has two critical components: (1) is the strategic support and conduct of research across a broad range of disciplines; (2) is ensuring the rapid and effective dissemination and use of the results of that research to significantly improve prevention and treatment and to inform policy as it relates to drug abuse and addiction.

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NAMI (the National Alliance on Mental Illness) is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to improving the lives of persons living with serious mental illness and their families. Dedicated NAMI members, leaders and friends work tireless across all levels to meet a shared NAMI mission of support, education, advocacy and research for people living with mental illness.

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The mission of SAVE is to prevent suicide through public awareness and education, eliminate stigma and serve as a resource to those touched by suicide. SAVE was started in 1989 when six suicide survivors (people who have experienced the loss of a loved one to suicide) met and agreed on the need for an organization. The organization is comprised mostly of suicide survivors and people that have suffered from.

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Zero Suicide is a key concept of the 2012 National Strategy for Suicide Prevention, a priority of the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention (Action Alliance), and a project of the Suicide Prevention Resource Center (SPRC). The foundational belief of Zero Suicide is that suicide deaths for individuals under care within health and behavioral health systems are preventable. It presents both a goal and an aspirational challenge.

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