You have concerns that a friend or family member might be suicidal. So what do you do? The first thing is just start a conversation and ask them how they're feeling. It's really important to be compassionate in this conversation, not judgmental. Stay away from phrases like, Look at the bright side, or, What do you have to be sad about? It's just invalidating our feelings. But what you can say is, I'm really sorry you're going through this, or, I'm sure that's really difficult. Ask very direct questions like, Do you think about hurting yourself? Do you think about dying? Now, if you feel that there's imminent danger, you can always dial 988 and immediately be connected with a crisis counselor. Set up-time to go over and hang out. Now, it can be just going over and making dinner, maybe watching a movie, having coffee, just anything that gives us something to look forward to. If you can't physically be there, set up a FaceTime call or a Zoom, and most importantly, remove anything from the house that could be dangerous to that person or could be used as a way to carry out a suicide. Just remember, no matter what you're going through, you're not alone.
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