Suicide Hotline Manager
CantSay, US
Female, 0
I supervise and train telephone operators for a suicide hotline. In addition to answering phones myself, I am also available when questions about protocol come up or if a phone operator is having trouble dealing with the emotions being expressed by a caller. Like many non-profits, we are now in danger of being shut down because of budget cuts.
We have local and state funding as well as private donors. Honestly, I don't know much about that part of our organization.
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Our preventative nature often comes out in that callers reach out to us before reaching a high-risk mindset. They use us to blow off steam, to find someone who cares, to get a referral for a mental health professional. We certainly have callers who express suicidal thoughts or seem in imminent danger, but we are also very open to callers who simply need to have a conversation about the stresses and heartaches they are experiencing.
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There are a ton of crucial non-for-profits that are in danger or have been closed since the recession started. The mentally ill generally don't vote, don't earn enough to pay high taxes, require a number of costly social services, and are typically unable to advocate for themselves. As a result they are easy targets when it comes time to reduce budgets.
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We will do our best to emotionally support the caller, to help them not feel alone. We will even offer to call an ambulance if there is a potential emergency. We will not stay on the phone, though, if it seems the callers is in the process of hurting themselves. It is important that callers understand that we are not there to listen to them kill themselves, but rather give them every chance to talk about their emotions and connect with a human being during a terrible time.
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EMT
Does your crew ever fake an emergency to slice through traffic?
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What is the meanest thing a caller has ever said to you?
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Our service is completely anonymous for both the callers and the operators. Callers should feel they can speak to any operator and receive the same level of service. We do our best to be emotionally supportive of callers without forming individual bonds.
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Honestly, I don't know about that beyond anecdotal evidence.
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While preparing to apply to graduate school for work in the mental health field, I began looking for a volunteer or professional position that would give me an opportunity to gain clinical experience and test my own ability to do this type of work. When I first started at the hotline, I had never done anything of this nature before and it was a harrowing few weeks (really a few months) before I began to feel fully confident in my abilities.
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