Call from a phone and be ready to give the person's current location and describe the emergency. The 911.gov website itself cannot dispatch help.
Open official resourceUse real-world help before any assessment
When immediate safety may be at risk, pause any assessment, involve a trusted adult, and use official emergency or crisis resources for the person's current location.
If an adolescent may be in immediate danger, has expressed an intention to harm themselves or someone else, is missing, or immediate safety cannot be maintained, pause any assessment. Involve a trusted adult or guardian and use official emergency or crisis resources for the person's current location. In the United States, call 911 for immediate danger or call or text 988 for suicide or mental-health crisis support. Elsewhere, verify the local number before calling.
Language does not determine location. Use the official emergency and crisis resources for where the person is now
Do these three things first
- 01
Treat immediate or escalating danger as a now decision, not a wait-and-see question
- 02
New or recently intensified warning signs require prompt real-world help
- 03
Do not wait for a questionnaire, report, appointment, or content page when immediate safety is uncertain
Choose by current location
Real-world support to contact
The official 988 Lifeline also provides chat access. If there is immediate physical danger, use 911.
Open official resourceCall the official emergency number for the person's current location. For crisis support, use the IASP directory to find a verified local helpline.
Open official resourceLanguage does not determine location. Use the official emergency and crisis resources for where the person is now
Get immediate help for these situations
- A direct statement or recent action indicating possible harm to self or others
- The adolescent is missing, cannot be contacted, or their immediate location and safety are unknown
- Severe confusion, intoxication, injury, or another situation in which immediate safety cannot be maintained
- A concerning behavior is new, has intensified, or follows a recent crisis, loss, threat, or act of violence
Information to have ready
- The adolescent's exact words without repeated interrogation
- When the change was noticed and the last known safe contact or location
- Who has been contacted and what immediate guidance was given
- Relevant medical, school, or safeguarding information to share privately with responders
Real-world support to contact
- Immediate danger in the United States: call 911 for police, fire, or ambulance assistance
- Supervision and support: a trusted adult, guardian, or another person who can be physically present
- School-related risk: use the student's own school counseling, administration, or safety-reporting route; exact contacts vary by school and district
- Suicide or mental-health crisis in the United States: call or text 988; use the official 988 site for chat access
How to use this page
This page cannot assess or rule out danger and does not provide crisis response, psychiatric diagnosis, psychotherapy, or medical care. Language does not determine location. Use official emergency, medical, crisis, school, or safeguarding resources for where the person is now; use 911 or 988 only when the person is in the United States.
Basis and verified sources
- Youth Behavioral Structure Assessment and Support System product and safety boundary maintained by the content team
- Mental health of adolescents（World Health Organization）
- Suicide（World Health Organization）
- Frequently Asked Questions About Suicide（National Institute of Mental Health）
- 988 Frequently Asked Questions（Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration）
- Calling 911（National 911 Program）
- What You Can Do（StopBullying.gov）
Content record
- Author
- MSPAX Content Team
- Reviewer
- MSPAX Human Safety Review
- Published / updated
- 2026-08-07 / 2026-08-07
- Corrections
- service@mspax.com