Suicide Prevention Is About More Than Crisis. It Is About Connection.
By Ray Rico
September is Suicide Prevention Month, a time to talk openly about something that can be difficult to discuss and even harder to recognize. Suicide prevention is not simply about what happens when someone reaches a crisis point. It is about the days, weeks and years before that moment. It is about connection, belonging, access to care and making sure people know that asking for help is not a failure.
For LGBTQ+ people, those conversations can carry an added urgency.
Research consistently shows that LGBTQ+ people, particularly LGBTQ+ young people, experience higher rates of suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts than their heterosexual and cisgender peers. But there is an important distinction in understanding why.
LGBTQ+ people are not inherently more likely to experience suicidal thoughts because they are LGBTQ+. The increased risk is associated with the social conditions many LGBTQ+ people experience, including discrimination, bullying, family rejection, violence, stigma, isolation and difficulty finding affirming healthcare and mental health support.
The Trevor Project’s 2024 National Survey of more than 18,000 LGBTQ+ young people ages 13 to 24 found that 39% seriously considered attempting suicide during the previous year, while 12% reported attempting suicide. Among transgender and nonbinary young people, 46% seriously considered suicide and 14% reported an attempt. Half of LGBTQ+ young people who wanted mental health care said they were unable to get it.
Those numbers are alarming, but they also tell us something important about prevention.
The environment around a person matters.
The same survey found that LGBTQ+ young people living in very accepting communities attempted suicide at less than half the rate of those living in very unaccepting communities. LGBTQ+ young people who experienced bullying also reported higher rates of suicide attempts.
In other words, prevention is not only about treating a person after they are struggling. Prevention can begin with something as basic as making sure someone knows they are wanted, valued and safe.
The power of asking
One of the most important things any of us can do is ask.
If a friend has withdrawn from everyone, stopped participating in things they once enjoyed, is expressing hopelessness or seems overwhelmed by a major loss or change, don’t assume they simply need to “snap out of it.”
Ask how they are doing.
And if you are concerned, it is okay to ask directly whether they are thinking about suicide.
Asking the question does not put the idea into someone’s head. It can open a door that a person may not have known how to open themselves.
Listening matters, too.
You do not have to be a therapist to be supportive. You do not need to have the perfect words. You can simply say, “I’m glad you told me,” “You don’t have to go through this alone,” or “Let’s find someone who can help.”
The goal is not to solve another person’s entire life in one conversation. The goal is to help them get through the next moment and connect them with appropriate support.
Self-harm is also a warning sign
Suicide and self-harm are related, but they are not the same thing.
Some people engage in nonsuicidal self-injury as a way of coping with overwhelming emotions without intending to die. That does not mean it should be ignored. Self-harm can be a sign that someone is experiencing emotional distress and needs support.
For friends and family members, changes in behavior can be important. Someone may begin isolating themselves, experience significant changes in sleep or eating, talk about feeling hopeless or trapped, give away possessions, increase their use of alcohol or drugs, or express that they are a burden to others.
There is no single checklist that can predict suicide, and not everyone who is suicidal will show obvious warning signs. What matters is paying attention to meaningful changes and taking concerns seriously.
If someone tells you they are thinking about suicide or hurting themselves, don’t leave them to manage the situation alone. Stay with them when it is safe to do so, help connect them with professional support and reduce access to things they could use to seriously hurt themselves.
If the situation is immediate or life-threatening, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.
For a mental health crisis, call or text 988.
988 changed the conversation
The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline provides free, confidential crisis support 24 hours a day, seven days a week. People can call or text 988 if they are thinking about suicide, experiencing a mental health or substance use crisis, or simply experiencing emotional distress. You can also contact 988 if you are worried about someone else.
Tennessee has built a statewide crisis system around 988, including local call centers, mobile crisis services, crisis stabilization units and walk-in services. The state says its crisis system is available statewide, including mobile crisis response in all 95 counties.
That is important because prevention should not depend on whether someone can afford a therapist, has health insurance or happens to need help during normal business hours.
In Memphis, the Memphis Crisis Center is also available 24 hours a day at 901-274-7477. The center describes itself as a free, confidential crisis service and specifically lists LGBTQ concerns among the issues for which people can call. It serves as Shelby County’s frontline center for the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
Alliance Healthcare Services operates a 24/7 Crisis Wellness Center in Memphis for people experiencing mental health or substance use crises. Its services include support for people experiencing thoughts of suicide or self-harm, crisis assessment, stabilization and connections to ongoing care. The crisis line is 901-577-9400.
These are not resources that should be saved only for the worst possible moment. Reaching out early is prevention.
LGBTQ+ people need affirming care
For LGBTQ+ people, finding a provider who understands the community can make a significant difference.
Someone who is questioning their identity, dealing with family rejection, experiencing gender dysphoria, facing discrimination at work or school, navigating a breakup, coping with HIV or simply feeling isolated may not want to explain their identity before they can even begin talking about what is hurting.
Affirming care does not mean a therapist has to agree with every decision a client makes. It means the person can expect to be treated with dignity and without having their sexual orientation or gender identity treated as a problem that needs to be fixed.
In Memphis, OUTMemphis provides LGBTQ+ community support and currently offers several mental health and peer-support programs. Its services include Rainbow Reset group therapy for LGBTQ+ young adults ages 18 to 24, free monthly art therapy for adults and PRYSM, which provides programming, one-on-one and peer support and resources for LGBTQ+ youth ages 12 to 17 and their caregivers.
For people who need longer-term mental health care, Memphis also has community behavioral health providers and private practitioners. The important thing is to keep looking if the first provider is not the right fit.
Finding help can sometimes take persistence. That should never be interpreted as a person not deserving help.
Prevention requires resources
This year’s Suicide Prevention Month also arrives during a period of significant change in public health and behavioral health programming.
Federal agencies have reduced staffing and altered or ended some programs that previously served vulnerable populations. One particularly important example for LGBTQ+ communities was the specialized LGBTQ+ youth option within 988, commonly known as the “Press 3” service. The service was discontinued in 2025 after dedicated funding ended, after having handled a significant volume of contacts from LGBTQ+ young people. Federal officials have since announced plans to restore specialized LGBTQ+ youth services, with implementation expected later in 2026 following congressional direction and funding.
At the same time, the federal government announced more than $281 million in new grant opportunities in July 2026 for programs addressing mental health, substance use, suicide prevention, trauma care and related services. Tennessee also continues to operate its suicide prevention infrastructure through the Tennessee Department of Health and the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network.
The lesson is not that every prevention program has disappeared. It is that access to prevention services can change quickly, and communities cannot assume that programs will always be there without advocacy and investment.
For LGBTQ+ communities, that means continuing to support organizations that provide affirming care, peer connection, crisis intervention, housing, youth services and mental health support.
It also means recognizing that policies affecting LGBTQ+ people can have consequences beyond politics.
When a young person is repeatedly told that their identity is unacceptable, when a transgender person fears losing access to healthcare, when someone is rejected by their family or bullied at school, those experiences can affect mental health.
Creating safer environments is therefore part of suicide prevention.
We can all be part of prevention
Suicide prevention can sound like something reserved for doctors, therapists and crisis counselors.
It isn’t.
It happens when a parent tells their child they are loved.
It happens when a friend notices someone has disappeared from the group chat and checks in.
It happens when a teacher takes bullying seriously.
It happens when a coworker asks a colleague how they are really doing.
It happens when a congregation welcomes someone instead of rejecting them.
It happens when LGBTQ+ people have places where they can be themselves without having to defend their existence.
It happens when we stop treating mental health as something shameful.
And it happens when someone who is struggling decides to make one phone call, send one text or tell one person, “I need help.”
If that person is you, you do not have to wait until things become unbearable.
Call or text 988.
In Memphis, call the Memphis Crisis Center at 901-274-7477.
For 24/7 crisis services through Alliance Healthcare Services, call 901-577-9400.
LGBTQ+ young people can also reach The Trevor Project 24/7 by calling 1-866-488-7386 or texting START to 678-678. Its counselors are specifically trained to support LGBTQ+ young people.
For Tennessee suicide prevention information and community resources, the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network provides education, training and connections to local resources.
There is a tendency to think of suicide prevention as stopping someone from dying.
It is that, but it is also much more.
It is helping someone believe tomorrow is worth reaching.
It is creating communities where people have reasons to stay.
It is making sure that when someone finally says, “I need help,” somebody answers.
And sometimes, that answer begins with us.
If you need help now
Call or text 988, the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
Memphis Crisis Center: 901-274-7477, available 24/7.
Alliance Healthcare Services Crisis Wellness Center: 901-577-9400, available 24/7.
The Trevor Project: 1-866-488-7386 or text START to 678-678, available 24/7 for LGBTQ+ young people.
If you or someone else is in immediate physical danger, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.
This article is for education and awareness and is not a substitute for professional medical or mental health care.
