Suicide Prevention Month: Warning Signs, How to Help, and Kansas City Crisis Resources

Suicide Prevention Month: Speak Up, Reach Out, and Know Where to Turn

September is National Suicide Prevention Month—a time to talk more openly about suicide, learn the warning signs, share resources, and remind people that help is available.

Suicide can be difficult to talk about. Many people worry that they will say the wrong thing, make the situation worse, or overreact. But compassionate, direct conversation can open the door to support. You do not have to be a therapist or have all the answers. You can listen, take concerns seriously, and help someone connect with the right level of care.

If you are struggling right now, please know this: you deserve support, and you do not have to carry this moment alone.

Need immediate help? Call or text 988 or use the chat at 988lifeline.org. The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline provides free, confidential support 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If there is an immediate medical or safety emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department.

Warning Signs of Suicide

There is no single sign that tells us exactly what someone is experiencing. However, changes that are new, escalating, or connected to a painful event, loss, or major life change deserve attention.

Warning signs may include:

• Talking about wanting to die, feeling hopeless, or having no reason to live
• Saying they feel trapped, in unbearable pain, or like a burden to others
• Researching or making a plan for suicide
• Withdrawing from friends, family, work, school, or activities
• Saying goodbye, giving away meaningful belongings, or putting affairs in order
• Experiencing extreme mood changes, rage, agitation, anxiety, shame, or despair
• Sleeping or eating much more or much less than usual
• Increasing alcohol or drug use
• Taking dangerous or unusually impulsive risks
• Showing significant changes in behavior or functioning

Not everyone who is thinking about suicide will show obvious signs. Trust your concern. If something feels different, it is okay to check in. See the National Institute of Mental Health’s warning-sign guide for more information.

How to Talk With Someone You Are Worried About

Start with a calm, direct question:

• “I have noticed you have not seemed like yourself lately. How are you really doing?”
• “Sometimes when people feel this overwhelmed, they think about suicide. Are you thinking about suicide?”
• “Do you have a plan to hurt yourself?”

Asking directly about suicide does not plant the idea in someone’s mind. It gives the person permission to be honest and helps you understand how urgently they need support.

If they say yes:

1. Stay present and listen. Avoid debating, lecturing, minimizing, or rushing to fix the feeling.
2. Take it seriously. Do not promise to keep suicidal thoughts or a plan secret.
3. Connect with help. Call or text 988 together. You may also contact 988 when you are worried about someone else and need guidance.
4. Reduce immediate danger when you can do so safely. Create distance from firearms, medications, or other potentially lethal means. Do not put yourself in danger.
5. Do not leave the person alone when danger appears immediate. Call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department when there is an attempt in progress, an immediate plan with access to lethal means, a medical emergency, or an urgent threat to anyone’s safety.
6. Follow up. A message the next day—“I am still here, and I meant it”—can matter.

The 988 Lifeline’s guidance for helping someone else offers additional practical support.

Kansas City, Blue Springs, and Overland Park Crisis Resources

Missouri and the Kansas City metro

• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Call or text 988, or chat online. Missouri callers can press 0 to connect directly with a local crisis center. Missouri 988 can also help connect people with mobile crisis response or other local services when appropriate.
• Kansas City regional 24-hour crisis line: 888-279-8188.
• ReDiscover Adult Behavioral Health Urgent Care: 7001 Blue Ridge Blvd., Raytown, MO 64133; 816-966-0900; open daily, 9 a.m.–9 p.m. The clinic serves Missouri residents and offers behavioral health and substance-use assessment, psychiatric assessment, short-term support, and referrals. Visit ReDiscover’s adult urgent-care page before going to confirm current details.
• ReDiscover Youth Behavioral Health Urgent Care: 7001 Blue Ridge Blvd., Raytown, MO 64133; 816-988-2739; for youth accompanied by a parent or guardian. Visit ReDiscover’s youth urgent-care page to confirm current ages and hours.
• Missouri crisis-service information: Visit the Missouri Department of Mental Health for information about 988, mobile crisis response, and behavioral health crisis centers.

Kansas and Johnson County

• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Call or text 988, or chat online. Kansas 988 offers free, confidential support 24/7 for suicidal thoughts, mental health distress, substance-use crises, or concern about a loved one.
• Johnson County Mental Health Center 24/7 Crisis Line: 913-268-0156. The county also offers mobile crisis response and other emergency behavioral health services. Learn more on the Johnson County Emergency Services page.
• Johnson County same-day walk-in Access to Care: Available at the Shawnee and Olathe mental health offices. Visit the Access to Care page to confirm current locations and hours.
• Kansas community mental health crisis lines: The Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services maintains a county-by-county list of 24-hour crisis numbers.

National Crisis and Support Resources

• 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Call or text 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org. Available 24/7 for people in emotional distress and for people concerned about a loved one.
• Crisis Text Line: Text HOME or HOLA to 741741 for free, confidential, 24/7 text support. Learn more at crisistextline.org.
• Veterans Crisis Line: Call 988 and press 1, text 838255, or chat online. You do not have to be enrolled in VA benefits or health care to use this service.
• The Trevor Project: LGBTQ+ young people can call 1-866-488-7386, text START to 678678, or use TrevorChat. Support is available 24/7, nationwide, free, and confidential.
• SAMHSA National Helpline: Call 1-800-662-HELP (4357) for 24/7 treatment information and referrals related to mental health and substance use. Visit FindTreatment.gov to search for treatment.

Save these numbers now. A crisis is not the easiest time to search for help.

Where DBT Fits Into Suicide Prevention

Crisis lines, emergency departments, and mobile crisis teams help people get through an immediate crisis. Ongoing therapy has a different role: helping a person understand patterns, strengthen coping, reduce future risk, and build a life that feels worth living.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy, or DBT, was designed for people who experience intense emotions and high-risk behaviors. DBT does not ask someone to simply “calm down” or think positively. It combines acceptance with meaningful change and teaches practical skills in four main areas:

• Mindfulness: noticing thoughts, emotions, and urges without immediately acting on them
• Distress tolerance: surviving intense moments without making the situation worse
• Emotion regulation: understanding emotions and reducing vulnerability to emotional overwhelm
• Interpersonal effectiveness: asking for help, setting boundaries, and navigating relationships more effectively

DBT also places life-threatening behaviors at the top of the treatment hierarchy. Depending on the program, treatment may include individual therapy, DBT skills training, tools such as diary cards, and support using skills between sessions. The National Institute of Mental Health identifies DBT as an evidence-based treatment that has been shown to reduce suicidal behavior in adolescents and suicide attempts among adults with borderline personality disorder. Read NIMH’s overview of suicide prevention and treatment.

DBT can be an important part of a longer-term treatment plan, but it is not a replacement for 988, 911, emergency evaluation, hospitalization, or another appropriate crisis service when someone is in immediate danger. The right level of care depends on the person’s needs, safety, diagnosis, and current risk.

DBT Therapy in Missouri and Kansas

Middle Path Counseling provides DBT and DBT-informed therapy for clients in Missouri and Kansas, with in-person options in Blue Springs, Missouri, and Overland Park, Kansas, as well as online therapy for eligible clients located in either state.

If you are not in immediate danger and want to learn whether DBT may be a good fit, call or text 816-500-2070. Our team can help you explore current openings, insurance benefits, and the treatment options that best match your needs.

Reaching out for ongoing therapy is not a sign that you have failed. It is a step toward having more support, more tools, and more choices when life becomes painful.

A Final Reminder

You do not need the perfect words to start a lifesaving conversation. Be direct. Listen without judgment. Take changes seriously. Help the person connect with support.

And if you are the one struggling: please stay. Call or text 988 now. Let another person help carry this moment with you.

Important notice: Middle Path Counseling is not a crisis-response service, and messages to our office may not be reviewed immediately. If you or someone else may be in immediate danger, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department. For immediate mental health crisis support, call or text 988.

Please reach out for any additional questions. Text or Call the Main Line at 816.500.2070. We can help with both Missouri, Kansas and any Online Appointments.