If you or someone you know is in crisis, you can call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org/chat to chat with a counselor from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline provides 24/7, free, and confidential support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress anywhere in the U.S.
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Firearm suicide makes headlines far less often than homicides and mass shootings—even though six out of every ten gun deaths in the U.S. are suicides.
That's an average of 65 firearm suicide deaths each day.
The good news is that there is hope. These deaths can be prevented.
This Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, help spread the word: Read and share these practical steps to keep yourself and your loved ones safe, help those in crisis, and prevent firearm suicide.
Over the past decade, the rate of firearm suicide has increased by 12 percent across the country. The need for action to address this public health crisis has never been more urgent.
That's why Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund has developed a continuum of gun access interventions, providing people with multiple options to keep themselves and their loved ones safe from firearm suicide during moments of crisis. This approach includes several ways for creating time and space between a person in crisis and a firearm, including practicing in-home secure storage of firearms, voluntarily choosing to store firearms outside the home at a licensed gun dealer, and volunteering to temporarily suspend your ability to access or buy firearms.
One of the most effective ways we can prevent firearm suicide and save lives is by disrupting a person's access to a gun when they are in crisis. And because suicidal crises are often very brief, knowing how and when to intervene is vital to prevent a moment of despair from becoming an irreversible tragedy.
This new resource is just one piece of the puzzle to saving lives—but by showing up for one another in times of crisis, we can start to create a future free from gun violence.
Together, we can save lives.
Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund