Teen Lifeline saves lives; here’s how.
Teen Lifeline’s work is all done towards the mission of preventing teen suicide in Arizona by enhancing resiliency in youth and fostering supportive communities. This happens through our peer-to-peer crisis hotline and suicide prevention education services for teens, educators, and parents.
Below, we highlight the impact our programs made last year.
Our impact over the past year…
Hotline: teens helping teens through every kind of struggle
Research shows teens are most likely to reach out to another teen when they need help. Teen peer counselors are trained to help callers through any kind of problem—whether that’s a rough day at school or a suicidal crisis.
On average, 1 in 3 calls and texts comes from a teen thinking about suicide. 96% of all callers feel better immediately after talking to a teen peer counselor.
Life Skills Development: teens learning how to help themselves and others
Since 1986, over 2,250 teens have been trained as peer counselors, each completing 80+ hours of life skills development before their first call. That’s over 180,000 hours of training invested in Arizona’s youth—the equivalent of one person training nonstop for over 20 years.
Those skills don’t stay on the hotline. Peer counselors carry them into their own lives—navigating conflict, supporting friends, building resilience—and become adults who show up for their communities.
Teen Lifeline in Tucson: serving Southern Arizona from the inside
In 2022, Teen Lifeline surveyed Tucson area youth and found they experienced thoughts of suicide three times more frequently than the average Arizona teen. That’s why we opened a second office in the heart of Tucson—fully staffed, with its own hotline number answered by Southern Arizona teen volunteers.
Southern Arizona youth can talk to a Tucson area teen peer counselor by call or text at 520-327-8336.
Prevention Education & Outreach: schools as a connection of hope
Last year, prevention efforts reached over 400,000 people statewide—teens, parents, and educators equipped to recognize when someone is struggling and connect them to help.
Through the School ID Initiative, over 500 schools have partnered with Teen Lifeline to place our hotline info on the back of their student IDs and ensure over half a million students always have a connection of hope nearby.
Messages of Hope: peers encouraging peers to reach out when struggling
Every September, Teen Lifeline partners with Arizona high school student-athletes, cheerleaders, and other student leaders to produce suicide prevention PSAs—peer-to-peer messages of hope delivered on the field, in the halls, and across social media. Since this program began in 2019, over 150 students across 50+ schools have participated, reaching tens of millions of people across the state.
Accredited, Top-Rated Professionals
Teen Lifeline always operates with clinical and suicide prevention best practices as a priority. Behind all of our suicide prevention education, volunteer life skills training, and hotline supervision is a team of suicide-informed, master’s level clinicians.
Teen Lifeline also receives top marks from several clinical and nonprofit reviewers across the board.
- In 2003, Teen Lifeline became the first accredited peer counseling hotline officially recognized by the American Association of Suicidology—a certification we maintain through today.
- Charity Navigator rates Teen Lifeline 100 out of 100 for our programmatic impact, financial health, operational transparency, and thorough accountability.
- GuideStar awards Teen Lifeline with its Platinum Seal of Transparency every year, the highest level of recognition it grants to organizations.
- GreatNonprofits names Teen Lifeline as a Top-Rated Nonprofit every year, a highly selective award only given to the top 0.1% of charities.
Real Connections, Real Success Stories
At the end of every hotline call, suicide prevention training, student ID, donation, and program is a real person, finding and fostering connections to hope. Hundreds of thousands of lives have been changed through the support they found at Teen Lifeline; here are a few of those stories.
Real Connections, Real Success Stories
At the end of every hotline call, suicide prevention training, student ID, donation, and program is a real person, finding and fostering connections to hope. Hundreds of thousands of lives have been changed through the support they found at Teen Lifeline; here are a few of those stories.
Follow Teen Lifeline on social media!
Our suicide prevention and mental health resources don’t stop at our programs—our social media is a resource for teens, families, educators, and community leaders, too. We post several times a week on Facebook @TeenLifeline, Instagram @teen_lifeline, Twitter/X @602248TEEN, LinkedIn @Teen Lifeline, and TikTok @602248TEEN; there, you’ll find the latest:
- Suicide prevention news and how to respond to it, according to suicide prevention specialists.
- Organizational updates about Teen Lifeline’s impact, services, and how to get involved.
- Mental health education—the science of teen mental health and suicide prevention, how-to guides on supporting yourself and others, and actionable, easy-to-understand resources to improve your and your loved ones’ lives.
Preview our most recent social media posts in the feed below!
