Seattle Children’s Hospital recently reported that they are currently experiencing high demand for youth mental and behavioral healthcare in their emergency departments. If you or a young person you know is experiencing an immediate crisis:
- Call 911 if the crisis poses a threat to life or safety.
- Call, text, or chat 988, for 24/7 access to trained crisis responders for anyone experiencing or witnessing an emotional or mental health emergency. There are teams focused on children and youth and their families that can provide on-the-ground support.
- Walk into Connections Kirkland, a Crisis Care Center serving the people of King County at 11410 NE 122nd Way in Kirkland, for urgent mental health or substance use care. If you have any questions, call 425-650-4005 or get details online.
In addition, here are some resources for youth mental or behavioral healthcare funded by the Seattle Human Services Department (HSD) and other City and County sources:
Teen Link
Crisis Connections’ Teen Link Help Line — 866-TEENLINK or 866-833-6546 — is answered each evening from 6 to 10 PM by teens who are supervised by adults and receive crisis intervention training. Free confidential support is available via phone call, text, and chat. There’s no issue too big or too small: navigating relationships, loneliness, stress, health and well-being, bullying and social challenges, anxiety, LGBTQIA+ and gender identity, living with disability, or whatever’s on your mind. Get details.
School-Based Care
In addition to the resources above, the City of Seattle is proud to offer free mental health therapy for young people up to age 24 who live or go to school in the city. Several of the care providers specialize in care for specific underserved communities (LGBTQI+ youth, immigrant and refugee youth, etc.) Get details. All Seattle Public Schools students also have access to School-Based Care that includes mental health screening, counseling, treatment, and referral. Get details.
Atlantic Street Center
Atlantic Street Center’s CoRe Gaming Group is an innovative project that uses video games as a therapeutic tool to help teach middle school-aged youth interpersonal skills, distress tolerance, and emotional regulation. Therapists bring a mobile gaming center to middle schools in Seattle as well as Atlantic Street Center’s family resource center in Rainier Beach. Behavioral health counselors and program staff can provide therapeutic workshops to groups of students. Get details.
Southwest Youth Family Services
Southwest Youth and Family Services (SWYFS) provides counseling services that are tailored to the individual needs, interests, cultural identity, strengths, and goals of each youth and their family. The type and scope of services provided varies depending on each youth’s assessment results and treatment plan. In addition to individual and family counseling, SWYFS may provide group counseling services. Get details.
Help is available for all
Crisis Connections and HSD are partners in assuring all Seattle residents, young and old, have easy access to health and human services information and assistance. Visit CrisisConnections.org to find up-to-date information about health and human service programs free of charge.
In addition, Washington 211 is a statewide, comprehensive information and referral service that connects people in need with basic needs like food, rental assistance, and healthcare via an easy-to-remember, toll-free hotline: 211. It operates Monday through Friday from 9 AM to 5 PM. Front line workers are trained English and bilingual English/Spanish Information & Referral (I&R) Specialists. Interpreter services in 155+ languages are available as needed.