• Crisis Text Line

Crisis Text Line

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Overview

Crisis Text Line has a rating of 1.3 stars from 73 reviews, indicating that most customers are generally dissatisfied with their purchases. Reviewers complaining about Crisis Text Line most frequently mention mental health, and long time problems. Crisis Text Line ranks 130th among Non Profit sites.

  • Service
    39
  • Value
    28
  • Shipping
    11
  • Returns
    11
  • Quality
    34

This company responds to reviews on average within 17 days

Positive reviews (last 12 months): 0%
Positive
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Neutral
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Negative
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How would you rate Crisis Text Line?
Top Positive Review

“Great free service”

Savannah W.
8/31/22

Texting the crisis text line connects you to a real person anonymously. The 1st make sure you are safe and not going to hurt yourself. Then they talk to you as long as you need to get over the "hump" of anxiety, depression, fears or whatever it is you are dealing with. I have used this service several times and it always helps to know that there is someone who cares enough to take the time to talk to a stranger, free of charge. They take time away from their own life to help others going through a hard time.

Top Critical Review

“Bot”

stacey h.
1/20/22

I have an exceptionally hard time believing this is a real person who thinks my name might be Mania. It's like this every call. In the end, they don't listen and give you resources outside of that you need.

Reviews (73)

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Thumbnail of user staceyh347
0 reviews
13 helpful votes
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January 20th, 2022

I have an exceptionally hard time believing this is a real person who thinks my name might be Mania. It's like this every call. In the end, they don't listen and give you resources outside of that you need.

Tip for consumers:
It’s a bot

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Thumbnail of user jaydens55
1 review
10 helpful votes
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December 3rd, 2022

At least I got a laugh. My sense of humor is busted. The last thing I said before they closed the chat was "Still feeling hopeless but I guess I can be hopeless longer..." And they closed the chat. They say some rehearsed bull and then spit it at you, send some pdf file with coping skills and call it good. I'd suggest just going to the ER when you feel that way. Or finding someone you trust even though that's a pretty rare find. Those are your best resources.

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Thumbnail of user ollieh45
1 review
20 helpful votes
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August 18th, 2021

I'm really not satisfied with this hotline at all. Every time I have contacted these people, they basically just repeat what I said, but as a question. And no, I can't go take a walk because I want to kill myself, its 2:56 in the morning-

Service
Thumbnail of user drinkt
1 review
17 helpful votes
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March 12th, 2021

I texted the line having suicidal thoughts, hoping to feel better. But their answers are so canned/scripted that it's even more alienating. They'll say, "gosh, dealing with (insert situation here) sounds hard, I'm glad you reached out today," two or three times, then send you a gif of a bubble popping to help you "reduce stress," then end the conversation. It's not helping anyone. I feel bad for people who get a gif of a bubble and a canned response right before they actually take the plunge. I didn't, obviously, but I have plenty of alcohol to help me forget that awful interaction.

Tip for consumers:
Hang in there, I guess.

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Thumbnail of user bellap67
1 review
1 helpful vote
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November 2nd, 2023

I struggle with autism, and this made me feel a little bit better, I guess. I agree with some of the other reviews here, it seemed like it just was a poorly programmed bot. After it ended it sent me to a survey. The last question on it was very strange "Do you have access to a gun?" Uh, what?

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Thumbnail of user jaredw20
Jared W. – Crisis Text Line Rep

We take all feedback extremely seriously. Thank you for taking the time to reach out. We want to reassure you that we do not use chatbots. Our volunteer Crisis Counselors are real people – who are trained to bring individuals from hot moment to cool calm through nonjudgmental support. In addition, our post-conversation survey doesn’t assess for risk. The questions focus on our texters experience after having a conversation with us. We truly hope that if you are ever in need again, you will reach out to us. We are available 24/7.

Thumbnail of user rayv75
1 review
21 helpful votes
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November 13th, 2020

Don't bother using the ******* crisis text line unless you want cops showing up at your door, just because I forgot to respond back I get cops on my front door they will track you down and send you to a mental hospital like they did with me.

Thumbnail of user savannahw88
1 review
0 helpful votes
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August 31st, 2022

Texting the crisis text line connects you to a real person anonymously. The 1st make sure you are safe and not going to hurt yourself. Then they talk to you as long as you need to get over the "hump" of anxiety, depression, fears or whatever it is you are dealing with. I have used this service several times and it always helps to know that there is someone who cares enough to take the time to talk to a stranger, free of charge. They take time away from their own life to help others going through a hard time.

Products used:
It is a text service for people in crisis. It is free of charge and the texters volunteer

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Value
Quality
Thumbnail of user mt472
1 review
15 helpful votes
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November 29th, 2021

It takes a long time to connect to someone and all they do is restate what you said and tell you they understand how devastating that must be. The answers are clearly scripted and awkward. It figures this is the same line that Reddit "teamed up with" but which just became a tool to harass users—if someone doesn't like something you said, they can report you and claim they're concerned about your mental health and you get a link to these clowns.

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Quality
Thumbnail of user lilyd77
1 review
37 helpful votes
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December 14th, 2020

I can guarantee this will make you feel worse. Takes them terribly long to respond. They just kept talking about coping mechanisms. And scripted responses. I'm pretty sure I was just talking to a bot. I opened up about being raped and Ashley changed the subject too " its almost time to wrap up, talk to me about coping mechanisms. " I feel even more alone now, please don't use *******

Thumbnail of user alyssak124
1 review
12 helpful votes
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October 25th, 2022

I tried texting when I was feeling super depressed and all I got was a "it'll take a moment to connect you with someone". It was left like that for a long long time and I finally gave up and opted out of the text messages with them. I thought it was supposed to "help" a person I need if they felt like there was no point in living anymore, but they just prove that no one cares. This world has turned to $#*! and no one cares, especially not even a so called crisis text line. Great job ruining our lives.

Thumbnail of user amieg20
1 review
32 helpful votes
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April 16th, 2021

I wasted time going through their training. It is counter intuitive from what I have learned going to school for Mental Health counseling. The trainers feedback is condescending and unhelpful. Their responses are robotic and repetitive. Please be careful!

Tip for consumers:
If you do text this line and feel as if you are being rushed, or that you are not getting anywhere, text "Stop" and call someone else!

Products used:
I was training to be a crisis counselor. I was given information to help with an activity, but was told that it wasn't "going to help an individual come down to a calm cool." I don't agree with rehearsed responses because we are pretty much just trying to fill a quita. We have 40 texts to get them through.

Service
Thumbnail of user amayas8
1 review
11 helpful votes
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May 2nd, 2021

I was super suicidal one night so i decided to text a hotline, they had me on hold for about 40 minutes just for us to talk for about 5. I thought they were there to listen but when i talked to her about it she made it seem like she just wanted to get the conversation over with. The only thing helpful she said was stuff like "you're super brave to speak up about it i know it's hard, i'm proud of you" something along those lines. Then she cut me off asking me if she could give me a link to go to that will help me, like i want to read all of it during that time. Overall i just felt like they were there to do there job and not because they care. At the end she says "anything else you want to talk about" before i could barely finish.

Thumbnail of user useless
1 review
8 helpful votes
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December 7th, 2022

Might as well google "generic platitudes" because that might be more helpful than texting this number. Feels like you're talking to a bot the whole time. I would love to meet anyone who found this number remotely helpful.

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Quality
Thumbnail of user jessicaj1112
1 review
12 helpful votes
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September 9th, 2021

It was very unauthentic and robot like. I received zero help using this "resource", and felt more suicidal after texting them.

They are not trained mental health counselors, do not have a degree in counseling, or hold a legit verifiable license.

Thumbnail of user wolfb13
1 review
8 helpful votes
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September 22nd, 2023

Robotic responses, inflexibility, selfishness, tone policing.

Also, as an autistic man, I'm done being "corrected" on language regarding autistic people. Don't ever tell an autistic person " the correct way is 'person with autism'.

Counselors are dismissive, and when hurtful, they are unapologetic, passive aggressive,

There us no way to reach a human being with a first and last name regarding their $#*!ty training on counseling and working with autistic folks.

This crisis line can leave you worse off than you were.

Do not recommend this to friends. They will certainly not have an actual person reach out to fix this. They'll just give lip service to get the credit without the leg work.

The CEO makes more than Philadelphia's school superintendent. They are thieves hiding in a non profit.

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Thumbnail of user jaredw20
Jared W. – Crisis Text Line Rep

We are truly sorry that you are dissatisfied with our service. Our live volunteer Crisis Counselors are available to help individuals in need and offer empathetic and nonjudgmental support. The goal of our volunteers is to offer a listening ear and provide coping strategies and resources. If you are in need in the future and decide not to reach out to us–we just hope you find the support that you need to help you through challenging times.

Thumbnail of user ia59
1 review
3 helpful votes
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May 30th, 2023

I've been waiting for a response for 4 hours now to my text. I've tried 6 times. I keep getting automated responses about High Call Volumes with links to advice on how to breathe. Hate the state of mental health support in this country.

Crisis Text Line also shares data with for-profit companies, skirts their ethics review board, and fails to deescalate 40% of calls.

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Thumbnail of user jaredw20
Jared W. – Crisis Text Line Rep

We are truly saddened to hear about your 4-hour wait time. There are times when we have higher than normal wait times and for that we are truly sorry. Thank you for letting us know as this feedback will help to improve our service. If you haven’t tried us in a while, please try us again. We also wanted to let you know that last year, we de-escalated over 11,000 conversations with people who reached out indicating that they were in imminent danger of ending their lives or harming someone else. In addition, we rigorously safeguard texter information and have no relationships with any third party organizations to share or monetize personally-identifiable information. I hope this answers some of your questions. If you have any additional questions/feedback, please feel free to submit them here: crisistextline.org/feedback. We wish you the best.

Thumbnail of user fg1302
1 review
1 helpful vote
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August 1st, 2023

Man, today was rough, and Crisis Text Line? Total letdown again. Gave their Spanish line a shot, but man, over 45 minutes just hanging on. Finally got through, but their Spanish? So choppy, felt like I was talking to Google Translate or something. Tried flipping over to their English line too, but bailed after an hour-long ghosting session.

Switched gears to 988, and what a difference! Quick, on-the-ball service. Makes you wonder why we even bother with that half-baked Crisis Text Line, right? 988's the real deal, instant help when you need it.

Products used:
I stopped using crisitextline and used 988 instead.

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Thumbnail of user jaredw20
Jared W. – Crisis Text Line Rep

Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us. We never want our texters to feel disappointed or frustrated by their experience.There are times when we have higher than normal wait times and for that we are truly sorry. Thank you for letting us know as this feedback will help to improve our service. If you haven’t tried us in a while, please try us again. If you have any additional questions/feedback, please feel free to submit them here: crisistextline.org/feedback.

Thumbnail of user michaelm6012
1 review
28 helpful votes
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December 12th, 2020

Just sent texts to this line while feeling suicidal. 1-2 questions asked then nothing. Very long, awkward pause after having just revealed very sensitive info. It felt like being put on hold after you just shared your darkest secret. This was at 730am on a Saturday morning (US time). I'd hate to fathom what would happen during busier times. Such a shame.

Thumbnail of user alexs1246
2 reviews
52 helpful votes
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September 29th, 2020

Having over 20 years of experience dealing with people, including helping those with mental illnesses, suicide prevention, and youth programs, being a volunteer here is not ideal. Many "supervisors" tell you to rush thru conversations. They use a formatted robotic script and when you go off script, a supervisor pops up and tells you to get on track, even after you receive numerous thank you's from the texters.

Thumbnail of user marias2265
1 review
13 helpful votes
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January 27th, 2022

Almost done every time that i've used this platform, i've felt like i was talking to a bot. I felt rushed and just recently it took over 30 minutes for them to connect me to a crisis counselor (who i'm pretty sure is just a bit looking for keywords in your message). These people are not licensed to help with mental health needs. I feel worse after using this site than before.

Service
Thumbnail of user spencermm
1 review
11 helpful votes
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May 21st, 2022

I've been struggling mentally for a very long time, but the other night it all just really got to me. I was feeling extremely lonely and i couldn't stop crying for hours so i decided to reach out and talk to someone to see if it would help me calm down. I understand crisis text line experiences high volume late at night for obvious reason, but 4 hours to get to someone in distress? Id just cried myself to sleep at the 40 minute mark. When i woke up and saw what time i'd finally received an answer i was so shocked. If you want to use this service, don't have issues after midnight lmaooo.

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Thumbnail of user fordkal000
1 review
6 helpful votes
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May 8th, 2023

It was all so scripted, wrote about being raped and was only told "Thats brave of you to say." I was like no girl i wanna kill myself and I laughed out loud at the responce. "Thank you for sharing all of this. I am honestly impressed with your perseverance and strength to come so far with such difficult thoughts."

They also take forever to reply, clearly copy and pasting. I'm sitting with a razor blade in my hands shaking and people really be taking all the time in the world.

Thumbnail of user jaredw20
Jared W. – Crisis Text Line Rep

Thank you for reaching out. It's clear you've been let down by the service you received, and for that we are truly sorry. Our top priority is to provide the best possible service to our texters. We wish you all the best. We hope that you try our service again as we never want you to feel alone. Our trained live, volunteer crisis counselors are always available 24/7. If you have any additional questions, please feel free to reach out to http://crisistextline.org/feedback for further support.

Thumbnail of user angelal1243
1 review
12 helpful votes
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February 5th, 2022

When I shared my extremely personal story about emotional abuse by a therapist and was at first affirmed by the Volunteer that he had read my message, the conversation quickly took a turn for the worst with him saying "How has your previous therapist cause you to be so repulsed by psychoanalytics that you can't even read it." Which to me at least, is an accusatory statement, and one with some contempt perhaps?

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Thumbnail of user carole77
12 reviews
89 helpful votes
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August 26th, 2017

I saw that this had some good reviews; it saved many lives however when I logged on to it it didn't seem to favor me and I was feeling pretty desperately down. I can't understand for the life of me why I wasn't able to take the benefits many others did. In fact, after that, I felt even worse. Be careful with ANY crisis line. When feeling so down the last thing we need is no answer.

Thumbnail of user ollies44
1 review
10 helpful votes
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December 11th, 2021

I have been feeling terrible today and yesterday, so I sent them a text (whats wrong is blocked out for privacy). They never responded the first time after a while, so I stopped it. The next day (today) I was feeling worse about the same situation, so I resent the text. Took some time to respond. I feel so lost and I have ZERO people to talk to this about. If they want to make a hotline, at least make a hotline that answers quickly. This just makes everyone feel worse.

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Thumbnail of user jaredw20
Jared W.
Typically responds within 17 days

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