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Comment by ceejayoz | Hacker News Reader

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/will-988-call-the-police-data-s...

> Many people in mental health crisis fear that if they dial 988, law enforcement might show up or they might be forced to go to the hospital.

> But getting sent that kind of "involuntary emergency rescue" happens to around 1% of callers, suggests new data from Vibrant Emotional Health, the administrator of the 988 Lifeline for suicide and mental health crises.

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If anything I did had a 1% chance of involuntary committal I would stop doing that thing immediately.

Does that include “untreated suicidal ideation”?

Yep, as someone who suffers from depression and suicidal ideation regularly its been made very clear to me on multiple occasions that I would rather be in this state than interface with involuntary committal. I don't know what points you are looking to score here.

I have several loved ones in the same situation, including two who've wound up in hospital in this way. I'm glad they did.

Fun? No. But better than dying.

I get it, I am not advocating to live unmedicated or anything, but pretty much every emergency medical experience I have had any contact with in the USA has been so universally painful and dehumanizing that it gives me extreme pause, I would not willingly engage with it.

I'm fine with someone making that call for themselves with personal experience, although doing it in a sound state of mind can be challenging in crisis.

I'd just caution you that it's not a universal experience. As with, say, COVID masking, some people found it abhorrent, and others still voluntarily mask today; some found lockdowns almost fun, others despised even the thought of staying home for a few days.

Statistically, police/committment intervention from calling the hotline is rare, and another commenter linked evidence (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48122550) of significant benefits to balance it.

I don't think that's the right way to consider your odds of involuntary committal. It really depends on what you say in the calls. The more immediate and serious the danger the more likely you are to be involuntary committed. The caller range is quite large.

So that means you have to watch what you say if you call such a line. That seems risky enough to discourage me from calling if I were in such a state.

Would you rather not try to help the people that obviously need help?

What if the help they need is just to talk to someone without fear of consequences?

If they dispatch you to an institution you could lose your job just when you need money to pay for the bills you'll be sent.

With some careers, like being a pilot, you'd never be be to find another job.

You'd lose your ability to take out life insurance (even if it was a short temporary depression that you got over, like a side effect of a medication, the life insurance companies won't care.)

Or the institution's records could be hacked and you'll live in fear of your friends and family finding out.. which could cause rebound suicidal ideation...

There is no way I would ever call these hotlines unless it were 100% anonymous.

> What if the help they need is just to talk to someone without fear of consequences?

Is there actually any consequence free conversations? Even Lawyers can break confidentiality in some situations. I'm not saying that the hotline is perfect, I'm saying that it provides a lot of good. I hope you never feel the need to call the hotline, but it's an option that saves a lot of lives.

I think that's what strippers are for. Come in, pay in cash, say whatever, no paper trail or telephone logs, then leave. They're not mandatory reporters like doctors or licensed professionals and therapists are. From the ones I've known, this is no-shit what a lot of people use them for.

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