Durable Human (2 book series)

Why You Need to Know about 988, the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline

logo of 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline

You know about 911, but the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline may still be a mystery.

Just as you call 911 for emergencies that threaten your body, calling 988 safeguards your mind. The free, confidential service is available to anyone in the U.S. who is in emotional distress or having a mental health or substance abuse crisis.

After one year of operation, the Lifeline is working.  

“80- to 90%-plus of people who contact 988 are going to be de-escalated over the phone and ideally connected to local resources,” said National Alliance for Mental Illness Chief Advocacy Officer Hannah Wesolowski at a 988 anniversary event hosted by Hill.

4 million people contacted 988 in the first year. One hundred thousand new people reach out every week.

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is Like 911, but Different

Here are 5 essential facts about the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline:

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New Tools Help Parents of Young Children Manage and Question Screen Use

3 preschool age kids have lumch. photo by Nappy

The Screen Aware Early Childhood Kit is a game changer for caregivers of young children who’ve lacked the words and wherewithal to talk with daycares, schools, babysitters, and relatives about the role of screens.

It’s so satisfying to have the right tool for the right job. A flathead won’t do when you need a phillips screwdriver. Plyers are different from a wrench.

But since the arrival of digital devices, parents have had precious few tools to work with. They quickly learned, for instance, there’s no lunchbox to contain social media.

Now comes a fact-filled fleet of info products to help caregivers manage screen use by and around children from birth until at least age 8. The toolkit arrives just as alarming new evidence floods in about how screen use can harm babies, toddlers, and young children.

The kit’s 10 research-backed fact-and-action sheets not only give parents a hand, but teachers, schools, and daycare providers, too.   

5 Fact and Action Sheets from the Screen Aware Early Childhood Kit

Meeting Children’s Real Needs

Fact Sheet 1 answers to basic question “What do young children need?”

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Bad News Arrives about Babies, Toddlers and Screens

Infant looks off into the distance from the arms of his mother who is on her mobile phone. Photo by Sarah Chai on Pexels

A cascade of new scientific evidence from all over the world shows how screen use can badly hurt the development of babies and toddlers. The news comes as more parents rely on tablets, phones, and TVs to calm, distract, or entertain their little children.

Studies published in just the past year paint a dire picture.

The World Health Organization recommends that children under age 2 have no “sedentary screen time.” Instead, babies and toddlers should engage with loving caregivers, move and explore their surroundings using all their senses, and get plenty of sleep.

Screens Disrupt it All

In a US study of mothers during the pandemic, those who allowed their 6-month-olds to use screens let them watch an average of 3 hours a day. “Screen use was relatively common during meals, when going to sleep, while waiting, and to help calm the infant,” the authors write.

That, they conclude, is “an impediment to the relationship between a parent and a child, disrupting maternal responsiveness and interfering with parent-child interactions.” 

Language Delays

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Warning Labels on Social Media Suggested as Way to Protect Children

Depiction of Social Media Warning that could be used to protect children online, a concept discussed in the US Senate Judiciary Committee.

Putting warning labels on social media is among strategies to better protect child users being discussed by a U.S. Senate committee. 

At the hearing “Protecting Our Children Online,” witnesses called by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary described a digital environment replete with social media harms. They also discussed ways for Congress to act.

Parent Nightmares Continue

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