GREEN BAY, Wis. — A year after a three-digit number was launched to help prevent suicide, Wisconsin is among the top in the nation for call volume into 988.
Those calls are routed to one place in the state that has already expanded to deal with the increased demand.
When you dial 988 from any Wisconsin area code, there is a good chance you will end up at the 988 Wisconsin Lifeline call center in Green Bay.
The number used to be a 1-800 number for the National Suicide Prevention Hotline. But legislation turned it into a three-digit number and anyone dealing with mental health problems is encouraged to call.
”Particularly with that re-branding and the change in the name people are starting to recognize that it is not just about those most imminent situations,” said Shelly Missall, program manager at 988 Wisconsin Lifeline. "We're here and we will talk to people in the situation, but they're starting to recognize that we're really a big part of that prevention."
The Wisconsin Department of Health Services' crisis services coordinator Caroline Crehan Neumann says in the last year 988 Wisconsin has received about 91,000 calls or texts for mental health.
The year before, when it was a 1-800 number, there were approximately 35,000 to 40,000 calls.
"We know that in Wisconsin the service is being really well received and people are calling,” said Crehan Neumann. “Wisconsin is ranked number two in the nation for rate increase in call volume per capita before and after the launch of 988.”
Missall says a fourth of the calls that are coming into 988 Wisconsin are from Milwaukee County.
When 988 Wisconsin looked at why people were calling, only about 25 to 30 percent of calls were for suicide or homicide. But the majority, 75 percent of the calls are for other issues.
"So the vast majority are people who are calling who need somebody to talk to. It might be loneliness, they might be having relationship issues, job issues, being bullied at school. All of those other different things that might be going on in people's lives that are additional stressors,” said Missall.
She says 988 Wisconsin has so many calls coming in they have doubled the size of their call center and are adding remote counselors.
"Just really helped people become more aware that there might be something out there and then take the leap and try,” said Missall.
Besides calling 988 for help, you can also text that number if you want to communicate that way. The 988 Wisconsin Lifeline also doesn't just take calls, they do follow-ups. They call back about 750 to 1,000 people each month.
