Trans Lifeline
Peer Support and Crisis Hotline by and for Trans & Questioning
Hotline open 24 hours per day, 7 days per week* – Weekdays & Weekends
* reportedly it is only guaranteed to be staffed 7am-1pm PST / 10am-4pm EST but may have operators or take messages outside these times
Toll-Free USA: 877-565-8860
Toll-Free Canada: 877-330-6366
Trans Lifeline is a peer support service run by trans people, for trans and questioning callers. Our operators are located all over the U.S. and Canada and are all trans-identified. If you are in crisis or just need someone to talk to, even if it’s just about whether or not you’re trans, please call us. We will do our best to support you and provide you resources.
Our Hotline launched shortly after Trans Day of Remembrance of 2014 in response to the epidemic of suicide in our community. We believe that some of the best support that a trans person in a crisis can have is a fellow member of our community with shared lived experience.
While it started as a service for people in crisis, that is no longer the case. Trans Lifeline still functions as a crisis and suicide prevention hotline. However, it also serves as a space for trans people who just need someone to talk to.
Trans Lifeline provides live, one-on-one phone support, as well as large numbers of online resources for transgender and gender-questioning individuals. The hotline is open 24 hours a day. It is only guaranteed to be staffed from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. EST, but operators are often also available at other times.
In addition to information resources, Trans Lifeline offers microgrants to individuals who need financial support when updating their name and gender on their legal documents. They accept a limited number of applications each month. However, they will pay the entire fee for most document changes other than birth certificates.
La línea directa de Trans Lifeline es un servicio de apoyo entre compañeros dirigido por personas trans, para personas trans. Nuestros operadores están ubicados en todo EE. UU. Y Canadá, y todos son trans identificados. Si está en crisis o simplemente necesita alguien con quien hablar, incluso si se trata solo de si es o no es trans, llámenos. Haremos todo lo posible para apoyarlo y brindarle recursos.
Nuestra línea directa se lanzó poco después del Día de la Remembranza Trans en 2014 en respuesta a la epidemia de suicidio en nuestra comunidad. Creemos que algunos de los mejores apoyos que una persona trans en crisis puede tener es la oportunidad de hablar con un miembro de nuestra comunidad con experiencia de vida compartida.
Trans Lifeline is training Spanish-speaking volunteers who identify as transgender and want to support the Translatinx community by being a volunteer operator for our dedicated Spanish hotline. This line will launch this summer.
Website:
https://www.translifeline.org/
Facebook social media page:
https://www.facebook.com/TransLifeline/
Twitter posts page:
https://twitter.com/TransLifeline/
Instagram posts page:
https://www.instagram.com/TransLifeline/
Crisis Callers’ Bill of Rights
https://translifeline.org/safe-hotlines/bill-of-rights/
Safety
Callers have the right to…
- Trust that the help we seek will be supportive, not harmful
- Receive crisis support free of judgment, irrespective of substance use, participation in sex trade, mental health condition, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, age, citizenship, housing status, religion, nationality, or caste
- Reach out for support in a crisis without being criminalized, detained, or deported
- Have all trauma responses, including suicidality, understood as normal responses to current or past traumatic experiences, and be able to speak about suicidality without fear of more trauma
- Get crisis support without police violence, harassment, or threats
- Share our identities and experiences without being outed to unsupportive caregivers, workplaces, or abusers
- Be made aware of short- and long-term options for support that we can accept or refuse
Transparency
Callers have the right to…
- Know what services we’re receiving when we call
- Clear and upfront information about which situations hotlines use police and emergency services – to be included on websites, apps, chatbots, and greeting/hold recordings, including geotracking
- Understand if and when our calls are being recorded, how they’ll be used, and who they’ll be shared with
- Be informed by operators at the beginning of calls about which situations or circumstances hotline policies dictate the use of law enforcement or emergency responders
- Be informed if police or emergency services are being dispatched to our location
Agency
Callers have the right to…
- Determine which supports and care we utilize and which we refuse, as the experts in our own lives.
- Access support and services without police or other emergency responders entering our homes, work, school, or any other location without our knowledge and consent. We did not call 911.
- Make decisions about what’s best for our financial and mental wellbeing, including not being charged ambulance or hospital bills for services we did not seek or consent to, or losing work, housing, etc.
- Protect ourselves from further trauma, harm, and instability.
