Creating a Safety Plan Can Save a Life
Content Note:
This post discusses suicide, suicide loss, suicidal thoughts, grief, mental health, emotional pain, or crisis support. Please read with care. If this topic feels activating, it is okay to pause, step away, or reach out for support.
If you are in crisis, thinking about suicide, at risk of hurting yourself, or in immediate danger, call 911, call or text 988, or go to your nearest emergency room. This blog is not monitored for crisis support.
When a mental health crisis hits, it can feel like the ground drops out from under you. Thinking clearly becomes almost impossible, and the very steps that could help you feel safe can seem out of reach.
That’s why creating a safety plan before a crisis happens is so important. It’s like a lifeline you prepare in calm moments so it’s ready to grab when the storm comes.
What Is a Safety Plan?
A safety plan is a personalized, step-by-step guide you create in advance to help you navigate moments of intense distress or suicidal thoughts. It’s not just for people in immediate crisis. It’s for anyone who’s ever felt overwhelmed, hopeless, or afraid they might harm themselves.
It can be written in a notebook, saved on your phone, or shared with a trusted friend. What matters most is that it’s accessible and specific to you.
Why It Matters
When emotions are high, logic takes a back seat. A safety plan takes the guesswork out of what to do next. It reminds you that you’ve already chosen life in your calmer moments and gives you the tools to hold onto it when it’s hardest.
A Simple Safety Plan Template
You can adapt this to fit your needs, but here’s a basic outline:
Warning Signs
- Thoughts, feelings, or behaviors that signal I might be heading into crisis.
- Example: Feeling hopeless, withdrawing from friends, trouble sleeping, increased anxiety.
Coping Strategies I Can Try on My Own
- Activities or techniques to distract, comfort, or calm myself.
- Example: Go for a walk, listen to worship music, journal, pray, watch a favorite show.
People and Places That Help Me Feel Safe
- Friends, family, or locations where I can feel grounded.
- Example: Call a friend, sit in my church, visit my sister’s house.
Who I Can Call for Help
- Crisis lines, therapists, or trusted loved ones who can help me stay safe.
- Example: Therapist: Circle of Hope Counseling Services (270.564.1966), National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 988.
Making My Environment Safer
- Steps to reduce access to means of self-harm.
- Example: Give my medications to my spouse to hold, lock away firearms, avoid alcohol or drugs when feeling low.
One Reason to Keep Living
- Something deeply personal to hold onto.
- Example: My children, my faith, my future plans, knowing God isn’t finished with my story.
Faith and Safety Plans
Creating a safety plan doesn’t mean you lack faith. It means you are stewarding your life as the gift it is. Proverbs 27:12 says, “The prudent see danger and take refuge.”
Preparing a plan is taking refuge before the danger comes. It’s not doubting God’s care. It’s partnering with Him in caring for yourself.
Gentle Encouragement
You are worth protecting. Your life is worth preparing for. And the plan you make today could be the lifeline that keeps you here tomorrow.
Scripture to Carry: “The Lord is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Psalm 91:2
Crisis Support Disclaimer:
This post is shared for awareness, education, encouragement, and stigma reduction. It is not therapy, clinical advice, crisis care, medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Reading this blog does not create a therapist-client relationship with Barefoot Faith Journey or Circle of Hope Counseling Services.
If you are in crisis, thinking about suicide, at risk of hurting yourself, or in immediate danger, call 911, call or text 988, or go to your nearest emergency room. You are worthy of immediate care and support.
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