Are there any websites where a person who is contemplating suicide can go, for a kind of "live chat" with someone about it, and be totally anonymous?

Well, there’s always here. We’re by no means licensed to talk people down from suicide, but we are (by and large) a very accepting and compassionate community.

Also, after a little digging, I found this, a group your friend can send an anonymous e-mail to.

Thank you, but I’m still hoping to find a kind of chatroom where she might be able to talk with folks who are experienced with this sort of problem.

I would hate to have it on my conscience that I said something that made her decide to do, what I most assuredly do NOT want her to do.

She’s a very compassionate and nice person whom I have been chatting with for about two years, but she has had a tremendous amount of bad luck, lately, and I really want to help her, but I have no formal training for this at all.

I would suggest that maybe she does need to see a psych if she is in that state of mind. She may be worried about the people in the white suits coming, however it may be exactly what she needs.

In Australia some hospitals maybe all have people trained in this type of problem and will come to the person’s home in an emergency to give support to the person who needs it. They don’t haul you off, but they are in the position to maybe talk to the person and let them know what they feel they needs to be done. They don’t use strong arm tactics, and they are more than willing to sit and talk to the person for hours if that is what the person needs. I don’t know if this is available in USA, but it may be worth looking into, just in case you need to in an emergency.

I googled “live chat suicide prevention” and came up with this list of resources. A couple of chat rooms are linked.

I believe I read a posting by Marina a couple of weeks ago that listed resources of this type in response to another question. I’m new at this and don’t know how you contact someone directly, but if you contact Marina I’m sure she would provide the info to you

Good luck!

@MacBean: Thanks for the link. I will certainly pass that on to her, while my fingers are crossed.

August 22, 2008, 5:38 AM EDT

I wouldn’t discount places like this, either. I’ll bet more people here than you might think have experience with suicidal thoughts. The trick is to create an anonymous login where you never divulge any personal information. Or at least, not any that could identify you. I’ve done that, and I’ve been able to talk about suicide, in addition to some even more intimate things.

Thanks for the advice, which is really appreciated.

The problem is that I still have an active account over at “BRAND X,” and I was there for over a year (under a different nickname) until some friends of mine were mistreated by the operators of that website, and I voluntarily left, in protest, and haven’t been back since, even though I left my account in an active state.

It was there that I learned, by carefully observing others (and what happened to them) that the less you reveal of yourself, the safer you probably are.

Luckily, I kept a low profile and avoided confrontations, so no one would remember me, or miss me. I rarely posted; I mostly lurked.

August 22, 2008, 9:18 AM EDT

Tell her to consider counselling. She doesn’t have to worry about being hauled away by the white coats if she simply says she is depressed and needs help. I’m concerned about her getting into a chatroom, because there may be something said there by another depressed/angry person who could make her feel worse. If she is feeling hopeless, she needs the guidance and direction a professional can give her, not amateur help in a random chat room.

I think you are being a wonderful friend to ask us what to do for her. Invite her here for some fun. Then she may bond with some of the folks here and feel comfortable enough to talk to one of us. If nothing else, it would be a great distraction for her.

You are right, and you make some very good points, and I thank you for sharing them.

I apologize for this reesponse to your post, taking so long.

September 3, 2008, 3:12 PM EDT