May 18, 2020

by Erin Ortiz, Community Engagement Specialist

What’s in a name? Sometimes, a lot. What we decide to call something matters. Naming our 24-hour hotline a “helpline” vs. a “crisis line” could make the difference between someone feeling comfortable enough to call for assistance, or not. In light of this, we have recently decided to change the name of what we formerly called our “crisis line.” It’s now called our helpline.

It’s a small yet significant change of wording, and we want you to know that nothing else about the phone line has changed. It operates the same way and for the same reasons it always has. It’s available in English and Spanish 24 hours a day; it’s still free, confidential, anonymous, and safe. The number is the same: 831-375-4357 (375-HELP).

Why “helpline?” 

- We are here to help, whether someone wants to get logistical information, learn about resources, talk about an incident that happened, process feelings, safety options, or get another form of support.

- Even though we certainly can and often do provide crisis intervention on the helpline, we would not want a potential caller to feel as though they could only contact us if they were in a crisis situation. The reason for calling does not need to be urgent or meet any sort of “seriousness” criteria. 

- Our helpline provides useful information and referrals to a wide array of community resources, regardless of whether or not the caller has experienced violence.

- We are also here to support significant others of survivors.

Our 24-hour line has always been available regardless of whether or not the caller is in crisis, it’s just that now it has a new name.  

We are working on changing the language throughout our website to reflect this.

To learn more about our helpline, click to view our videos in English and Spanish.