World Suicide Prevention Day
Start the Conversation. Strengthen Connection.
Today is World Suicide Prevention Day, a time to come together and remind our Native youth that they are needed, valued, and never alone.
Every conversation matters. Every connection matters. And sometimes, simply taking the time to check on someone can open the door to the support they need.
This September, UNITY is encouraging Native youth, families, youth councils, advisors, educators, and trusted adults to start the conversation about mental wellness and suicide prevention. Creating spaces where young people feel safe to speak up, ask for help, and share what they are experiencing is an important part of prevention.
Check on Your Relatives
A simple question can be the beginning of an important conversation.
Instead of only asking, “Are you okay?” try asking:
“How have you really been doing?”
“What has been weighing on you lately?”
“Who do you feel like you can talk to?”
“What would make this week a little easier?”
Listen without judgment. Stay connected. Let young people know that they do not have to navigate difficult moments alone.
Join UNITY for Our Suicide Prevention Webinar
As part of Suicide Prevention Month, UNITY, in collaboration with We R Native, will host a Suicide Prevention Webinar on September 16, 2026.
This conversation will bring Native youth, youth councils, families, advisors, and community partners together to learn more about awareness, support, connection, and suicide prevention.
Wednesday, September 16, 2026
6:00 PM Eastern
5:00 PM Central
4:00 PM Mountain
3:00 PM Pacific
3:00 PM Arizona
2:00 PM Alaska
12:00 PM Hawaiʻi
Register for the UNITY Suicide Prevention Webinar and share the opportunity with your youth council, community, and support network.
Explore UNITY’s I WILL LIVE Resources
UNITY’s I WILL LIVE initiative provides resources and tools that help Native youth and the adults who support them strengthen connections, build community, and start conversations around mental wellness.
Prevention is not only about responding when someone is in crisis. It is also about building relationships, creating belonging, celebrating culture, and reminding young people that their presence makes a difference.
Explore UNITY’s I WILL LIVE Resources
UNITY’s I WILL LIVE initiative reminds Native youth that culture, community, relationships, and belonging can be powerful sources of strength.
Youth councils can use these resources to start conversations about mental wellness, while parents, advisors, educators, and trusted adults can find tools to supportyoung people and strengthen their circles of support.
Prevention is not only about responding when someone is in crisis. It is also about building relationships, creating belonging, celebrating culture, and reminding young people that their presence makes a difference.
EXPLORE UNITY’S I WILL LIVE
Get a Little Good Medicine on Your Phone
Sometimes, a reminder that someone is thinking about you can make a difference.
Native youth ages 13–24 can text CARING to 65664, while college students can text COLLEGE to 65664, to receive supportive messages designed to strengthen connection and improve mood.
Trusted adults and youth-serving organizations can share this resource now. Support does not have to wait until someone is already in crisis.
LEARN ABOUT CARING MESSAGES
Meet BRAVE
A story created for Native young people.
We R Native’s BRAVE follows Native teens navigating relationships, alcohol use, mental health, and suicide through a culturally relevant text-message and video series.
Native youth ages approximately 15–24 can text BRAVE to 94449 to follow thestory while learning coping skills and ways to reach out to friends, relatives, and other trusted people.
CHECK OUT BRAVE
#WeNeedYouHere
Who needs to hear it from you?
Three words can carry a powerful message: We need you here.
We R Native offers #WeNeedYouHere materials that Native youth councils, schools, families, and organizations can use to create signs, photos, social posts, and community conversations about suicide prevention and belonging.
This month, tell a young person specifically why you need them here—and encourage them to pass that message to someone else.
FIND WE R NATIVE RESOURCES
Healthy Native Youth
Save this resource before you need it.
Healthy Native Youth brings together culturally relevant wellness resources designed for Native adolescents and young adults.
Youth can explore support options themselves, while parents, advisors, educators, and other trusted adults can bookmark the page so they know where to turn when a young person asks for help.
EXPLORE HEALTHY NATIVE YOUTH
988: You Don’t Have to Wait for a Crisis
Call. Text. Chat. Connect.
Native youth experiencing emotional distress—or simply having a really difficult day—can call or text 988 for free, confidential support 24 hours a day.
Friends, parents, relatives, advisors, and other trusted adults can also contact 988 when they are concerned about someone and need guidance about what to do next.
Save 988 in your phone and share it with your circle now, because knowing where to turn should not begin during an emergency.
EXPLORE 988 INDIGENOUS RESOURCES
Support for Tribal Communities
Indian Health Service Suicide Prevention & Care
The Indian Health Service provides suicide prevention resources created with American Indian and Alaska Native communities in mind, including information about prevention, intervention, and responding after a suicide loss.
Families, Tribal programs, youth-serving organizations, and trusted adults can use these materials to strengthen local prevention efforts and understand theprotective roles of family, culture, community, and connection.
VISIT IHS SUICIDE PREVENTION & CARE
Native Youth: You Are Needed
A message from the Center for Native American Youth
The Center for Native American Youth reminds Native young people that theirlives are bigger than statistics and that their cultures, communities, ancestors, and futures matter.
Youth can read and share CNAY’s You Are Needed message, while trusted adults can use it to begin a conversation with someone who may be feeling disconnected, overwhelmed, or alone.
Sometimes prevention starts with making sure a young person hears clearly anddirectly: You belong here.
READ “YOU ARE NEEDED”
Support for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Youth
Make sure every Native young person sees themselves in prevention.
988 provides mental health and crisis support information for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities.
Native Hawaiian youth can use these resources to find confidential support, whileparents, relatives, educators, and trusted adults can learn more about helping someone who may be struggling.
Our Native youth suicide prevention outreach should make space for Native Hawaiianyoung people and remind them that they, too, are seen, valued, and needed.
EXPLORE NATIVE HAWAIIAN & PACIFIC ISLANDER RESOURCES
This September, Do One Thing
Check on one young person.
Don’t only ask:
“Are you okay?”
Try:
“How have you really been doing?”
“What has been weighing on you lately?”
“Who do you feel like you can talk to?”
“What would make this week a little easier?”
Then give them time to answer.
You do not have to have all the answers to be a trusted adult. Sometimes the most important thing you can do is listen, stay connected, and help them reachthe right support.
Need Help Now?
If you or someone you know is experiencing emotional distress, suicidal thoughts, or a mental health crisis, call or text 988 for free, confidential support 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Native youth can also text NATIVE to 741741 to connect with a trained crisis counselor through Crisis Text Line.
CALL, TEXT OR CHAT WITH 988
Culture is prevention.
Connection is prevention.
Our young people are needed.
#IWillLive | #WeNeedYouHere | #NativeYouth | #SuicidePreventionMonth