Suicidal ideation, named honestly and worked carefully.

Many people who carry passive suicidal ideation (the wishing-I-was-not-here thoughts) live entire lives doing well, raising kids, building careers, and never act on those thoughts. The thoughts are still worth naming and working with. They are usually a signal, not the disease itself.

If you are in active crisis right now, this page is not the right place to start. Please call 988 (the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline; you can also text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org) or go to your nearest emergency department. After you are stable, we can talk about what the longer work looks like.

How outpatient work fits

Weekly therapy is the right level of care when suicidal thoughts are present but not acute. We work on what the thoughts are signaling, what makes them louder, what makes them quieter, and what to do in the hours and days you need a different scaffold.

Person-centered work holds the room. Dialectical behavioral skills come in for the in-the-moment work. We track patterns honestly and we name when the level of care needs to shift.

Suicidal thoughts are almost always a sign that something the rest of your life is not making room for is asking for room. The work is making room.

When this is not the right fit

If you have a plan and means, or if the thoughts have reached the point of intent, weekly outpatient therapy is not the right level of care. The right next step is calling 988 or going to an emergency department. From there, intensive outpatient (IOP), partial hospitalization (PHP), or inpatient care may fit better. I can help connect you to those resources.

I do not provide 24/7 crisis coverage. That is what 988 is for.

What to do next

If the longer outpatient work is what you are looking for, the next step is to schedule the consultation or intake session. We talk honestly about whether weekly therapy is the right fit and what to do if it is not.

Schedule a free 15 minutes consult →