Fargo woman wants to spread 9-8-8 hotline awareness one year after its launch

FARGO, N.D. (KVRR) — According to the Department of Health, there have been more than five million calls, texts and chats using the new mental health hotline, 9-8-8 in its first year of service.

A new poll from the National Alliance of Mental Illness found that more than 80%  of adults were unfamiliar with the new 9-8-8 hotline.

Shushanna Perez Noriega of Fargo, lost her 11-year-old son to suicide in January wants to end the stigma for those asking for help, especially among the youth, to save lives and protect families.

“We need to dig deeper in our conversations. Don’t just scratch the surface. We need to dig. Let’s do better as a community. Let’s do better as family members and let’s normalize. Let’s make it that safety net. Not just for our kids but for our hearts.”

She says it’s important to have dialogue as some who are suicidal may put on an act while hiding their true feelings.

“We need to make sure that we’re looking past those stigmas. Your kid could be playing games and happy and you’re taking them on vacations and camping trips. I did all of that. My kid was happy or so he appeared. But, he was hiding.”

Perez Noriega says parents should check to make sure the 9-8-8 hotline is on their child’s contact list.

She adds normalizing the dialogue can lead to progress, if enough people know 9-8-8 like they do 9-1-1.

“My kid was in elementary school. We need to make sure that we have that available. I think principals and teachers be like, ‘Hey, if you’re not comfortable talking to us, do you want to make a phone call to this number?’ I think we need to make it more normal to have for it to be easily accessible for kids and for adults.”

The NAMI survey showed that LGBTQ adults were more than twice as likely to be familiar with service than their non-LGBTQ counterparts.