Veterans Resources

If you think someone is thinking about suicide, assume you are the only one who will reach out. Learn what to do when someone is at risk.

Veterans Crisis Line

A confidential, 24/7 line offering immediate support to veterans, service members, and those who support them. Whether you call, chat or text, a qualified responder will listen and help. You decide how much information to share.

• Call: 988, Option 1
• Text: 838255
• Chat: veterancrisisline.net

Information about Emergency Care Available to Veterans

Learn about the COMPACT Act. Veterans experiencing an acute suicide crisis can go to any healthcare facility for emergency care, regardless of VHA enrollment status. VA will pay for, or reimburse:

• Treatment
• Transportation
• Prescription medications that are related to the crisis
• Follow-up care

Learn more about getting emergency care a non-VA facilities.

If you or someone you know is looking for treatment or professional support, the organizations below offer confidential, culturally informed mental health support tailored for veterans, service members, and their families in a variety of formats and settings.

Learn About Treatment at the VA
Whether in person, online, or via telehealth, VA offers treatment in many different care settings.

Cohen Veterans Network
Cohen Veterans Network provides mental health care to post-9/11 veterans, service members, and their families, with a focus on accessible, culturally competent outpatient treatment regardless of discharge status or ability to pay.

Warrior Care Network
Warrior Care Network provides free, intensive outpatient treatment for post-9/11 veterans and service members with PTSD, TBI, and related conditions, through a national partnership of academic medical centers and Wounded Warrior Project.

Stop Soldier Suicide – ROGER Wellness Service
ROGER is a free, confidential wellness service from Stop Soldier Suicide, offering virtual counseling and suicide-specific care to U.S. veterans and service members

Give an Hour
Give an Hour offers free, confidential mental health care to veterans, service members, and their families through a national network of volunteer providers.

Centerstone Military Services
Centerstone’s Military Services provides free, confidential mental health and support services to veterans, service members, and their families, delivered by providers trained in military culture.

Not Sure Where to Start?

Take the Veteran Self-Check Quiz
A safe, easy way to learn whether stress and depression might be affecting you. Using this service is completely voluntary and confidential. You must be at least 18 years old to complete the Self-Check Quiz. Take the Veteran Self-Check Quiz.

Veteran Check-in
Veterans, service members, caregivers, survivors, and their families experiencing difficulties in daily life or in distress can use this resource to connect to care with the help of a licensed mental health professional. Connect to Care.

County Veteran Service Officers (CVSOs)
County Veteran Service Officers (CVSOs) are local advocates who help veterans and their families access benefits, file claims, and connect with services within the local community. While they do not work for VA, they can guide you through benefits paperwork, explain eligibility, and connect you to local, state, or federal support. Find a CVSO in your county. If your county doesn’t have a CVSO, you can find an accredited representative.

Support for Families provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) offers a range of services to support veterans and their families, including healthcare, advocacy, and caregiver resources.

VA Patient Experience Specialists
Formerly called Patient Advocates, VA Patient Experience Specialists are at every VA Medical Center. They help veterans resolve concerns about their care and navigate the VA system, serving as a point of contact for addressing problems or feedback.

VA Caregiver Support Programs
VA offers resources, education, and services to family members and loved ones who care for veterans at home, including access to support lines and financial assistance for eligible caregivers.

Support During Transition from Active Duty Service

The first year following separation from active duty is a particularly high-risk period for veterans.

Military to VA Case Management
VA Liaisons for Service Members Separating/Retiring from the Military.

InTransition
The InTransition program is a free, confidential program from the Defense Health Agency that helps service members connect with mental health care during their transition out of service by connecting them with ongoing mental health care and providing one-on-one coaching to maintain continuity during the transition. Call 24/7 to enroll:

• Stateside: 800-424-7877
• Australia, Germany, Italy, Japan, South Korea: 800-748-8111
• Live Chat is available on their web page.

Onward Ops
Onward Ops is a free, veteran-led program that supports service members before and after leaving the military. It offers personalized transition planning and matches participants with trained sponsors in their destination communities to help them navigate employment, education, healthcare, and other critical needs during the first year out of uniform.

Community Resources

There are thousands of local and national organizations that offer help with mental health, daily needs, connection, and support navigating resources. The resources below can be a starting point for finding trusted help in your community.

Vet Centers
Vet Centers are community-based counseling centers that provide confidential counseling, support, and referral services to eligible veterans, service members, and their families. They also provide bereavement services for family members of veterans who die by suicide. Vet centers do not require enrollment in VA healthcare systems. Find a Vet Center or call 1-877-927-8387.

Veteran Service Organizations
Veteran Service Organizations (VSOs) offer support, advocacy, and resources for veterans and their families. Many provide help with benefits, community connection, and navigating life after military service.

• National Resource Directory: search by city or zip code to find local resources

Peer Support

Sometimes, the best person to engage with a veteran is another veteran. Peer Support programs are designed to create those connections and provide veterans with a space to navigate their situation with someone they can trust at their side.

Vets4Warriors
Vets4Warriors is a 24/7 confidential peer support network staffed by veterans, offering immediate assistance to service members, veterans, and their families, independent of the VA or military command.

Boulder Crest Foundation
Boulder Crest Foundation offers free, non-clinical programs for veterans, service members, and first responders focused on Posttraumatic Growth. Through peer-led retreats like Warrior PATHH, participants learn strategies to transform struggle into strength.

Objective Zero
Objective Zero is a free app that connects veterans, service members, and their families to trained peer supporters for confidential text, voice, or video chats. It also includes wellness tools and mental health resources, all accessible anonymously.

Headstrong Project
Available in 17 states and Washington D.C., the Headstrong Project provides confidential, cost-free mental health care to veterans, service members, and their families, focusing on trauma-informed therapy for PTSD and related conditions.

Starting a conversation can be hard, especially when you’re worried about someone you care about. The resources below offer guidance, tools, and real-world tips to help you talk with a veteran about what they’re going through

WorriedAboutaVeteran – Starting the Conversation
Practical, compassionate conversation guides to help family, friends, and peers engage with veterans about suicide risk.

Talk Away the Dark - RealConvo Guides
While not specific to veterans, these provide practical guidance to navigate an honest conversation about suicide.

• How to Start and Continue a Conversation About Mental Health
• Reaching Out for Help
• Connecting Someone to Help (When They’re Hesitant)
• If Someone Tells You They’re Thinking About Suicide
• How to Talk to a Suicide Loss Survivor

The most important things you can put between a person thinking about suicide and their way of ending their life is time and distance. Research shows that by temporarily reducing a person’s access to lethal means, we give time for a crisis moment to pass.

Firearms and Suicide Prevention
AFSP offers a range of resources and information to help prevent firearm suicide and support firearms instructors, retailers, and enthusiasts.

Worried About a Veteran
org provides guidance for having respectful, safety-focused conversations with veterans, including about firearms, based on your role as a family member, friend, or peer. It also includes information on state laws and practical tips for making the home environment safer.

Lock to Live
Lock to Live is a free, confidential tool that helps individuals and families explore safe storage options for firearms, medications, and other lethal means during times of crisis.

Pause to Protect
Pause to Protect offers a map of nearly 2,000 businesses and locations offering temporary, secure, out-of-home firearm storage. It also provides resources and technical assistance to empower firearm retailers and ranges to provide temporary storage services.

Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors
If you’ve lost a family member, loved one, colleague, friend, or battle buddy to suicide (either during or after their service) TAPS has supported tens of thousands of fellow survivors by offering a range of resources and support:

• Casework
• Grief Counseling
• Youth Programs
• Education Assistance
• Survivor Care Team
• Extensive Library of Resources

Uniting for Suicide Postvention Portal
Postvention is critical for healing after suicide. Uniting for Suicide Postvention (USPV) provides resources and support for everyone touched by suicide loss.