Personal safety plan
Based on the Stanley-Brown protocol
Fill this in while you’re calm so you can lean on it in a crisis. Only you see it.
Crisis lines — tap to call
Why write it down in advance
Decisions made while calm
A crisis narrows thinking. A plan written on a steady day does the deciding for you.
Warning signs get names
Once you can spot your own early signals, you have hours of warning instead of minutes.
Support becomes concrete
Not 'reach out' but a specific name and number you already agreed to call.
The environment gets safer
Planning ahead how to put distance between you and means of harm is one of the most protective steps available.
The evidence behind safety planning
The Safety Planning Intervention developed by Stanley and Brown is a brief, single-session tool now used in emergency departments worldwide. Studies following people after an emergency visit found roughly half the odds of a subsequent suicidal behaviour among those who left with a safety plan and a follow-up contact, compared with usual care. It works because it is written before the crisis, kept where you can reach it, and moves in order from things you can do alone to people, and only then to professional and emergency contacts.
The six steps of a safety plan
- 1
Warning signs: the thoughts, feelings, images and behaviours that tell you a difficult period is starting.
- 2
Internal coping: what you can do alone to distract and settle — walking, a shower, music, breathing, a specific task.
- 3
People and places that distract: names you can be around without discussing the crisis at all.
- 4
People to ask for help: the two or three you would actually call, with numbers, plus what you would say first.
- 5
Professionals and services: your clinician, local crisis line and emergency number, all saved in one place.
- 6
Making the environment safe: what will be moved, locked away or given to someone else, and who helps you do it.
Making the plan actually work
- ✦Write in your own words. A plan that sounds clinical will not be read at 2 a.m.
- ✦Tell one person the plan exists and where it is — a plan nobody knows about is half a plan.
- ✦Keep the list short. Six things you will really do beat twenty aspirational ones.
- ✦Review it after any hard week and revise what did not help; plans are meant to be edited.
- ✦Add one reason for living at the end, in a single concrete sentence. It matters more than you expect in the moment.
What goes on each step
| Step | Good example | Too vague |
|---|---|---|
| Warning signs | Skipping meals, replying to nobody for two days | Feeling bad |
| Coping alone | Cold shower, then a 20-minute walk to the park | Try to relax |
| Distraction | Sit in the café on the corner until it closes | Get out more |
| People to ask | Call Sara — 'I'm having a hard night, can you stay on the line?' | Talk to someone |
| Professionals | Dr Nia, clinic number, plus the 24/7 crisis line | Get help |
| Safer environment | Give the medication box to my brother tonight | Be careful |
Your plan is stored on your device, encrypted with your account. It is not a substitute for emergency services.
Common questions
Who is a safety plan for?+
Anyone who has periods of feeling unsafe, overwhelmed or out of control — not only people with suicidal thoughts. Many people write one for panic attacks, self-harm urges or relapse risk.
What if I have nobody to list in the support step?+
Write the services instead: a crisis line, a listening line, a peer support group. Then treat 'building one contact' as a goal to work on when things are steadier.
Should I share it with my therapist?+
If you have one, yes. Safety plans work best when a clinician reviews them, and it takes ten minutes of a session.
Where should I keep it?+
Somewhere reachable in seconds: in the app, screenshotted on your phone, and ideally a paper copy at home. Access speed is the whole point.
Is this the same as a no-suicide contract?+
No, and the difference matters. Contracts ask you to promise; safety plans give you steps. Only the second has evidence behind it.