SEATTLE—In the first year since launching, 161 youth (aged 0-25) and concerned individuals in 20 counties across Washington contacted HearMeWA – the free, trauma-informed youth hotline. HearMeWA is a text and phone hotline available 24 hours a day in multiple languages and that fully complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act’s visual and hearing guidelines.

The contacts from the past year echo data gathered from the 2023 Healthy Youth Survey, pointing to issues that continue to weigh on youth. Almost half of the contacts to HearMeWA were about: bullying/cyberbullying (13%), depression and harassment (9%), anxiety (8%), child abuse and neglect (7%), and suicide/suicide ideation (6%). While funding cuts are impacting youth resources nationwide, in its first year HearMeWA has already

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