As the coronavirus pandemic sweeps the globe, people have been asking me what our data is showing.

Here’s our initial read on the situation:

• America is feeling intense anxiety. Top words are paranoid, freaked, and anxious. Starting to co-present heavily with finances.
• Our texters are skewing older than we normally see. Read: teens are handling this better than adults.
• We’re keeping an eye on child abuse and domestic violence as quarantines grow and people are trapped at home with abusers.

Somehow, our satisfaction ratings are 2 points up (?!) to a whopping 89%. Things that are working to help people stay calm (that you might want to use too):

• References to timeframe (ie “What things can you do tomorrow to stay strong?” or  “Tell me about your plans for the next 3 days”)
• The word “mom.” (Hooray! Usually, we show up as a source of pain. Nice to be part of the solution this time.) Sidenote: Dad is not even a top 20 words. C’mon, Dads of America. Lean in!
• Validating pain. Using phrases like “Its normal to feel freaked out right now” or “Yeah, its ok to feel stressed out today.”

With empathy and strength and FACTS,

Nancy Lublin

CEO and Co-Founder, Crisis Text Line