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About Teen Line: History

TEEN LINE is unique …

Our Teen Listeners have a special ability to understand and empathize with callers because they are teens themselves … they speak their language.

Resource Associates, all mental health professionals, volunteer their time each night to provide on-site supervision and support to the Teen Listeners, especially important after a particularly traumatic call.

Our Community Outreach Program reaches over 30,000 each year, opening dialogues and educating the community about issues pertinent to adolescence.

Our Teen Suicide Prevention Training has been a regular part of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Juvenile Procedures School curriculum since 1996.

TEEN LINE was created in 1980 by a group of mental health professionals who, through their personal work with teenagers, realized that a more inclusive approach to adolescent mental health was needed. After extensive research and consultation, TEEN LINE - a teen-to-teen hotline with community outreach services - was born. TEEN LINE has been an affiliated program of the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center ’s Department of Psychiatry since its inception. In 2006, TEEN LINE opened its first Satellite in the San Fernando Valley in partnership with Tarzana Treatment Centers and opened its second Satellite in Riverside County in partnership with the Riverside Office of Education in 2007.

TEEN LINE is based on the premise that when teenagers encounter problems, they usually turn first to their peers for advice. Many teens think their parents can’t possibly understand what’s happening in their lives and that their friends might laugh or abandon them. TEEN LINE provides a safe, confidential place to talk things out with another teen who can understand and will listen, but not judge. This simple act of listening can make a huge difference – sometimes a life-saving one. Each year nearly 9,000 young people call the hotline and more than 30,000 attend our outreaches. Teens know they can trust TEEN LINE – and they do.

Media … TEEN LINE is recognized throughout California and nationally as a trusted resource about adolescents. Television appearances and radio interviews include: The Today Show, Larry Elder Show, Michael Jackson KABC Radio and many others. TEEN LINE was a consultant for HBO’s ‘A Deadly Secret’ and has appeared in numerous magazines such as Seventeen, Teen People and YM. Panelists from our Teen Suicide Prevention Outreach were featured on the MTV award-winning music video for the rock group, Good Charlotte’s hit ‘Hold On’.

Awards … TEEN LINE has been widely recognized for our service to young people through numerous commendations, citations and awards, including the Angel of Peace Award from The Violence Prevention Coalition of Greater Los Angeles the National Peer Helper's Association's 2005 Program of the Year Award. TEEN LINE is proud of our accreditation from the American Association of Suicidology. This is rare for a non-24 hour hotline and we are deeply proud of this accomplishment.

Call toll-free in CA (800) 852-8336 or (310) 855-HOPE (4673) and (951) 826-4673, daily 6pm to 10pm PST

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