School: Minister Destiny Testimony Schools Track: Youth Class: Topic Library — Year 1 (Foundations) Presented by: Minister Destiny Marie Morgan, Muslim Ordained Minister
This lesson is educational information and is not legal advice and not medical advice. Laws vary by state. If you are in danger right now, call 911. If you are struggling, call or text 988 any time — free, confidential, day or night.
Before you start
- This space is private. Nobody sees what you read or answer. Your progress stays on your device.
- We never ask your name. Not here, not on the test, not on the certificate. If you earn a certificate, you download it and write your own name on it after.
- Pass the test at 80% or higher to earn this unit's certificate. You can retake the test as many times as you need — each retake presents the questions in a different order, with the answer choices in a different order too. Answers are not shown: go back and find what you missed.
- If you are in danger right now: call 911. If you cannot talk out loud, text HOME to 741741 (Crisis Text Line) or call or text 988 any time, day or night.
- This unit is about helping — yourself and your friends. It teaches the warning signs, the one rule that matters most, and the numbers that work. People in crisis can be helped, help works, and asking for help is strength.
The lesson
Part 1. Hard feelings and a crisis are different — and both deserve help
Everyone has awful days: a fight, a failure, a loss. Those feelings are real and deserve support. A crisis is different: it is when pain starts to feel hopeless — when a person feels trapped, like a burden, or like things will never get better. That feeling is a health emergency, the way a broken bone is. It is not weakness, and it is not drama.
Two truths to keep. First, a crisis is a feeling-state, not a life sentence — it can pass, especially with support and care. Second, nobody has to reach the worst point before asking for help. Feeling overwhelmed or hopeless is reason enough to call 988 or text HOME to 741741, right then.
Part 2. Warning signs in a friend — what to watch for
You may be the first person to notice when a friend is in trouble. Watch for changes like these:
- Talking or posting about wanting to die, feeling hopeless, having no reason to live, or being a burden to everyone.
- Pulling away — quitting the group chat, skipping things they used to love, avoiding everyone.
- Big changes: sleeping all the time or barely at all, not eating, failing classes they used to pass.
- Using more alcohol or drugs, or taking new risks without caring what happens.
- Giving away things that matter to them, or saying goodbye in a way that feels final.
One sign is a reason to check in. Several signs together — or anything that sounds like goodbye — is a reason to act today, using Part 3. Trust what you notice. You are not overreacting; you are being a friend.
Part 3. The one rule: never keep a friend's secret about safety
Here is the most important sentence in this unit: if a friend tells you they are thinking about suicide, you never keep that secret — you tell a trusted adult immediately. A friend may beg you not to tell. Tell anyway. A friendship can survive a broken promise; it cannot be rebuilt after a loss. Telling is not snitching. It is how your friend gets help bigger than any friend can carry alone.
A trusted adult is someone who believes you and will act: a parent or caregiver, a counselor, a teacher, a coach. Show them the messages if you have them. If the first adult shrugs it off, tell the next one, and keep telling until an adult acts. You can also call or text 988 — counselors there help worried friends too.
Part 4. How to help a friend — ask, listen, stay, connect
You can do more than tell, and none of it requires the perfect words. Ask directly: "Are you thinking about suicide?" Asking does not plant the idea — that is a myth, and Part 5 takes it apart. Listen: let them talk, do not judge, and do not promise secrecy. Stay: with them, in person or on the phone, while an adult or counselor gets involved. Connect: call 988 together, or text HOME to 741741 side by side. If a friend might act right now, call 911.
And if the person in crisis is you: the same steps are yours. Tell a trusted adult today. Call or text 988. You deserve the same help you would get for a friend.
Part 5. Myths that get in the way
Myths keep people silent, so learn the facts cold. "Talking about suicide makes it worse" — false; talking opens the door to help. "People who mention it just want attention" — false; every mention is a warning sign to take seriously. "If I tell, my friend will hate me forever" — a friend may be upset for a while; that is a price worth paying for their life. "Real friends handle things between themselves" — false; real friends bring in the adults and counselors whose job this is. You would not set a friend's broken bone yourself. Do not carry this alone either.
Words to know — Suicide and Suicide Prevention
- Crisis — a time when pain feels hopeless and a person feels trapped; a health emergency that can pass with support and care.
- Warning signs — changes in what a person says or does that show they may be thinking about suicide and need help now.
- Trusted adult — an adult who believes you, does not hurt you, and will act to help.
- Crisis counselor — a trained counselor who answers 988 or the Crisis Text Line, listens, and connects people to help.
- Help-seeking — reaching out to a person, counselor, or service for support; strength, never weakness.
- 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline — the free, confidential service you reach by calling or texting 988, any time, for yourself or for a friend.
- Crisis Text Line — the free service you reach by texting HOME to 741741, to type with a trained counselor instead of talking.
- Safety secret — a secret about someone's safety; the kind of secret that is never kept — you tell a trusted adult.
Myths vs facts — Suicide and Suicide Prevention
- Myth: Talking about suicide plants the idea. Fact: Asking directly does not plant anything. It opens the door to help.
- Myth: Keeping a friend's secret proves loyalty. Fact: Safety secrets are never kept. Telling a trusted adult is the loyalty that matters.
- Myth: People who talk about suicide just want attention. Fact: Talking about it is a warning sign. Take every mention seriously.
- Myth: 988 is only for the very worst moment. Fact: You can call 988 any time you feel overwhelmed, hopeless, or worried about a friend.
- Myth: A crisis lasts forever. Fact: A crisis is a state that can pass — support, time, and care help people through it.
Think it through — Suicide and Suicide Prevention
The situation: Your friend Maya has gone quiet for two weeks — out of the group chat, off the team. Last night she texted you: "Everyone's better off without me messing things up. Promise you won't tell anyone." This morning she sent you her favorite hoodie with a note: "Want you to have this."
Walk it through: (1) Name the signs (Part 2): pulling away, talking about being a burden, and giving away something that matters — several signs together means act today. (2) Break the promise (Part 3): safety secrets are never kept. Tell a trusted adult immediately and show them the texts. (3) Help directly (Part 4): call Maya, ask the direct question, listen, stay on the line, and call or text 988 together if she will. If she might act right now, call 911. (4) Keep telling (Part 3): if the first adult does not act, tell the next one. That is not betrayal. That is friendship with its sleeves rolled up.
Cases & codes to study — Suicide and Suicide Prevention
This youth unit teaches no court cases, on purpose — the skills here are helping skills, and they do not need a case. There is one piece of law behind the number you have been learning: a federal law made 988 the one national number for suicide and crisis help, so anyone, anywhere in the country, can reach trained counselors by dialing three digits. That is all you need to know about the law here: 988 works, it is free, and it is answered day and night.
Try this — Suicide and Suicide Prevention
- ☐ Save 988 in your phone, and start a text thread with the Crisis Text Line (text HOME to 741741) so it is there if you need it.
- ☐ Name three trusted adults, in order, and save them in your phone.
- ☐ Practice saying the direct question out loud: "Are you thinking about suicide?"
- ☐ Tell a friend the one rule: safety secrets are never kept — we tell an adult.
- ☐ Learn the warning signs list in Part 2 well enough to say it without looking.
Resources to keep — Suicide and Suicide Prevention
- 988 (call or text) — free, confidential help any time, for you or for a friend you are worried about.
- Crisis Text Line: text HOME to 741741 — if you would rather type than talk.
- 911 — if someone might act right now, or is in danger.
- Childhelp: 1-800-422-4453 — help if an adult is pressuring or hurting you.
- SAMHSA — samhsa.gov — suicide prevention information written for families and young people.
What you earned / what's next — Suicide and Suicide Prevention
✅ Suicide and Suicide Prevention complete (test score 80% or higher): You can spot the warning signs in a friend, state the one rule about safety secrets, ask the direct question, and connect a friend — or yourself — to a trusted adult and to 988 fast.
Your certificate
Minister Destiny Testimony Schools Certificate of Completion — Suicide and Suicide Prevention
This certificate is presented by Muslim Ordained Minister Destiny Marie Morgan
Awarded to: ______________________________ (write your name here after you download — your name is never collected or stored by this school)
Date completed: ______________
Congratulations. You learned the signs, the rule, and the numbers — and that telling fast is what real friends do. — Minister Destiny Marie Morgan
This is a certificate of educational completion from Minister Destiny Testimony Schools. It is not a state license, a government certification, or legal training for representing anyone.
What's next: Return to the Topic Library for your next Year 1 Foundations unit.
Sources
- Preventing Suicide — Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (cdc.gov) (https://www.cdc.gov/suicide/prevention/index.html) — warning signs, protective connections, and the prevention frame used in Parts 1–2.
- Suicide Prevention — Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (samhsa.gov) (http://www.samhsa.gov/mental-health/suicidal-behavior/prevention) — helping steps, including that asking directly does not put the idea in a person's head, used in Part 4.
Your Progress — On Your Device Only
- Learning outcomes: On completing this unit, the student can:
- explain the difference between hard feelings and a crisis, and why a crisis can pass with support;
- list the warning signs of suicide in a friend;
- state the rule that a friend's secret about safety is never kept, and name how to tell a trusted adult;
- ask a friend directly about suicide, listen, stay, and connect them to 988 or the Crisis Text Line;
- correct the common myths that keep people silent.
- Study time: Approximately 30 minutes — an estimate covering reading, activities, and the test. Students move at their own pace.
- Assessment: A 10-question test drawn only from this unit's lesson. 80% or higher passes and earns the unit certificate. Answers are not shown; your score is saved only in your own browser on this device, and retakes are allowed.
- Level: Topic Library — Year 1 (Foundations) · Youth school · working rank on completion path: Freshman → Sophomore.
- Version: Version 1.0 — October 2026.
Minister Destiny Testimony Schools — Youth. Educational information only, not legal advice. Help lines: 911 · 988 (call or text) · Crisis Text Line (text HOME to 741741) · Childhelp 1-800-422-4453.