Crisis Safety Plan
Your emergency roadmap. Saved securely on this device.
Pre-populated based on clinical evidence for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Learn them before a crisis happens.
- Expressing intent to harm themselves or others
- Suicidal statements or behavior (OCD carries elevated suicide risk, especially with harm obsessions)
- Complete inability to function: not eating, not sleeping, unable to leave a room due to rituals
- Psychotic break: losing contact with reality, unable to distinguish obsessions from real intentions
- Violent behavior toward self or others in response to obsessions
- Suicidal ideation, especially statements like 'I can't live with these thoughts'
- Rituals expanding to take more than 4-6 hours per day
- Complete refusal to participate in ERP or any treatment
- Stopping medication without telling their doctor
- Significant increase in accommodation requests that are impossible to meet
- Harm obsessions intensifying with increased distress about acting on them
- Rituals increasing in frequency or duration from their baseline
- New obsessions or compulsions appearing
- Avoidance expanding to new triggers or situations
- Reassurance-seeking increasing significantly
- Sleep disruption due to nighttime rituals or obsessive rumination
- Missing therapy appointments or refusing to do ERP homework
Used in VA hospitals, crisis centers, and emergency departments worldwide. Fill it out before a crisis. Review it together regularly. Keep a copy on the refrigerator, in a wallet, and on a phone.
Warning Signs
Thoughts, moods, situations, or behaviors that signal a crisis may be developing.
Internal Coping Strategies
Things they can do on their own — without contacting anyone — to take their mind off the crisis.
People and Places That Provide Distraction
Social contacts or settings that can help shift focus — without necessarily discussing the crisis.
People I Can Ask for Help
Family members or friends who can help during a crisis — people they trust enough to tell what is happening.
Professionals and Agencies to Contact
Treatment providers, crisis lines, and emergency services.
741741 — Crisis Text Line (text HOME)
911 — Emergency Services
Making the Environment Safe
Specific steps to reduce access to lethal means. Refer to the Lethal Means Counseling section above.
One thing that makes life worth living
Research shows that identifying a specific reason to live — however small — is protective during a crisis.
Stanley, B. & Brown, G.K. (2012). Safety planning intervention: A brief intervention to mitigate suicide risk. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 19(2), 256–264.
What specific actions will you take when you notice warning signs? Personalize these for your situation.