Men less likely to seek suicide help despite higher discussion rates, Crisis Text Line report shows

The nonprofit Crisis Text Line reviewed 1.5 million text messages it received in 2025 and discovered that fewer than one‑fifth of the users identified as male only.

Even though men made up a small share of texters, they were more likely than women to bring up suicide in their messages, and the issue appeared early; about one in three chats with boys under age 14 mentioned suicide.

Researchers say the pattern reflects masculine norms that encourage self‑reliance, which may prevent men from seeking help and help explain why roughly 80 % of suicide deaths in the United States involve men.