A copy and paste status is spreading on Facebook promoting the mental health charity MIND, while asking two people to copy and paste the same status to their own timeline.
An example of the spreading message is below –
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. The wonderful charity MIND has a 24 hour helpline: 800-123-3393
Please could any two of my Facebook friends just copy and repost to share the helpline far and wide. Just two. Any two. Say done.
While MIND is a genuine charity that helps people with mental health struggles, it is a charity based in England and Wales, and as such won’t work for people outside of the UK. Additionally, the message is spreading predominantly with an incorrect phone number that won’t work for anyone, regardless of whether they live in the UK or not.
The number in the message above reads 800-123-3393. However this is not the phone number for MIND. The information hotline for MIND is 0300 123 3393. Again, bear in mind that this is a UK phone number. It appears at some point in time, someone has assumed they can just replace the first four digits with 800 to somehow convert the number to a US phone number, when this is not the case.
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So to reiterate, MIND is a charity based in England and Wales and isn’t intended for use outside of the UK. The correct number for MIND is 0300 123 3393 for people in the UK, not the number quoted in the message. The number is open 9am-6pm Mondays to Fridays and can provide valuable information pertaining to mental health struggles and where to seek treatment.
Given the number is incorrect, and those who may try and use the number may be in a fragile state, we don’t recommend spreading this message with the incorrect number.
For people looking for help in the United States, Mental Health America has the following information –
If you or someone you know is in crisis, please call 911, go to the nearest emergency room, call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) to reach a 24-hour crisis center, or text MHA to 741741 at the Crisis Text Line.
Additionally Australia has some helplines listed here.
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