At YouTube, we take the health and wellbeing of all our creators and viewers seriously. Awareness and understanding of mental health is important and we support creators sharing their stories, such as posting content discussing their experiences with depression, self-harm, eating disorders or other mental health issues.
However, we do not allow content on YouTube that promotes suicide, self-harm or eating disorders, that is intended to shock or disgust, or that poses a considerable risk to viewers.
What to do if you find this content
If you believe that someone is in danger:
- Get in touch with local emergency services for help
- Flag the video to bring it to our attention
If you find yourself being negatively affected by any mental health, suicide, self-harm or eating-disorder-related content that you come across, know that there is support available and you're not alone. In the next section, you can find a list of resources and contact information for organisations that can offer advice.
For general guidance on how to talk to someone who you may be concerned about, contact local helplines.
What to do if you need support
If you are depressed, having thoughts of suicide, self-harming or experiencing an eating disorder, know that there is help and you're not alone. While coping with painful emotions, many people might experience these issues. Talking to a mental health care provider can help determine if you have a mental illness that requires care. It can also help you identify healthy, effective coping strategies and develop skills to manage difficult feelings.
Suicide and self-harm support resources
Below is a list of organisations dedicated to helping those in need in different countries and regions. These are recognised crisis service partners. Partnerships vary by country/region.
The websites findahelpline.com and wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_suicide_crisis_lines could help you find organisations for regions not listed here.
| Australia |
|
13 11 14 |
| Argentina | Centro de Asistencia al Suicida – Buenos Aires |
135 (desde Capital y Gran Buenos Aires) (011) 5275-1135 (desde todo el país) |
| Brazil | Centro de Valorização da Vida | 188 |
| Belgium |
0800 32 123 1813 |
|
| Belgium | Community Help Service | 32 2 648 4014 |
| Bulgaria | Български Червен Кръст | 02 492 30 30 |
| Czechia | Psychiatrická léčebna Bohnice – Centrum krizové intervence | +420 284 016 666 |
| Canada | 988 | |
| Costa Rica | Línea Aquí Estoy | +506 2272-3774 |
| Denmark | Livslinien | 70201201 |
| France | S.O.S Amitié | 09 72 39 40 50 |
| Finland | Suomen Mielenterveysseura / Kansallinen kriisipuhelin | 09-2525-0111 |
| Germany | TelefonSeelsorge | 0800 111 01 11 0800 111 02 22 116 123 |
| Greece | ΚΛΙΜΑΚΑ | 1018 |
| Hong Kong | 香港撒瑪利亞防止自殺會 | 2389 2222 |
| Hungary | S.O.S. Telefonos Lelki Elsősegély Szolgálat | 06 1 116-123 |
| India | iCALL | 091529 87821 |
| Ireland | Samaritans | 116 123 |
| Israel | ער"ן - עזרה ראשונה נפשית | 1201 |
| Italy | Samaritans Onlus | 800 86 00 22 |
| Japan | こころの健康相談統一ダイヤル | 0570-064-556 |
| New Zealand | Lifeline New Zealand | 0800 543 354 |
| Netherlands | Stichting 113Online | 0900-0113 |
| Norway | Mental Helse | 116 123 |
| Pakistan | Umang Mental Health Helpline | 03117786264 |
| Peru | Ministerio de Salud | 113 |
| Russia | Фонд поддержки детей, находящихся в трудной жизненной ситуации | 8-800-2000-122 |
| Singapore | Samaritans of Singapore |
1800-221-4444 1767 |
| Spain |
93 414 48 48 717 003 717 |
|
| South Korea | 보건복지부 자살예방상담전화 | 109 |
| Switzerland | 143 | |
| Taiwan | 生命線協談專線 | 1995 |
| Thailand | กรมสุขภาพจิต กระทรวงสาธารณสุข | 1323 |
| United Kingdom | Samaritans | 116 123 |
| United States of America |
988/Chat |
To read tips and watch videos that can help you feel safer on YouTube, visit the Creator Safety Centre.
Eating disorder support resources
Below is a list of organisations that help individuals with eating disorders. These organisations are mental health support partners. Partnerships vary by country/region.
| Australia | Butterfly Foundation | 1800 33 4673 |
| Brazil | Centro de Valorização da Vida | 188 |
| Canada | National Eating Disorder Information Centre | 18666334220 |
| Canada | Anorexie et Boulimie Québec | 18006300907 |
| France | Fédération Française Anorexie Boulimie | 09 69 325 900 |
| Germany | BZgA – Essstörungen.de | |
| India | Vandrevala Foundation | 91 9999 666 555 |
| Japan | 摂食障害相談ほっとライン | 0477108869 |
| Mexico | Línea de la Vida | 8009112000 |
| South Korea | 국립정신건강센터 | 15770199 |
| United Kingdom | Beat Eating Disorders | 0808 801 0677 England |
| 0808 801 0432 Scotland | ||
| 0808 801 0433 Wales | ||
| 0808 801 0434 N. Ireland | ||
| United States of America | Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration | 1-800-662-4357 |
Community Guidelines for posting suicide, self-harm or eating-disorder-related content
YouTube users should not be afraid to speak openly about the topics of mental health, suicide, self-harm and eating disorders in a supportive and non-harmful way.
However, there are times when content is created that is sensitive and may pose a risk for some users. When you create content that contains suicide, self-harm or eating-disorder-related topics, take into account the possible negative impact of your content on other users, especially minors and users who may be sensitive to this content.
To protect and support your viewers and other users, please follow the Community Guidelines below when creating content related to suicide, self-harm or eating disorders. Not following these Community Guidelines may result in a strike, removal of your content or other restrictions to protect users. Learn more.
This Community Guidelines policy applies to videos, video descriptions, comments, live streams and any other YouTube product or feature. Bear in mind that this isn't a complete list. Please note that these policies also apply to external links in your content. This can include clickable URLs and verbally directing users to other sites in the video, as well as other forms.
Don't post the following content:
- Content promoting or glorifying suicide, self-harm or eating disorders
- Instructions on how to die by suicide, engage in self-harm or engage in eating disorders (including how to conceal them)
- Content related to suicide, self-harm or eating disorders that is targeted at minors
- Graphic images of self-harm
- Visuals of bodies of suicide victims unless blurred or covered so that they are fully obscured
- Videos showing the lead-up to a suicide, or suicide attempts and suicide rescue footage without sufficient context
- Content showing participation in or instructions for suicide and self-harm challenges (e.g. Blue Whale or Momo challenges)
- Suicide notes or letters without sufficient context
- Content that features weight-based bullying in the context of eating disorders
In some cases we may restrict, rather than remove, suicide, self-harm or eating disorder content if it meets one or more of the following criteria (for example, by placing an age restriction, a warning or a crisis resource panel on the video). Please note that this is not a complete list:
- Content that is meant to be educational, documentary, scientific or artistic
- Content that is of public interest
- Graphic content that is sufficiently blurred
- Dramatisations or scripted content, which includes but is not limited to animations, video games, music videos and clips from movies and shows
- Detailed discussion of suicide or self-harm methods, locations and hotspots
- Graphic descriptions of self-harm or suicide
- Eating disorder recovery content that includes details which may be triggering to at-risk viewers
Best practices for creators posting content about suicide, self-harm or eating disorders
We recommend using these best practices in content related to suicide or self-harm to protect your viewers from harm and distress:
- Avoid showing the person who died by suicide, and respect their and their families' privacy. Learn more.
- Use wording that is positive and supportive, and focuses on recovery, prevention and stories of hope.
- Include information and resources for suicide and self-harm prevention and coping strategies. Try to include it in both the video itself and the description of the video.
- Do not use sensationalist language or dramatic visuals.
- Provide context but avoid discussing how the victim died by suicide. Do not mention the methods or locations.
- Blur content that contains images of suicide victims. You can blur your video with the Editor in YouTube Studio. Learn more.
We recommend using these best practices in content related to eating disorders to protect your viewers from harm and distress:
- Focus on the impact of the disorder instead of the details of the disordered eating behaviour.
- Tell your audience that eating disorders commonly cause severe complications.
- Include info and resources for eating disorder prevention and coping strategies. Try to include it in both the video itself and the description of the video.
What happens if content violates this policy
If your content violates this policy, we will remove the content and send you an email to let you know. If we can't verify that a link that you post is safe, we may remove the link. Note that violative URLs posted within the video itself or in the video's metadata may result in the video being removed.
If this is the first time that you've violated our community guidelines, you'll most likely get a warning with no penalty to your channel. You will have the chance to take policy training to allow the warning to expire after 90 days. The 90-day period starts from when the training is completed, not when the warning is issued. However, if the same policy is violated within that 90-day window, the warning will not expire and your channel will be given a strike. If you violate a different policy after completing the training, you will get another warning.
If you get three strikes within 90 days, your channel will be terminated. Learn more about our strikes system.
We may terminate your channel or account for repeated violations of the Community Guidelines or Terms of Service. We may also terminate your channel or account after a single case of severe abuse or when the channel is dedicated to a policy violation. We may prevent repeat offenders from taking policy training in the future. Learn more about channel or account terminations.
Finally, we may also limit your access to live streaming if you suggest that you'll live stream content that will violate our Community Guidelines. Learn more about restrictions on live streaming.
Warnings and supportive resources
YouTube may show features or resources to users when content contains suicide or self-harm topics. For example:
- A warning on your video before it starts playing, indicating that it contains content relating to suicide and self-harm
- A panel under the video containing supportive resources such as phone numbers of suicide prevention organisations