Teens who need help with a problem or serious decision can pick up the phone and speak with someone his or her own age who is trained to deal with the unexpected. Teen Line provides crisis intervention and prevention, peer counseling and referral specifically for children and adolescents ages 12 to 19.
The teen-to-teen program also helps young people cope in times of trauma and stress and offers advice and referrals when needed. Teen Line's extensive outreach service provides presentations to schools, youth groups and adolescent-serving agencies. Specialized workshops are given on such issues as teen suicide, teens and tolerance and growing up gay.
Teen Line also publishes educational materials, including the Youth Yellow Pages, a resource handbook for teens, a teen sexuality brochure and several videos on such topics as eating disorders, teen pregnancy and runaway and homeless youth. The videos feature youth panels.
Affiliated with Cedars-Sinai, Teen Line is also an important part of the Juvenile Procedures School at the Los Angeles Police Academy. The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department and the Los Angeles Unified School District police also use Teen Line's teen suicide prevention and intervention training.
The hotline is open from 6 to 10 p.m. daily Pacific Standard Time and receives calls from teens across the nation. While adult volunteers staff most similar programs, high school students answer Teen Line's phones. The students are trained to listen, ask questions and help callers work through difficult situations.
