Assess for signs of a crisis With physical first aid, you first need to check for the most serious and life-threatening issues. If someone isn’t breathing, there is little reason checking for broken bones or bleeding. The same is true for mental first aid. It’s important to check for the warning signs of the most serious mental health issues. Learn to watch for warning signs of suicide, it is a potential outcome of several mental health illnesses. Noticeable signs include: excessive sadness, hopelessness, a sudden calmness, withdrawal, or making preparations. Look for signs of self-harm, not just cutting but potentially dangerous behaviour , such as reckless driving, engaging in unsafe sex, and increased use of drugs and/or alcohol. It’s worth noting that self-harm is rarely a suicide attempt, the risk of death is mostly accidental. Look for signs of a panic attack. They can feel similar to a heart attack. Panic attacks can also have physical symptoms, including shaking, feeling disorientated, nausea, rapid, irregular heartbeats, dry mouth, breathlessness, sweating and dizziness. Look for signs of an eating disorder. Anorexia has the highest morality rate of any psychiatric disorder. These issues are statistically more common than you think, in many cases these aren’t officially diagnosed, especially with men. However, don’t discount more common issue like anxiety or depression, these can definitely feel like a crisis to the person suffering, even you can’t see the symptoms as clearly.