If You’re Suicidal and Thinking About Therapy

If you’re having suicidal thoughts, it can be hard to know whether therapy will actually help—or whether it’s safe to talk openly about what you’re experiencing. Many people worry that saying the word “suicide” will lead to panic, judgment, or losing control over what happens next.

In my work, suicidal thoughts are something we can talk about directly and honestly.

I’m Dese’Rae L. Stage, LCSW, founder of Three Swords Therapy, and I specialize in working with people who experience suicidal ideation, chronic suicidality, self-injury, depression, anxiety, and ADHD, particularly within the LGBTQIA+ community.

Many of my clients live with ongoing suicidal thoughts, sometimes for years. Some feel overwhelmed by them; others describe them as something that’s always present in the background. Wherever you fall on that spectrum, therapy can be a place to explore what those thoughts mean, what intensifies them, and how to reduce the suffering that comes with them.

In addition to clinical training, I bring lived experience with chronic suicidal ideation, ADHD, treatment-resistant depression, and anxiety, which shapes how I approach this work. My goal is to create a space where these experiences can be spoken about openly, without shame or fear of being misunderstood.

I provide telehealth therapy for adults in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.