Safety planning is one of the most vital tools for patients who are navigating risk, whether due to thoughts of suicide, self-harm, substance use, or other safety concerns. It’s not just another form to fill out- it’s there to help you stay safe during the toughest moments.
What is a safety plan?
A safety plan is essentially a coping-with-distress plan—a set of personalized strategies and supports you can use to navigate moments when emotional pain feels unbearable.
These moments are often short in duration but intense, like a wave cresting in the ocean. The goal is not to eliminate distress altogether, but to help you survive the peak of the wave. Over time, therapy helps make the waves smaller, less frequent, and easier to ride out. But safety planning helps manage this wave right now with meaningful tools.
When done well, a safety plan is:
- Collaborative: Created during your appointment with your provider.
- Concrete: Easy to understand and access during a crisis.
- Dynamic: Reviewed and updated as your needs evolve.
Every patient can benefit from safety planning. Life is unpredictable: we all experience distress at times, and having a clear plan for how to cope—who to reach out to, what to do, and what keeps us going—can be a powerful act of self-support. A safety plan doesn’t mean you are failing or in trouble, but rather, like a life jacket there in case the waves get too big.
Where can you see your safety plan?
Once you have a safety plan in place, created with your provider, you can review your plan directly in the Rula patient portal.
| Please note: Rula is making some updates to safety plans that allow patients to view them in the Rula patient portal and receive email alerts when changes are made. Currently, these updates are available to a small group of patients and providers, and will be rolled out to everyone soon. |
- Log in to the Rula patient portal
- In the portal, click You have a safety plan ready.
- Your safety plan will slide open and is now viewable!
You can always download a PDF copy of your safety plan for easy access later. Simply click Download PDF.
Updating your safety plan
Your safety plan should work and make sense for you. Remember, this plan includes who to reach out to, what to do, and what keeps you going - these things can change over time! Your safety plan should change with you.
Helpful tips:
- Your entire care team has access to your safety plan and can make updates.
- Only the providers in your care team can make updates. If you want to make updates, bring this up during your appointment so you can do it together.
- If you change providers at Rula, your safety plan will follow in your portal.
- Any time your safety plan is updated, you'll receive an email alert allowing you to immediately review the updates made.
Additional Resources
- Resources for patients in crisis
- Understanding Your GAD Survey Results
- Making Sense of Your PHQ-9 or PHQ-9A Results
- Getting Help: A Simple Guide to Mental Health & Substance Use Treatment
Updated