The new hotline number is very similar to that of the general government service hotline, "12345." By intentionally omitting the digit "4" as its pronunciation in Chinese resembles the word for "trouble," the number "12356" earns the hotline a playful nickname, the "no-trouble" hotline.

By January 1, the "12356" hotline had been put into operation in several regions across China, with Beijing alone receiving nearly 500 calls in the first five days, totaling 170 hours of consultation. 

Mental strain 

In recent years, mental health has gained increasing attention as a major public issue. The China Mental Health Survey revealed that 95 million people in China suffer from depression. The survey, sponsored by the NHC and Ministry of Science and Technology, is the first nationally representative community survey on mental disorders and mental health services in China, the major findings of which were first released in 2017 and are still widely cited today. The importance of mental and psychological health was also explicitly mentioned in the report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in late October 2022.

Li Mengyang, a former content commercialization director at a new media company, shared with Beijing Review some deeper insights into the mental health challenges he has faced. He was diagnosed with severe depression in November 2020, and he cited excessive workloads as a direct trigger, leading to cognitive dissonance. However, he believes the root cause was unmet personal aspirations and suppressed self-expression, resulting in a reliance on external validation for self-worth.

His case mirrors the broader issues faced by many all over China, where pressures related to career advancement, interpersonal relationships and family responsibilities are pervasive. Most "12356" callers are aged 19 to 45, with common concerns including strained family dynamics, emotional issues, career challenges, and children's education, according to China Central Television (CCTV). Emotional distress symptoms, such as anxiety, fear, tension and depression, frequently emerge during calls.

Li Jingyuan, Deputy Director of the Beijing Municipal Health Commission, explained in an interview with CCTV that the rapid pace of economic development has intensified competition in the workplace and generated work-related stress, leading to mental health issues like anxiety and depression.

Other vulnerable groups include the elderly, who may experience loneliness or depression; and children and adolescents, whose mental health challenges are surfacing at increasingly younger ages.

Government initiatives 

Recognizing the urgency of mental health issues, the government has taken remarkable steps to expand related services. In 2021, the NHC established a dedicated department for mental health, guiding healthcare institutions to offer psychological counseling services. The number of mental health service institutions nationwide has increased to approximately 6,000, which is 205 percent more than in 2010. Similarly, the number of registered psychiatrists has risen by 144 percent over the past decade, surpassing 50,000.

However, challenges persist. "Some patients resist seeking treatment, with many perceiving admitting to mental illness as a sign of weakness. Others are reluctant to share their struggles with doctors, considering their condition a deeply private matter," Li Mengyang explained.

Additionally, mental health and psychological services are not yet able to reach every community, especially in remote and rural areas. The capacity to provide mental health and psychological services still needs to be continuously strengthened.

Hotline support 

The "12356" hotline serves as a vital lifeline, offering immediate support to those in distress.

"A hotline is not a comprehensive psychological counseling service or psychotherapy, but it offers people who are currently in a problematic situation, in personal distress, or experiencing suicidal thoughts, the opportunity to step out of their feeling of loneliness and talk to someone about it. In this respect, the hotline is a low-threshold support in times of personal emotional distress," Ulrich Sollmann, a visiting professor at the Department of Clinical Psychology of the First Medical Hospital of Hebei Medical University, told Beijing Review.

Beijing's "12356" hotline operates 24/7 with a team of 327 professionals, including psychiatrists and psychotherapists. Sha Sha, Director of the Clinical Psychology Center at Beijing Anding Hospital, told CCTV that these operators have accumulated relevant techniques and experience in frontline psychological treatment for patients with mental illnesses, enabling them to handle psychological issues and respond to emergencies, particularly those that arise at night.

The operators use highly professional psychological counseling and intervention techniques, such as active listening, emotional management, as well as applying physical and behavioral strategies to manage emotions. These multi-dimensional techniques are used for emotional intervention.

Plus, calls to Beijing's "12356" hotline are answered in a private space. Here, audio recordings are not allowed and call information cannot be displayed, all to protect caller privacy.

However, despite its early success, the hotline may come to face challenges. One of these challenges, as Sollmann pointed out, is ensuring trained staff is always on hand. Without sufficient personnel, there is a risk that callers will have to wait too long to speak with a counselor, leading people in urgent need of help to quickly lose hope. What's more, this could in turn undermine the hotline's appeal.

"Another thing is that you may only have this one conversation to help. Counselors and psychotherapists are generally not familiar with such a specific situation, as they usually engage in longer, on-going counseling or therapy sessions. Moreover, it's not primarily about addressing psychological disorders, but rather about dealing with emotional difficulties stemming from a very current, very challenging situation," Sollmann noted.

The professor proposed four key actions: increasing hotline awareness, improving operator training, strengthening cooperation at all levels and evaluating the hotline's effectiveness in collaboration with counseling centers and hospitals.

"I think the hotline is a lifeline. It reassures those in need that someone is always there to support them in their darkest moments," Li Mengyang said.

(Print Edition: Hotline Becomes Lifeline)

Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon 

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