At YouTube, we take the health and well-being of all our creators and viewers seriously. Awareness and understanding of mental health is important and we support creators sharing their stories, such as posting content discussing their experiences with depression, self-harm, eating disorders, or other mental health issues.
However, we do not allow content on YouTube that promotes suicide, self-harm, or eating disorders, that is intended to shock or disgust, or that poses a considerable risk to viewers.
What to do if you find this content
If you believe someone is in danger:
- Get in touch with local emergency services for help
- Flag the video to bring it to our attention
If you find yourself being negatively affected by any mental health, suicide, self-harm, or eating disorder related content you come across, know that there is support available and you’re not alone. In the next section you can find a list of resources and contact information for organizations that can offer advice.
For general guidance on how to talk to someone who you may be concerned about, contact local helplines.
What to do if you need support
If you are depressed, having thoughts of suicide, self-harming, or experiencing an eating disorder, know there is help and you’re not alone. While coping with painful emotions, many people might experience these issues. Talking to a mental health care provider can help determine if you have a mental illness that requires care. It can also help you identify healthy, effective coping strategies and develop skills to manage difficult feelings.
Suicide and self-harm support resources
Below is a list of organizations dedicated to helping those in need in different countries and regions. These are recognized crisis service partners. Partnerships vary by country/region.
The websites findahelpline.com and www.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_suicide_crisis_lines could help you find organizations for regions not listed here.
To read tips and watch videos that can help you feel safer on YouTube, visit the Creator Safety Center.
Eating disorder support resources
Below is a list of organizations that help individuals with eating disorders. These organizations are mental health support partners. Partnerships vary by country/region.
| Australia | Butterfly Foundation | 1800 33 4673 |
| Brazil | Centro de Valorização da Vida | 188 |
| Canada | National Eating Disorder Information Centre | 18666334220 |
| Canada | Anorexie et Boulimie Québec | 18006300907 |
| France | Fédération Française Anorexie Boulimie | 09 69 325 900 |
| Germany | BZgA - Essstörungen.de | |
| India | Vandrevala Foundation | 91 9999 666 555 |
| Japan | 摂食障害相談ã»ã£ã¨ãƒ©ã‚¤ãƒ³ | 0477108869 |
| Mexico | LÃnea de la Vida | 8009112000 |
| South Korea | êµë¦½ì •ì‹ 건강센터 | 15770199 |
| United Kingdom | BEAT Eating Disorders | 0808 801 0677 England |
| 0808 801 0432 Scotland | ||
| 0808 801 0433 Wales | ||
| 0808 801 0434 N. Ireland | ||
| United States of America | Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration | 1-800-662-4357 |
Community Guidelines for posting suicide, self-harm, or eating disorder-related content
YouTube users should not be afraid to speak openly about the topics of mental health, suicide, self-harm, and eating disorders in a supportive and non-harmful way.
However, there are times when content is created that is sensitive and may pose a risk for some users. When you create content that contains suicide, self-harm, or eating disorder related topics, take into account the possible negative impact of your content on other users, especially minors and users who may be sensitive to this content.
To protect and support your viewers and other users, please follow the Community Guidelines below when creating content related to suicide, self-harm, or eating disorders. Not following these Community Guidelines may result in a strike, removal of your content, or other restrictions to protect users. Learn more.
This Community Guidelines policy applies to videos, video descriptions, comments, live streams, and any other YouTube product or feature.Keep in mind that this isn't a complete list. Please note these policies also apply to external links in your content. This can include clickable URLs, verbally directing users to other sites in video, as well as other forms.
Don't post the following content:
- Content promoting or glorifying suicide, self-harm, or eating disorders
- Instructions on how to die by suicide, engage in self-harm, or engage in eating disorders (including how to conceal them)
- Content related to suicide, self-harm, or eating disorders that is targeted at minors
- Graphic images of self-harm
- Visuals of bodies of suicide victims unless blurred or covered so they are fully obscured
- Videos showing the lead-up to a suicide, or suicide attempts and suicide rescue footage without sufficient context
- Content showing participation in or instructions for suicide and self-harm challenges (e.g. Blue Whale or Momo challenges)
- Suicide notes or letters without sufficient context
- Content that features weight-based bullying in the context of eating disorders
In some cases we may restrict, rather than remove, suicide, self-harm, or eating disorder content if it meets one or more of the following criteria (for example, by placing an age-restriction, a warning, or a Crisis Resource Panel on the video). Please note this is not a complete list:
- Content that is meant to be educational, documentary, scientific, or artistic
- Content that is of public interest
- Graphic content that is sufficiently blurred
- Dramatizations or scripted content, which includes but is not limited to animations, video games, music videos, and clips from movies and shows
- Detailed discussion of suicide or self-harm methods, locations and hotspots
- Graphic descriptions of self-harm or suicide
- Eating disorder recovery content that includes details which may be triggering to at-risk viewers
Best practices for creators posting content about suicide, self-harm, or eating disorders
We recommend using these best practices in content related to suicide or self-harm to protect your viewers from harm and distress:
- Avoid showing the person who died by suicide, and respect their, and their families’, privacy. Learn more.
- Use wording that is positive and supportive, and focuses on recovery, prevention, and stories of hope.
- Include information and resources for suicide and self-harm prevention and coping strategies. Try to include it in both the video itself and the description of the video.
- Do not use sensationalist language or dramatic visuals.
- Provide context, but avoid discussing how the victim died by suicide. Do not mention the methods or locations.
- Blur content that contains images of suicide victims. You can blur your video with the Editor in YouTube Studio. Learn more.
We recommend using these best practices in content related to eating disorders to protect your viewers from harm and distress:
- Focus on the impact of the disorder instead of the details of the disordered eating behavior.
- Tell your audience that eating disorders commonly cause severe complications.
- Include info and resources for eating disorder prevention and coping strategies. Try to include it in both the video itself and the description of the video.
What happens if content violates this policy
If your content violates this policy, we will remove the content and send you an email to let you know. If we can’t verify that a link you post is safe, we may remove the link. Note that violative URLs posted within the video itself or in the video’s metadata may result in the video being removed.
If this is your first time violating our Community Guidelines, you'll likely get a warning with no penalty to your channel. You will have the chance to take a policy training to allow the warning to expire after 90 days. The 90 day period starts from when the training is completed, not when the warning is issued. However, if the same policy is violated within that 90 day window, the warning will not expire and your channel will be given a strike. If you violate a different policy after completing the training, you will get another warning.
If you get 3 strikes within 90 days, your channel will be terminated. Learn more about our strikes system.
We may terminate your channel or account for repeated violations of the Community Guidelines or Terms of Service. We may also terminate your channel or account after a single case of severe abuse, or when the channel is dedicated to a policy violation. We may prevent repeat offenders from taking policy trainings in the future. Learn more about channel or account terminations.
Finally we may also limit your access to live streaming if you suggest that you’ll live stream content that will violate our Community Guidelines. Learn more about restrictions on live streaming.
Warnings and supportive resources
YouTube may show features or resources to users when content contains suicide or self-harm topics. For example:
- A warning on your video before it starts playing, indicating that it contains content relating to suicide and self-harm
- A panel under the video containing supportive resources such as phone numbers of suicide prevention organizations