These are successful outcomes, but a person who is depressed, has an eating disorder, is engaged in self-harm, or is in despair because of bullying or academic pressures often needs longer-term support. Crisis counseling isn’t meant to be therapy. “The job of a crisis counselor is to help move someone in pain from a hot moment to a cool calm,” Lublin says. Counselors will often offer connections to local services for follow-up help. In the 1 percent of cases in which counselors and supervisors believe a texter is at serious risk for suicide, the service initiates what is called an “active rescue,” calling the local police or 911.

What those 56 million text messages add up to is an extraordinary opportunity to save lives. The data can help identify when and where problems are spiking, and what interventions are warranted. For example, although National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month is observed in September, data show that suicidal ideation peaks in April and May — critical information for mental health counselors in schools and universities. Suicidal ideation is also triggered by popular culture aimed at youth.

“Last year was a particularly strong spring in part because of ‘13 Reasons Why,’ the Netflix show,” Lublin said. “Close to 5 percent of our traffic explicitly mentioned the show last spring.”

The data can be used to flag issues that require greater attention. For example, one in five conversations from users under the age of 13 mention self-harm, usually cutting. In 40 percent of those conversations, the words “scared” and “alone” show up. After counseling, 62 percent of those texters report feeling less alone or more hopeful. These sentiments have a direct implication for counselors, said Bob Filbin, the organization’s chief data scientist. “These texters want to be heard,” he said.

“Another thing we’ve seen that has been surprising,” Lublin said, “is the number of kids who are feeling something intensely — a breakup, suicide, depression, school pressure — who have a parent in the house with them while they’re texting us and don’t feel they can communicate with their parent. It’s heartbreaking.”

Some of the insights from the data raise questions about prevailing assumptions in crisis counseling. One is the belief that counseling must be tailored by issue. “There’s this idea that a person experiencing a particular crisis needs a particular type of care,” Filbin said. “So if it’s sexual abuse or L.G.B.T.Q. or suicidal ideation, the care or the training would need to be different in each case.” But when Filbin examined the data, he found that not to be the case.