If you need help now
AskHer does not provide emergency care and nobody here is watching in real time. If something is happening right now, use the numbers below.
AskHer is not an emergency service
We publish educational answers, written by doctors and checked before anyone reads them. That takes days. There is no one at AskHer watching messages at night, and we cannot send help, call an ambulance, or tell you that a situation is safe. If you or someone with you is in danger right now, stop reading and call.
- 112
National emergency number
Police, fire and ambulance, anywhere in India. Works from a locked phone.
- 108
Ambulance
Free emergency ambulance in most states. 102 is the free ambulance for pregnancy and newborn emergencies in many states.
- 181
Women helpline
Distress, violence and abuse. Run by state governments; hours and languages vary.
- 1091
Women in distress (police)
Police women’s helpline in most cities.
- 14416
Tele-MANAS mental health helpline
Free, 24 hours, in many Indian languages. Also reachable on 1800-891-4416.
- 104
State health helpline
Health advice by phone in many states. Not an emergency line.
These are Indian national and state numbers. Which ones are staffed, and in which languages, genuinely varies by state — if one does not answer, try 112.
Signs worth acting on straight away
This is not a diagnostic list and it cannot cover everything. Read the last row.
Bleeding that will not stop
Soaking through a pad an hour, or passing large clots, for more than two hours.
Severe pain that came on suddenly
Especially with a missed period, faintness, or pain in one shoulder.
Trouble breathing or chest pain
Any difficulty breathing, or pain in the chest.
Fainting, or nearly fainting
Feeling you are about to pass out, or having passed out.
A fever with severe pain or confusion
After childbirth, a procedure, or a miscarriage.
Being frightened for your safety
Someone is hurting you, or you are thinking of hurting yourself.
Anything that feels wrong to you
This list cannot cover everything. If your body is telling you something is badly wrong, act on that rather than on this page.
Moving a question out of the ordinary queue
If you have already sent a question and something has changed — it is worse, or it is frightening you — this moves it into a separate list that is read first. It is a change to where your question sits, not a way of reaching anyone quickly.
- It moves your question out of the ordinary answer queue and into a separate list that is reviewed first.
- It does not summon anyone. Nobody at AskHer is watching this in real time, day or night.
- It does not give you medical care, a diagnosis, or a prescription.
- It cannot reach an ambulance, the police or a hospital for you. Only a phone call does that.
Open the question you want moved first — from your questions — and come back to this page from there. We need to know which question you mean.
If you are safe right now
You can keep reading. AskHer’s answers are written by doctors and checked before they are published, and they are general education rather than advice about you.