Resources

Crisis Support

BC Crisis Line 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433): 24/7 telephone support

CrisisCentre Chat (https://crisiscentrechat.ca/): Online chat-based support from 12pm - 1am daily.

First Nations and Inuit Hope for Wellness Help Line and On-line Counselling Service (1-855-242-3310): The Hope for Wellness Help Line offers immediate mental health counselling and crisis intervention to all Indigenous people across Canada by phone or online chat.

KUU-US Crisis Services 1.800.KUU.US17 (1-800-588-8717): The KUU-US Crisis line is available 24-hours a day, seven days a week – regardless of where you live in BC. If you are in need, you can call and receive an immediate response.

Ministry of Children and Family Protection (1-800-663-9122): If you think a child or youth under 19 years of age is being abused or neglected, you have the legal duty to report your concern to a child welfare worker. Phone 1 800 663-9122 at any time of the day or night.

National Indian Residential School Crisis Line (1-866-925-4419): Indigenous Services Canada offers a national Indian Residential School Crisis Line to support former Residential School students. The crisis line provides emotional and crisis referral services 24 hours per day.

Trans Lifeline (1-877-330-6366): A hotline staffed by transgender people for transgender people.

VictimLink BC (1-800-563-0808): VictimLinkBC is a toll-free, confidential, multilingual telephone service available across B.C. and the Yukon 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It provides information and referral services to all victims of crime and immediate crisis support to victims of family and sexual violence, including victims of human trafficking exploited for labour or sexual services.

Wellness Apps

Booster Buddy: a free app designed to help teens and young adults improve their mental health through the use of an animal sidekick. Teens are supported to manage their personal wellness journey and earn “achievements” as their sidekick guides them through a series of daily quests designed to establish and sustain positive habits. Tools include: daily emotional check-ins, coping skills, tools to help keep track of meds and appointments and support to follow self-care routines.

Calm.com: This fabulous website has free and customizable guided meditations. You can choose a 2 min, 5 min, 10 min, 15 min or 20 min meditation. You can also select a relaxing soundtrack to accompany your meditation. This website is also available in app form for free.

Headspace: A smartphone app that has been described as “a gym membership for the mind”. The app is free to download and offers one 10 minute meditation per day. The website www.headspace.com also has some great info about the benefits of meditation! .

Healthyminds: A free problem-solving app to help young people deal with emotions and cope with stress. It aims to help young people develop an awareness of their “problem” (including antecedents, thoughts and emotions, and their resulting actions), and take action to solve them. It also offers psychoeducation (for youth and parents), activities (breathing and relaxation), and emotional check-ins.

Insight Timer: This free app works as a great meditation timer. I use it daily - and love the different sounding chimes. It also offers access to hundreds of guided meditations by many of the big names in mindfulness.

MindShift: an app designed to help teens and young adults cope with anxiety. This free app can be downloaded onto an iPhone or android. It includes tools to “chill out”, learn about anxiety and challenge thoughts.

PTSD Coach: A free app developed by Veteran Affairs to help you to learn about and manage the symptoms that can occur after trauma.

Smiling mind: Smiling Mind is a free “modern meditation tool” for people aged 7 years – adult. It is a web and App-based program, designed to make meditation easy and accessible to everyone. This app features an age appropriate pre and post meditation check-in tool, so that you can monitor the impact of mindfulness on your mood. You can also customize your meditations by adding music, and picking from various different meditations as you progress through the different levels (mindfulness 101 – mindfulness 110).

Websites

Anxiety BC: A website with lots of great psychoeducational resources explaining anxiety. This one also offers a number of great CBT-based coping strategies.

Dr. David Perlmutter: Dr. David Perlmutter is a neurologist who specializes in the gut-brain connection. He has written a number of books that focus on the connection between our diet, gut health and neural functioning.

Dr. Dan Siegel: Dr. Dan Siegel is an interpersonal neuroscientist and psychotherapist who has written/researched extensively on attachment, mindfulness, parenting. His website is FULL of amazing resources.

Kelty Mental Health: Information and resources on topics related to mental health challenges affecting youth and young adults.

Mindfulness for Teens: This website is a great resource for teens (and even adults)! It includes guided meditations, relaxation activities, and a youth perspective on how mindfulness can be helpful to manage stress.

Mind Check: a youth and young adult-focused interactive website where visitors can find education, self-help tools, website links, and help connecting to local resources.

Mindful Self Compassion: This website was created by Dr. Christopher Germer and it provides background information about Mindful Self Compassion as well as meditations.

Opt - Options for Sexual Health: sexual and reproductive health care, information, and education from a feminist, pro-choice, sex positive perspective.

Q-Munity: BC's queer, trans and two-spirit resource centre.

Self-Compassion.org: A fantastic online resource created by Dr. Kristin Neff. Check out this website to learn more about self-compassion and to access a number of free meditations and exercises.

Stress Me Less: An online game in which kids can virtually take what's causing them stress and “destroy it”.

Tara Brach: Tara Brach is a psychologist and meditation teacher. You might know of her book, Radical Acceptance: Embracing your Life with the Heart of a Buddha. Her website is filled with amazing resources, and I highly recommend her free online talks and guided meditations.

TransCare BC: A program that supports the delivery of equitable and accessible care, surgical planning, and peer and community support for transgender and gender-diverse people across BC.

Youth in BC: A website where youth can access support (through online chat), information, and resources. This resource is powered by the crisis line.