Mental Health
Mental Health Resources across Canada
Canada.ca | Provincial and territorial mental health resources
Across Canada there are many different mental health resources available, some free, some funded under your provincial or territorial health care, and some you will need to pay for. Listed below are a variety of the most frequently asked about services, please contact I/CAN’s Social Care Advisor if you want support finding information on any service not listed or if you have any questions about the services that are listed.
Free helplines
It’s okay to ask for help. There are free supports available to you 24/7 across Canada and in Ireland.
- In an emergency call: 911
- Canada Suicide Prevention Service: Call: 1-833-456-4566 (If in Québec call: 1-866-277-3553) Text: 45645
- Samaritans (Helpline for Irish in Canada): Call: +1 (833) 951 2484
- If you are experiencing spousal abuse or any type of family violence, please click on your province or territory on Canada.ca page here, that has listed the helplines for the different areas.
If the helpline you are looking for is not listed above, please contact our Social Care Advisor who can signpost you to helplines and supports in your province or territory.
Counselling
There are many different types of counselling services available to you. Appointments can be:
- in person
- virtual
- phone counselling
And there are different cost options available:
- free
- low-cost,
- sliding scale fee
- full price
Everyone has individual needs and wants, therefore it can be difficult knowing where to start when looking for a counsellor. You can reach out to I/CAN Social Care Advisor by phone, email, or text message to set up a call to go over what type of counselling you are looking for. You will be supported in determining which option may be best suited to your needs, and will be signposted you to the relevant services available to you.
Reminder – All contact with I/CAN is free and confidential.
To note: If you have health benefits from your work, or your common law/spouses work, you may have $ allocated to go towards counselling/therapy sessions. Always check with your benefits company how much coverage you have and what accreditation the counsellor needs to have to submit claims under your coverage, as some benefits companies don’t cover certain counsellor’s accreditation.
> FREE COUNSELLING OPTIONS
Helplink.ie provide a free online counselling service for Irish citizens living abroad.
As Helplink explain “Each person can avail of 6 free online appointments; 7 days a week from Helplink (depending on your needs you may be able to receive an additional 3 appointments – speak to your Counsellor about this!)”.
- See here for more information on this free service.
- Go here to read some of the FAQ’s and find out more about how this service works.
- To request an online appointment, fill in their contact form here and ensure to say you are an Irish citizen living in Canada.
Alternatively, you can call the national number: 0818-998-880 or send them an email: helplinksupport@helplink.ie
Men’s Mental Health Resources
Men can find it more difficult to reach out for support for their mental health. See below some free men’s mental health resources and supports in Canada.