Those who follow me on Twitter know that each week I try to share a weekly resource on Saturdays when I go stand out in front of the Waterford. I usually try to find one that sounds helpful and share how it works. Sometimes I share tips— very rarely do I get excited about the accessibility of a resource.
But thanks to Melanie, I think I’ve stumbled across one of the best resources Canada has to offer right now.
It’s called Wellness Together.
To be honest, I’d come across the link to their website a few months ago, but found it to be a bit overwhelming and moved on. But Melanie reached out to me and asked if I’d ever called the number. I decided to ignore the website and just call instead.
The number is 1-866-585-0445. Please write it down and keep it in mind for anyone you know who needs therapy.
It’s available 24/7.
Remember:
1-866-585-0445. 24/7. Free.
When you call, they will ask you a number of questions. From what I remember, I was asked— Are you safe? Is anyone making you feel unsafe? Do you want to take your life? What do you need? Shout out to Rachel who was incredibly kind. Even during intake, I didn’t feel rushed.
They set up a profile for you. This isn’t an anonymous phone line. You give your name, location (they want to connect you with someone licensed in your province) number, and you can tell them what particular thing you struggle with so you can be matched with someone who specializes with your struggle, if at all possible.
From there, they get a little bit of your story and then you are connected with a counselor. But here’s the thing. They have people who speak so many languages I couldn’t write them all down. Arabic, Japanese, Inuktitut, and more. If they don’t have someone who can speak your language— you can agree to have a translator on the call if you’re comfortable with it.
You’re put on hold and usually connected with someone within five minutes. I can attest to that. They’re all called counselors, but it’s made up of social workers, registered counselors, psychologists, and psycho-therapists.
You’re warned that if you’re suicidal they may have to contact someone locally, if they believe you’re in danger, but they stressed that they would talk about it extensively with you first.
From there you have up to a 50 minute session. Not once did I feel rushed. Not once did I feel like they thought I was just a number. They listened to what happened and walked me through some of the things I hadn’t been able to speak out loud.
I ended the call feeling exhausted but so relieved to have gotten the nightmare of the last week put into words.
From there they asked if I wanted it to be just a one time call, or if I wanted ongoing sessions with one person who could become acquainted with my file and story. I was told I could get 8-16 sessions, but I think the norm is 4-6. However, it’s super important to note that once your set of sessions is over, you can call the intake line again and ask to be matched with the same person for another set of sessions.
The only limit is that you can call once every 24 hours for the one time sessions.
I agreed to do a couple sessions as I no longer have weekly therapy due to financial reasons. My current therapist has done extensive work to understand my story, but given recent events— I thought it would help to see someone for the short term at no cost.
The counselor said they would get someone to call me and I heard back from them less than 24 hours later. They tried twice with no success, but got me on the third try.
I was able to book an appointment in less than a week, and it was stressed to me that if I didn’t click with the counselor I was matched with (They also made a point to ask if I wanted it to be a particular gender) that I could call intake and ask for a new one without any problem.
They also wanted to know what made me more comfortable for the same counselor sessions— video or phone?
We set it up and once again they told me that I could call at any point for a one time session if needed. 24/7.
It’s run by Homewood Health in Ontario.
it’s been around for a year.
It costs the Newfoundland and Labrador government nothing. And they don’t even have it listed on their mental health resource website. In Newfoundland and Labrador, we just spent six weeks in lockdown without a single explanation of what I consider to be our two greatest resources. Barry Hewitt and Wellness Together Counselling. We need to ask our government to become better acquainted with mental healthcare options during a time they are asking us to sacrifice mental health for physical health. It’s necessary, but part of their responsibility is knowing the best of what is available and to make it publicly known far and wide.
The counselling is by far the most accessible service I’ve found to date.
I would encourage anyone I know in Canada to try it out if they need to speak to someone, and I would encourage everyone else to memorize the number in case they need to pass it on.
1-866-585-0445. 24/7. Free.
