When kids don’t get the mental health care they need, it can feel like…
…they aren’t being heard.
…there’s nowhere to turn.
…what they’re feeling and experiencing doesn’t always make sense.
…their school and family doctor aren’t resourced or specialized enough to help.
That’s where CASA Mental Health comes in.
We provide care in what’s called the ‘missing middle’ of the mental health care system. We offer more intensive treatment and services than what’s available in home or primary care, but not hospital or emergency services – which isn’t always the best place for a young person or family.
With the right supports, kids are better equipped to handle mental health struggles. Make a gift today to give CASA to more kids and youth in Alberta.
Looking for another way to give? CASA Mental Health offers easy, safe and secure alternatives to giving online. You can donate by e-transfer or over the phone at 780-400-2270. As well as online giving, we also gratefully accept donations like securities.
Hunter didn’t have access to CASA’s services when she was growing up.
Hunter and her family accessed mental health care from their family physician, therapists and, frequently, the emergency department. She grew up in an area where there were no services in the missing middle.
“There are no services like CASA,” says Hunter. “My family and I were never given a team of support, merely a doctor here and there who would never be able to follow up with me. I hope my story will lead others to getting the help that was never offered to me.”
Today, Hunter is a passionate mental health advocate, speaking at schools, care homes and universities to educate people on mental illness and help break the stigma.
She also writes poetry and explored her experience with mental health challenges in her poem, When the World Doesn’t Play Fair.
Read an excerpt below:
At only 7 years old,
I was learning the meaning of darkness—
not the kind that flickers in closets or hides under beds,
but the kind that lives inside people
in the worst ways.
I was learning that the world doesn’t always play fair,
that fairytales and princess stories were just that:
make-believe.
Because little girls like me don’t often grow up
and get their happy endings.
