Need help now?
9-8-8 Call or text, 24/7
403-266-4357 Distress Centre Calgary, 24/7
9-1-1 If someone is in danger
Mental health in Calgary
Mind and Body
Calgary's mental health stories, quick tools for a hard moment, and a checked list of where to get help in the city.
Feeling overwhelmed right now? Start with the grounding exercise. It takes about two minutes, and nothing you tap is saved.
Try it now · 5-4-3-2-1 grounding
Take a minute
Resources for a hard moment
4 stages
Breathe
A guided breathing exercise in four stages, with a quick check-in before and after so you can notice what changed. Opens in a new tab.
Start breathingOur reporting
Mental health stories
Column
Lauren Cowley on everyday mental health
Plain-language columns on the everyday side of mental health, from family stress to hard seasons, by Lauren Cowley of Being Human Club in Calgary.
About this column
This column comes to us through a content partnership with Being Human Club. Neither side pays the other. Citizen editors edit every column and write the headlines, and the views are the author's. Columns are general information, not treatment.
Quick guide
Not sure who to call?
You're thinking about suicide, or you're worried someone is
You're overwhelmed and need to talk to someone now
Someone needs help in person, but nobody is in danger
Call 2-1-1
Ask for the Mobile Response Team.
It's your child or teen
Kids Help Phone · 1-800-668-6868
Or walk in to The Summit, for anyone under 18.
You want counselling, not a crisis line
Access Mental Health · 403-943-1500
Weekdays. No referral needed.
Someone is in danger right now
Directory
Find help in Calgary
Checked October 2026. Numbers and hours change, so call ahead when you can. If something here is out of date, email [email protected] and we'll fix it.
Right now, 24 hours a day
9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline
Call or text 9-8-8
For anyone thinking about suicide, or worried about someone.
Distress Centre Calgary
Call or text 403-266-4357
Any crisis, any size. Chat at distresscentre.com.
211 Alberta
Call 2-1-1
Help that isn't an emergency, in more than 170 languages. Can send Calgary's Mobile Response Team.
Mental Health Help Line
1-877-303-2642
Free advice and support from Alberta's helpline team.
Addiction Helpline
1-866-332-2322
Alcohol, drugs and gambling.
Kids Help Phone
1-800-668-6868
Ages 5 to 29. Or text CONNECT to 686868.
ConnecTeen
403-264-8336
Calgary's youth line. Text 587-333-2724. Teen volunteers answer most evenings.
Hope for Wellness Help Line
1-855-242-3310
For First Nations, Inuit and Métis people.
Family Violence Info Line
Call or text 310-1818
In more than 170 languages.
Talk to someone today
Eastside Community Mental Health Services
403-299-9699
Free walk-in counselling from Wood's Homes at 2116 27 Ave. N.E. Tuesday and Thursday 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Wednesday 11 to 6, Saturday 11 to 5. The phone line runs 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., or text 587-315-5000.
Wellness Desk, Central Library
Free drop-in mental health and addiction support at 800 3 St. S.E. Monday to Thursday noon to 8 p.m., Friday noon to 6, weekends noon to 5.
The Summit, for anyone under 18
587-534-7200
Walk-in care for kids, teens and families, with no referral needed. 1015 17 St. N.W.
Urgent mental health care
403-943-9374
South Calgary Health Centre, 31 Sunpark Plaza S.E., noon to 7 p.m. daily. Also at the Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre, 1213 4 St. S.W. Call 403-955-6200 for its hours.
Distress Centre crisis counselling
403-266-4357
Free, one to six sessions for ages 16 and up. Weekdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
A daily text
Text4Hope
Text HOPEAB to 393939
Free supportive messages every day. For addiction support, text Open2Change to 393939.
Find ongoing care
Access Mental Health
403-943-1500
Free help finding the right service. No referral needed. Weekdays.
Calgary Counselling Centre
403-691-5991
Counselling in person or online, with fees on a sliding scale based on income. calgarycounselling.com
Community Connect YYC
Book counselling or peer support online with Calgary agencies: free, sliding scale or pay what you choose. communityconnectyyc.ca
CMHA Calgary
403-297-1402
Peer support, and free Recovery College courses.
Kickstand Connect
Free virtual counselling and peer support for ages 11 to 25. mykickstand.ca/connect
Find a psychologist
Search the Psychologists' Association of Alberta directory, then check the psychologist's registration with the College of Alberta Psychologists.
For specific communities
Calgary Outlink, for 2SLGBTQ+ people
403-234-8973
Call or text.
Skipping Stone, for trans and gender-diverse people
587-333-4342
CCIS Centre for Refugee Resilience
403-262-2006
Indigenous Support Line
1-844-944-4744
Weekdays 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Families Matter, after a baby
403-205-5194
Hospice Calgary, for grief
403-263-4525
Calgary Seniors' Resource Society
403-266-6200
