Mental Health and Well-Being

Mental health counselling support for children and youth who are showing signs of emerging or escalating mental health problems, personal and family stressors, crisis, and more.

TLDSB school-based individual supports

Mental health counselling services provides individual mental health support for children and youth in the following areas:

• Anxiety or low mood
• Crisis, such as imminent risk of harm to self or others
• Personal or social stressors (ie. adverse childhood experiences, peer relationships, stress, substance use)
• Family stressors that impact the student’s functioning at school
• Experiencing systemic oppression and discrimination (racism, poverty, colonization, homophobia/biphobia/transphobia, etc)
• School avoidance and non-attendance

Individual support can include consultation, counselling assessment, brief evidence-based intervention, and support with navigating community based services; and may include a child or youth’s circle of care, such as caregivers, teachers, community service providers and identified caring adults.

Services are available in all schools and are provided by professional clinicians registered with either the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers, or the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario. Services may be provided in person and/or virtually via Google Meet.

To learn more about individual counselling services, please contact the principal/vice-principal of your child’s school who will listen to your concerns and pull a team together, including a mental health counsellor to look at your child’s academic and emotional well-being needs and how the school can support.

TRAILS Anxiety and Depression

Transforming Research into Action to Improve the Lives of Students (TRAILS) groups are designed to help children and youth, Grades 4 to 12, who struggle with moderate symptoms of stress, anxiety, and/or depression by teaching evidence-based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and mindfulness skills.

TRAILS are 7 – 10 week groups aimed to help children and youth develop effective coping skills and strategies to help manage their emotions and choose helpful behaviours. Children and youth who might benefit from the group are primarily having difficulty with both anxiety and depressive symptoms/low mood that is impairing their functioning.

Children and youth interested in participating should have some awareness of their struggles and would be motivated to improve their coping skills.

If you are interested in being a part of this group, contact your school principal.

Circle of Security Parenting

The Circle of Security® Parenting™ program is based on decades of research about how secure parent-child relationships can be supported and strengthened.

This program is delivered through eight virtual weekly sessions of 90 minutes each using Google Meet. 

All parents/guardians want what is best for their children. At times all parents/guardians feel lost or without a clue about what our child might need from us. Imagine what it might feel like if you were able to make sense of what your child was really asking from you. Using the COSP™ model, developed by the Circle of Security originators, our trained facilitators work with parents/guardians to help them to:

• Understand their child’s emotional world by learning to read emotional needs.
• Support their child’s ability to successfully manage emotions.
• Enhance the development of their child’s self esteem.
• Honor the innate wisdom and desire for their child to be secure.

If you are interested in being a part of this group, contact your child’s school principal.