The number of support requests Kids Help Phone receives at night is increasing across Canada, the e-mental health support service said.<\/p>\n
Demands for reach-outs via text from the hours of 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. ET are 183 per cent higher than those received during the day, Kids Help Phone said in a news release.<\/p>\n
A 24 per cent increase in overnight requests for help was also reported in the first six months of this year, when compared to last, it said.<\/p>\n
The six-month data included information as of June 30.<\/p>\n
\u201cI say it\u2019s a canary in\u00a0the coal\u00a0mine time,\u201d\u00a0Rebecca\u00a0Shields,\u00a0president and\u00a0CEO at Kids Help Phone,\u00a0told Global News.<\/p>\n
Shields\u00a0said Kids Help Phone receives a crisis text every\u00a090 seconds.<\/p>\n
Shields said many of the people reaching out have relationship-related concerns \u2014 whether they are dealing with issues with their friends, or in familial or romantic relationships.<\/p>\n
Depression and hopelessness are also common concerns from people contacting Kids Help Phone, its CEO said. She cited stressors, including geopolitical events and concerns about affordability as they age into adulthood, as contributing factors.<\/p>\n
\u201cSadly, our fourth top issue still remains thoughts of suicide and crisis calls.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kids Help Phone said the rate at which the overnight texts are increasing varies from province to province.<\/p>\n
The highest increase was reported in Yukon, at 64 per cent.<\/p>\n
The other territories, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, reported\u00a017 per cent and 25 per cent\u00a0upticks, respectively.<\/p>\n
Overnight demand spiked in Prince Edward Island, where it went up by 59 per cent. Newfoundland and Labrador\u00a0rose by 12 per cent and Nova Scotia by 26 per cent, according to Kids Help Phone.\u00a0In New Brunswick,\u00a0the number of overnight requests spiked by 49 per cent.<\/p>\n
Ontario saw a 27 per cent increase, and in Quebec, the demand rose by 10 per cent, Kids Help Phone said.<\/p>\n
Manitoba, the number of contacts made to the organization increased by 30 per cent.<\/p>\n