Why transitional support is key for youth aging out of mental health services

VANCOUVER — For 29-year-old Kelsey, helping young people in Canada to be happier boils down to helping them find a passion and a community.

“Even if everything else sucked, even if you had terrible mental health, even if the world was on fire — if you had community, if you had people around you, and if you had something you were passionate about, you could make it through,” she said.

But for young people like her who have a mental illness, she said finding that passion can sometimes take a back seat to financial and emotional pressures.

“For me, for a lot of my friends that also have mental illness, that stuff wasn’t dealt with in a timely manner, and it kind of just keeps compounding. And I guess maybe the world hasn’t had a lot to offer to make up for it,” said Kelsey, whose asked not to have her last name published.

Recent data suggests Canadian youth are increasingly struggling with their mental health, a component in the declining happiness of those under 30.

The 2024 Canadian Happiness Report — published by the University of Toronto’s Population and Well-being Lab — says that in 2012, six per cent of 15-to-29-year-old Canadians described their mental health as “fair” or worse. In 2022, it had risen to 21 per cent.

Experts say that although people in their 20s are adults, expecting them to immediately transfer to adult mental health services can be a challenge and programs aimed at helping the transition play a critical role helping them build a stable adult life.

Dr. David Koczerginski, chief of psychiatry and medical director of the mental health program at North York General Hospital in Toronto, said when a person turns 18, it’s important there isn’t an abrupt gap in care that might mean losing supports gained in the pediatric system.

He said there are developmental issues that overlap between people in their late teens and early twenties.

“Adolescents start developing some sort of sense of autonomy, independence, questioning what their future is going to be like as they enter into the adult world from an educational perspective, a career perspective, social perspective,” he said.

“This young adult population, many of them share that in common, which is very, different than somebody who is a more mature adult in their 40s, 50s or 60s.”

He said programs broadly known as “transitional age youth” supports often bridge that gap.

Kelsey said she has found part of the connection she’s seeking in programs run by B.C.’s Coast Mental Health that specifically target the needs of those between 19 and 32.

She said most other youth programs in B.C. end at 25.

“This is all there is,” Kelsey said. “As far as I know, as far as anyone here has said, in the Lower Mainland after 25, this is all there is.”

Clients have access to a range of conventional talk therapies and interventions. The building also has spaces for music and art therapy, and there was once the option to jump in a tub of ice and water in the parking lot.

Sara Goldvine, chief operating officer at Coast Mental Health, said getting the best outcomes means recognizing the uniqueness of where people are in their lives.

“In particular for youth, it’s a very formative period … this is often when people are really building independence,” she said.

Twenty-six-year-old Louigi, started on what he calls his mental health journey this year. He said things get particularly difficult for some when they “age out” of supports designated for young people.

“The second you turn 25, you just get put into all the adult stuff. There’s no in-between section,” said Louigi, who also asked not to have his last name published.

“I don’t know, it’s just very uncomfortable and weird, and all of a sudden it can be very scary.”

He said being able to get help from Coast Mental Health’s youth program allows him to relate more to peers with similar experiences.

“You come here and you’re around people your age. It’s more comfortable, easier to connect,” he said.

Koczerginski said there would be benefits to expanding the transitional age youth model beyond the community and into in-patient and hospital settings.

He said North York General has a robust adolescent and adult mental health program, which makes the transition easier.

“We’re seeing a lot more depressive symptoms, a lot more social isolation, a lot more reliance on virtual technology, AI. A lot of this we saw escalate and heightened during the pandemic,” he said.

“And it’s really not gotten better. I think the more we can build our system around this concept of transitional age youth, as opposed to this kind of line in the sand at 18, the better the system will be.”

Goldvine said Coast Mental Health has seen an increased demand for many of its programs, including those targeting youth and young adults.

This spring, the organization opened a 12-bed residential program for youth, which filled quickly and has a wait-list.

Loft Community Services in Toronto helps about 600 through its transitional age youth programs. That can include offering various types of therapy, as well as housing and other non-health care supports, like finding a job or applying for school.

Vice-president Debra Walko said having transitional supports can change the trajectory of young peoples’ lives by helping them plan for a future.

“These transitional age youth services and supports are so critical, because they’re recovery focused. You get things stabilized, you’re working on whatever your treatment plan is, plus your life plan, and what your goals are and what your dreams are,” she said.

“Those things don’t go away. You keep working toward them. And then you know, all of a sudden, 10 years later, your mental health or your substance use is stabilized and you’ve got a life in the community.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 17, 2025.

Ashley Joannou, The Canadian Press