Resources for Families

Your body and mind go through many changes during and after pregnancy. If you feel empty, emotionless, or sad all or most of the time for longer than two weeks during or after pregnancy, please reach out for help. If you feel disconnected from your baby you might have postpartum depression. Treatment for depression, such as therapy or medicine, works and will help you and your baby be as healthy as possible in the future.

• York Region Public Health – Parenting
• York Region provides parents with programs, services, and information to help as their children grow and develop.

• Healthy Babies, Healthy Children – York Region Public Health
• Confidential and voluntary home visiting program free of charge for eligible families who are pregnant or have children up to age six. Through this program a Public Health Nurse can link you to broad range of programs and services.

• Breastfeeding – York Region Public Health
• York Region provides information on the importance of breastfeeding as well as clinics and resources for parents who need support.

• Breastfeeding Clinics – York Region Public Health
• Services are provided by Public Health Nurses from the York Region Community and Health Services Breastfeeding Program.
• Free breastfeeding support is available through virtual video conferencing sessions or at one of York Region’s in-person breastfeeding clinics. Sessions are one-to-one with a nurse who has breastfeeding expertise.
• Residents can contact Health Connection at 1-800-361-5653 (press option 2) to book a virtual appointment and speak with a registered nurse about:
  • Your baby’s health and how you’re feeling
  • Breastfeeding, feeding and parenting your baby
  • Booking a free virtual, one on one breastfeeding appointment
  • Helpful resources in the community
• To chat with a registered nurse go to York.ca/nursechat

• La Leche League Canada
• Providing mother-to-mother/parent-to-parent/peer support for pregnant women, new parents and beyond. We are parents like you who have breastfed, or chest fed our own children and now volunteer to support others to reach their goals.
• Bereaved Families of Ontario – York Region
• Delivery of bereavement peer support services by trained volunteers and staff to the York Region Community. Programs and services are free of charge, ensuring accessible, timely and compassionate support for hope and healing.
• Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit – Breastfeeding Support Group
• To support breastfeeding families in Simcoe Muskoka SMDHU offers free in-person and virtually facilitated breastfeeding support groups. For more information visit www.smdhu.org/obg.
• In-person weekly drop-ins: Barrie, Collingwood, Alliston and BradfordWe also provide 1:1 telephone breastfeeding support with a Public Health Nurse at Health Connection Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at 1-877-721-7520.
• Looking for breastfeeding support in Simcoe Muskoka? Click here for more information.
• Breastfeeding Support for Clients Living in North Durham
• Durham Region Breastfeeding Resources
• Breastfeeding Support Postcard

Victoria Park Breastfeeding Clinic
1448 Lawrence Ave, East, Suite 214 (Toronto) M-F 9 a.m. -5 p.m.
Telephone: 647-344-5990

Prenatal and Well Baby Clinic
Barrie & Community Family Health Team
Telephone: 705 721-0370 x4

Private Lactation Consultants and Support (fee for service)

• Canadian Lactation Consultant Association/Association canadienne des consultantes en lactation – Find A Lactation Consultant (clca-accl.ca)
• Fee-based doula services: birth and postnatal support in Ontario

Becoming a parent is one of the most rewarding life experiences and can often also be one of the most challenging. There are a variety of parent support resources that offer programs and services to help you along the way. Below is just a sample of the community agencies and the services they provide. Click on the links to visit their website and get more information on programs that may be of interest to you.

• York Region Children’s Aid Society
• Placement in homes for children in need of protection training, support, and financial compensation to foster families plans to re-unite foster children with family, kin or plans for their adoption.

• The MotHERS Program
• Helping women in Canada who are contemplating pregnancy, are pregnant or are now new mothers with a baby.

• York Region Early Intervention Services
• Supports families who have children with special needs in their homes or in licensed childcare settings through the Infant and Child Development Services program and the Inclusion Support Services Program.

• York Region Health Connection Line
• A line staffed by public health nurses who can provide information about health issues and community services.
• Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

• The Down Syndrome Association of York Region
• A group of parents, educators and community support professionals who firmly believe in the inherent equality of persons with Down syndrome. We are committed to promoting a positive image of people with Down syndrome as being valued community members.

• Pflag York Region
• Provides information, resources, and referrals for queer and trans folks looking to grow their families, LGBT2SQ families, and gender-expansive kids and youth.

• Dad Central
• Providing resources and training to highlight the invaluable role of fathers in the lives of their children. We are a place where fatherhood matters in the healthy development of children.

• York Region Alliance of African Canadian Communities
• A cohesive and influential York Region African Canadian Community.

• York Region Preschool Speech & Language Program
• Provides help for York Region children from birth to Junior Kindergarten entry who have difficulty learning to communicate or to interact. The program focuses on the prevention, early identification and treatment of speech and language problems.

• Simcoe County Health Services
• Offering a combination of programs and services and works on policies and initiatives that protect and promote the health of the populations it serves.

• Children’s Treatment Network
• Supporting over 23,000 children and youth with disabilities and developmental needs in their homes, communities, and schools. We provide intake, service navigation and coordinated service planning, assessment and diagnostic services, specialized clinics, and rehabilitation services, including physiotherapy, occupational therapy, and speech language therapy.
• Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit: Health Connections
• This phone line is staffed by public health nurses who can provide information about health issues and community services. Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Visit www.simcoemuskokahealth.org to learn more, or call Health Connection at 1-877-721-7520.

Complimentary programs that provide families with a warm and inclusive environment to help support children’s learning, development, health and well-being.

• CAPC – Community Action Program for Children – York Region
• Free parent and child programs funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada offered in multiple mobile locations throughout York Region to eligible families with children ages 0 months to 6 years of age. You can learn and play with your child, meet people and get advice from early childhood professionals.

• ABC – All Babies Count
• Free prenatal nutrition programs funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada for women who need extra support during their pregnancy.

• EarlyON Child & Family Centres
• Free, high-quality programs for families and children from birth to 6 years old. You can learn and play with your child, meet people and get advice from early childhood professionals.
• Click here to learn more.

• York Region Child Care
• Licensed centre-based child care programs that generally operate year-round and are located in schools, workplaces, community centres, and places of worship.

• Triple P – Positive Parenting
• Offers new ideas, practical tools and easy to use tips for your family. Whether you have a specific problem or are just looking for advice on common, everyday issues from toddler tantrums to teenage rebellion, Triple P can help you build confidence and skills.

• Kinark Child and Family Services
• Working with children and youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder and their families across southern and central Ontario.

• Nobody’s Perfect Parenting Program
• A facilitated parenting program for parents of children from birth to age five. The program is designed to meet the needs of parents who are young, single, socially, or geographically isolated, or who have low income or limited formal education offered in communities by facilitators to help support parents and young children.

• Healthy Babies Healthy Children – Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit
• The Healthy Babies Healthy Children (HBHC) program helps children get a healthy start in life. HBHC is a free, voluntary program that provides supports and services during pregnancy and to families with children from birth to school entry.
• Visit www.simcoemuskokahealth.org to learn more, or call Health Connection to speak with a Public Health Nurse at 1-877-721-7520 to see if the program is right for you.

• 211 Ontario
• Connects people to the right information and services, strengthen Canada’s health and human services, and helps Canadians become more engaged with their communities.

• Transition to Parenting | York Region
• “The Transition to Parenting program is a FREE, 9-week, group-based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) program for pregnant and postpartum individuals with babies up to 18 months of age. It is for mothers who have been feeling one or more of the following: depressed, sad, anxious, worried, angry or overwhelmed.”

• Togetherall
• A safe, online community where people support each other anonymously to improve mental health and wellbeing.

• UpHub York Support Services Network
• York Region’s go-to online and print community resource navigator for local social services in mental health, addictions, and developmental disabilities, as well as a peer-based platform for people to share their stories and uplifting experiences to help others.

• ConnexOntario Mental Health & Addiction Treatment Services
• Provides service information for people experiencing problems with gambling, drugs, alcohol, or mental health. Helpful, supportive system navigation specialists answer all calls, emails or web chat requests 24/7.
• Father’s Mental Health Network
• Specializing in providing care to men who are expectant fathers, new fathers, or fathers of young children. We also assess men who have experienced a pregnancy/infant loss.
• Canadian Mental Health Perinatal Coalition
• Providing direction, policy, and funding for improvements to perinatal mental health care including universal screening and timely access to treatment for all individuals during preconception, pregnancy and the postpartum periods.
• York Region Public Health
• Public health professionals offer confidential information and advice on topics such as pregnancy, breastfeeding, maternal mental health, parenting, feeding baby and child, sleep, injury prevention (live chat now available at www.york.ca/nursechat)

• Gestational Diabetes virtual workshop presented by Southlake’s Diabetes Education Centre
• Newborn jaundice information
• Caring for the uncircumcised male infant