One of the ideas behind XU began with something very simple: you can look at a handbag and see almost everything about its exterior while knowing almost nothing about what it carries inside.
People are not so different.
We see what someone is able to show us. We see them arrive at work, answer a message, get dressed, laugh at dinner, finish what needed to be finished and tell us that they are fine. We do not necessarily know what else they are carrying at the same time.
I know what that difference can feel like.
XU is not a mental-health service, and a handbag cannot solve the things happening inside somebody's life. I would never want to pretend otherwise. But if part of this brand is about making people feel recognized rather than telling them who they need to become, then I think recognition has to extend beyond the beautiful parts.
Sometimes being seen should lead somewhere useful.
This page exists for that reason.
If you are looking for support for yourself, worried about someone else, experiencing violence or simply do not know where to begin, the organizations below can help you find someone qualified to talk to.
If you are in immediate danger
Emergency services
If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 911.
Mental health and emotional support
9-8-8: Suicide Crisis Helpline
Immediate emotional and crisis support, any hour of the day, anywhere in Canada. You can also reach out if you are worried about someone else.
211
Help finding services near you: counselling, housing, food, financial assistance and other community programs. Free and confidential, 24 hours a day. Available across much of Canada, though what is offered varies by region.
HealthLink BC
In British Columbia, call 8-1-1 to speak with a health service navigator who can help you find health and mental health services in your community.
Kids Help Phone
Free, confidential support for young people across Canada, 24 hours a day. To use the text service, send the word CONNECT.
Hope for Wellness Help Line
Counselling and crisis support for Indigenous people across Canada, 24 hours a day, by phone or online chat.
KUU-US Crisis Line
An Indigenous crisis line for First Nations and Aboriginal people across B.C., staffed 24 hours. Separate lines reach adults and elders at 250-723-4050 and youth at 250-723-2040.
Gender-based violence and safety
You do not have to decide whether what happened to you was bad enough before asking for information.
You also do not have to know what you want to do next. Sometimes the first step is simply speaking with someone who understands the options available.
VictimLinkBC
Information, emotional support and referrals for people in B.C. and Yukon affected by crime, family violence or sexual violence. Open 24 hours, in up to 240 languages. You can contact them even if you are unsure whether you want to make a police report.
Salal Sexual Violence Support Centre
A 24-hour crisis and information line for people aged 14 and over affected by sexualized violence, including women, Two-Spirit, non-binary and gender diverse people. Also offers counselling and accompaniment in Greater Vancouver.
Battered Women's Support Services
Crisis support, safety planning, legal advocacy and counselling for women, trans women and gender diverse people who have experienced intimate partner or sexual violence. In Metro Vancouver, call 604-687-1867.
BC Society of Transition Houses
A directory of transition houses, safe homes, counselling, victim services and other programs throughout British Columbia, searchable by location and by the kind of support you need.
If you are outside British Columbia
Elsewhere in Canada, 211 is a good place to begin, because it can identify services in your own community.
Outside Canada, please use an official health, government or recognized crisis support service in your own country or region.
Before you go
- If you think your phone or computer is being watched, reach out from a device the other person cannot get to, such as one at a public library.
- A private or incognito window leaves less behind on your own device, though it does not hide activity from someone who manages your phone plan or network.
- Calls and texts can appear on a phone bill. Several of these services also answer by email or chat.
A note from XU
I do not want XU to be a brand that tells you that purchasing something will make you whole, more worthy or finally the person you were supposed to be.
There are things an object can do. It can carry meaning. It can preserve a memory. It can remind us of an intention. It can connect us with a history we did not know before.
There are also things an object cannot do. Sometimes we need another person.
So if something you encounter through XU makes you recognize something you have been carrying privately, I hope you know that you do not have to turn it into a lesson, a philosophy or a beautiful story before you are allowed to ask for help.
You can simply need help. That is enough reason to look for it.
