Young Caregiver Library
Young Caregiver Library
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Welcome to the Young Carer Library! Here you will find readings and other media suggestions that feature stories and tips from other young carers.
Looking for services and support? Check out our National Young Carer Support List here!
Learn more about the Young Caregiver Council of Canada
The YCCC is featured in the 36th issue of the Futurum Careers Change Makers magazine. Click here to learn more about the Council and get a free PDF of this resource!
Guides, Zines, and Toolkits for Young Caregivers
Guides, Zines, and Toolkits for Young Caregivers
All of the listed resources are available online for free - just click their title or image.
A magazine describing the young carer experience through self-care articles and tips, a horoscope, and advice column for youth supporting a loved one due to mental health challenges, disability, chronic illness or aging. Aussi disponible en français. Created by AMI-Quebec and RAANM.
A guidebook with information on mental health topics, and exercises to better your own mental health. Aussi disponible en français. Created by Lapproche.
Age-appropriate information on various diagnoses and health team member roles, as well as worksheets to explore emotions around a sibling's condition and tips for parents. Created by Holland Bloorview Hospital.
Understanding Mental Health
Understanding Mental Health
A series of guides by BCSS Youth with tips and info for tweens and teens with a family member experiencing mental health challenges.
Parental Substance Use
Parental Substance Use
A series of zines by Starlings Community to help understand a parent's substance use challenges, and your rights and strengths as a young caregiver.
You can access all of the booklets by requesting a copy to be emailed to you, via this webpage.
Documentaries and Videos
Documentaries and Videos
Caring for Tor – CBC News: Feature on Stephane Alexis, who, at 24, is helping his parents care for his younger brother Torence, who has cerebral palsy.
Who Cares: A play about young carers in the UK by Matt Woodhead.
Much Too Young: A documentary about young carers supporting a family member with young-onset Alzheimer's.
Caregivers in the Wild: A digital story series that features caregivers, including many young caregivers, as they join Dr. Mike Lang and other experts on an adventure trip that focuses on conversations about caregiving and other meaningful topics.
Podcasts
Podcasts
Who Cares: A podcast about caregiving in Canada (Canadian Centre for Caregiving Excellence): shines a spotlight on the unseen realities of caregivers and care providers across Canada.
Who Cares? A Young Carers Podcast (Blackpool Carers Centre): podcast dedicated to young carers in the UK.
Supporting young carers in dementia (Dementia Researcher): explores the experiences of young carers in families affected by dementia.
Saath Podcast (ASRA): Unity and support within South Asian communities to break down stigma about substance use related topics.
Time to Talk (Ontario Caregiver Organization): discuss topics with caregivers that matter to them most.
Books
GraciouSLE in love: A story of growing up with Lupus
K. A. Dawkins, Julia Jochmann
The Amazing Zoe and Grandma's Memory Box
Valene Campbell, Arooba Bilal
I'm Not Alone: A Teen's Guide to Living with a Parent Who Has a Mental Illness or History of Trauma
Michelle Sherman, DeAnne Sherman
For Professionals
For Professionals
Many of the resources above are designed so that health and social service professionals can give them to young caregivers and their families.
We suggest three steps, to become a young carer ally, as an educator, social worker, youth worker, or health professional:
Explore either of the two resources below, so you know how to recognize young carers
Familiarize yourself with available services and information, so that you can share resources with young caregivers
Contemplate how to make offering young caregiver supports the norm, not the exception, and reach out to us with your ideas!
UHN resource co-designed with young carers, establishing when and how to refer young caregivers to external resources.
View and download a one-pager here, or the full guide.
Young Caregiver Association information for youth, parents, teachers, social workers, and healthcare teams.
Reports
This interactive report by Quebec Observatory on Caregiving breaks down what the research says about who young carers are, and their journey into caregiving and seeking support for themselves. Includes information on sociodemographic factors and contextual factors. (Aussi disponible en français).
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