'I am actually afraid of myself': Teen pleads for more services

A  teenager who is battling depression and an eating disorder says the Newfoundland and Labrador government has to provide more services to young people with mental illnesses.

The teen waited almost six months to see a psychologist — a delay that Newfoundland and Labrador's child and youth advocate describes as unacceptable.

The teen, 17, sees a psychiatrist, but only once a month. She also visits an eating disorder clinic — again on a monthly basis.

The teenager, whose identity CBC News is protecting, said more services are very much needed, including "just like more people available, so that everyone [can] see the people they need to see."

She added, "I myself personally think that I am at the point now where there's a chance I should be hospitalized, because I am actually afraid of myself."

The teen added that she has lost most of her friends through her illness, and that even walking down the school corridor can cause anxiety.

"Some days you just can't do it and a lot of people don't get that," she said.

She said she often thinks about dying.

"I have had thoughts about hanging myself," she told CBC News.

Darlene Neville, Newfoundland and Labrador's child and youth advocate, said no one in that condition should have to wait almost half a year for psychological help.

"I hope that no one would suggest that that's acceptable. I would say that those sorts of cases have not been brought to our attention," she said.

Neville said she would like to see the province develop alternative methods of treatment for children with mental illnesses, including specialized services that would see them treated in the community.