MH Family Services has numerous unique means of support

By ANNA SMITH Local Journalism Initiative on February 14, 2026.

asmith@medicinehatnews.com

Though February is reaching the halfway mark, Medicine Hat Family Services is still offering many different groups and programs to help people feel their best through this oddly warm winter.

Group facilitator Krista Waddle says MHFS has had some issues with people mistaking them for Children and Family Services, which, while an extremely valuable part of the community, are quite different.

“What we offer is high quality, affordable counselling services on a sliding scale, some as low as $8 an hour,” said Waddle. “That’s who we are. We’re a counselling service that removes barriers that might stop people from getting mental health services. And then we also offer free programs and support groups.”

New to MHFS is the way its “Kids in the Middle” program is being delivered, which provides a safe space for children who are navigating parental separation and divorce to ask questions and be with peers who have similar experiences.

“We offered this program here, but it seemed to not get as many kids as I thought,” said Waddle. “It felt like kids are having a hard time getting to us. So I decided we need to go to them.”

On Feb. 26, Waddle and her team will go to Webster Niblock School to host the play-based support group after class is finished for the day. It is her hope that in six weeks, she will be able to host the program in another school on the other side of town to make this support accessible for all children, or to partner with Kickstand to host a “teens in the middle.”

They have seen success this month with their Repairing Your Relationship program, which takes place on the second Tuesday of every month. Hosted at the library, this program invites couples to take part in various sessions regarding different aspects of healthy relationships.

For the remainder of February, MHFS and the associated Recovery College – which Waddle emphasizes is not solely about addiction, as people can be recovering from many things – will offer various programs, including Suicide Prevention on Feb. 21 from 10 a.m. to noon at Feb 28 from 9-11 a.m., the Caregiver Connections support group on Feb 23 from 1:30-2:30 p.m., and Understanding Gaslighting on Feb. 26 from 10 a.m. to noon.

“There’s Chronically Awesome. It’s for people with chronic illnesses. My colleague hosts that every single Monday,” said Waddle. There is also an ongoing support group for those who have experienced infertility issues or infant loss.

A full list of available programming can be found at mhfamilyservice.com and https://recoverycollegemedicinehat.ca. Waddle hopes to see more people taking advantage of the free and low-cost aid available through both group programs and individual counselling to take care of their mental wellness in advance.

“There’s been a lot of turbulence, if you will, in our community in the last year alone. So it feels like the city needs a win,” said Waddle. “We’re trying to, like, make mental health more of an uplifting experience. So then when people walk out of the door, they feel a lot lighter. That’s the goal.”

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