When I wrote about the night a single phone call saved my life, a lot of people messaged me with the same quiet question: where do I even go for help?

For a long time, I didn't know either. I arrived in Melbourne in 2018 and spent my first couple of years thinking I had to carry everything on my own — that asking for help was weakness, or that it might somehow cost me my visa, my place, my pride.

It took me far too long to learn that this country is full of people whose whole job is to help you. Most of them for free. Most of them confidential. None of them there to judge you.

So I made the list I wish someone had handed me when I landed. Save this page. Send it to a friend who's struggling. You don't have to be in crisis to use any of it — and if you are, start right at the top.

If you need to talk to someone right now

You don't have to be at breaking point to call these. They're free, confidential, available 24/7, and the people who answer are trained to listen without judgement. Reaching out is one of the strongest things you can do.

If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 000 — that's the emergency line for police, fire, and ambulance anywhere in Australia.

A note for international students like me: these services are independent and confidential. They are not connected to immigration, and reaching out for help with your mental health does not put your visa or your studies at risk. And if English isn't the language you think and feel in, you can call the free Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS) on 131 450 and ask them to connect you to any of these lines in your language.

Mental health and wellbeing support

For the heavier weeks, the burnout, the homesickness that won't lift — ongoing support, not just crisis help.

  • Your campus counselling service — the one most of us forget. Almost every Australian university and college offers free, confidential counselling to enrolled students, including international students. Check your provider's student services page, or just walk into the student support office and ask.
  • headspace — free support for young people aged 12–25, online, by phone, and at 150+ centres across the country. Call 1800 650 890 or find your nearest centre at headspace.org.au.
  • Kids Helpline — free, confidential counselling for anyone aged 5–25, 24/7. Call 1800 55 1800 or chat at kidshelpline.com.au.
  • MensLine Australia — free 24/7 counselling for men dealing with stress, relationships, or their mental health. Call 1300 78 99 78.
  • QLife — free, anonymous LGBTIQA+ peer support, 3pm to 9pm every day. Call 1800 184 527 or chat at qlife.org.au.
  • Butterfly Foundation — support for anyone worried about eating or body image, for themselves or someone they love. Call 1800 33 4673 or visit butterfly.org.au.

Support made for international students

These ones understand exactly what you're going through, because most of the people working there have lived it too.

  • Study Melbourne Hub — if you're in Victoria, this is your first stop. Free caseworkers help with accommodation, financial hardship, wellbeing, and more, with no judgement. Drop in at 17 Hardware Lane in the CBD (open 9am–5pm, Monday to Friday), or call 1800 056 449 (or +61 3 9623 1512 from overseas), 7am–10pm, 7 days. More at studymelbourne.vic.gov.au.
  • The Couch — a free space run by The Salvation Army (Melbourne Project 614) with the City of Melbourne, where international students can share a cooked meal, learn new skills, and make friends. Open Monday to Thursday, 6pm–8:30pm, at Level 1, 69 Bourke Street in the CBD. A genuinely warm place to land.
  • AusWISE — a Melbourne not-for-profit supporting international students with health, wellbeing, and navigating life in Australia. (Full disclosure: this is the community I work with on public health — I believe in it.) Visit auswise.org.
  • Study Australia — the national government hub for student support, your rights, and health and wellbeing, wherever in the country you are. See studyaustralia.gov.au.

When money or food is tight

This happens to more of us than anyone admits out loud. There's no shame in it, and there's real help.

  • National Debt Helpline — free, confidential financial counselling from people who are on your side, not the bank's. Call 1800 007 007 (Mon–Fri) or visit ndh.org.au.
  • Study Melbourne Hub (above) can connect you to emergency food relief and financial assistance — ask their caseworkers.
  • The Couch (above) serves free meals during opening hours, no questions asked.
  • Your provider's hardship support — many universities and colleges have emergency grants or food pantries for students doing it tough. Ask student services; it's what they're there for.

Know your rights — work, rent, and study

You have rights here, even on a student visa. Free legal help exists, and using it is normal.

  • ISEALS (International Student Employment and Accommodation Legal Service) — free legal advice for international students in Victoria on unpaid wages, unfair work, dodgy landlords, and bond disputes. Access it through the Study Melbourne Hub. Details at studymelbourne.vic.gov.au.
  • International Student Legal Information Resource (ISHELP) — a free, multilingual guide to your rights (English, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Chinese) from Inner Melbourne Community Legal. Find it at ishelp.org.au.
  • Consumer Affairs Victoria — for renting problems, bonds, and disputes with landlords or agents. Visit consumer.vic.gov.au.
  • Commonwealth Ombudsman — free, independent, and impartial. If you have a serious complaint about a private college or training provider, they investigate. See ombudsman.gov.au.
  • Australian Taxation Office — for tax file numbers, your tax return, and getting your refund right. Everything you need is at ato.gov.au.

Health and OSHC

Health cover can feel like a foreign language when you've never had insurance before. Learn how yours works before you need it.

  • SafeDownUnder — a clear, student-friendly guide to understanding and using your Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC). Start at safedownunder.org.
  • NURSE-ON-CALL — free 24/7 health advice from a registered nurse in Victoria, for when you're not sure whether to see a doctor. Call 1300 60 60 24.
  • Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS) — free interpreters for health appointments and support calls. Call 131 450.
  • Before you pick or switch an OSHC policy, talk to your university's support team or a service like Study Melbourne or AusWISE. Knowing what you're covered for can save you thousands.

Free tools for the in-between days

Not everything needs a phone call. For the quieter, low-energy days:

  • Lifeline Support Toolkit — free, self-led tools and information on anxiety, low mood, sleep, and more, at toolkit.lifeline.org.au.
  • Beyond Blue forums — an anonymous online community where you can read other people's stories and share your own, any hour of the day.
  • Your campus wellbeing programs — free workshops, peer groups, meditation sessions, and social events run by most providers. Going to one is also how a lot of us find our people here.

I'll keep adding to this list as I find more. If you know a service that helped you and isn't here, tell me — this page is for all of us.

You came all this way on your own. That took more courage than you give yourself credit for. But you don't have to keep doing it alone — that's the whole reason this list exists.

Save it. Share it. And on the day you need it, use it.

— Asanka Tharindu