High demand for mental health services has forced the Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB) $1 million into deficit.

"We are starting to see the cost pressures from the increases in demand on mental health services," CDHB general manager of finance Justine White said at a board meeting last week.

Higher rates of suicide and a city full of anxious, depressed adults would result if the mental health sector was not bolstered soon, 298 Youth Health centre's Dr Sue Bagshaw said.

"We're dealing with people with severe mental health problems and we shouldn't be - but we're dealing with them because there is no where else for them to go."

Distressed patients ended up on a merry-go-round of referrals, Bagshaw said.

"Frequently we refer patients to the Emergency Department and they see them and refer back to us."

Specialist mental health services manager Toni Gutschlag said the number of children and teenagers needing specialist help for depression and anxiety had doubled since before the quakes.

Recent figures showed demand for community mental health services had increased by 30 per cent, demand for psychiatric emergency services had jumped 37 per cent and demand for rural mental health services was up by 67 per cent.

Demand for beds at Hillmorton Hospital far outstripped capacity, with an average of 78 people under care in a 64-bed facility.

The number of adults under mental health care peaked at 4600 at the end of September.

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Mental health care demands force cash stress