Mindful Youth: Empowering Adolescents to Own their Mental Health through an Interactive Online Platform

Depression and anxiety are prevalent issues with rates that continue to increase each year for adolescents within our society. This project focuses on creating a website that will engage adolescents to own their mental health and reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety by equipping them with self-help tools. The website includes situational videos, journaling prompts, and other interactive resources based in Positive Psychology and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). The online toolkit is designed to be available to people who use online accessibility functions. We created a pilot version of the website using the platforms Toonly and Wix, and then hosted a focus group with students at Willard Alternative High School to receive feedback from our primary population as we were creating the website. Using an online platform makes these resources accessible to a broader range of individuals globally and helps subvert the cost, time, and stigma that comes from receiving traditional mental health care. This website is a resource that is much more accessible and enjoyable for students, and takes a more interactive approach to self-help, encouraging adolescents to “Be their Own Superhero”. Our goal in the creation of this website was to create a place where adolescents can seek stigma-free help and be equipped with tools that they could start using immediately to take ownership of their mental health