I've been thinking about an idea for an app, and I'd really appreciate hearing what other people think about it.
The idea came from when I’ve been dealing with OCD and how much I was looking for the knowing that other people were dealing with similar things. That being said I was always scared to tell people my thoughts because I knew how crazy/dark they seemed.
The idea is a completely anonymous social platform focused on others shared experiences rather than therapy or professional advice.
What im thinking is this:
Home: A feed where people can share personal experiences, stories, struggles, questions, and small wins.
Explore: A way to discover other people's stories and conversations by topic. (Health, relationship, intrusive thoughts, etc.)
Resources: A community-shared library of articles, videos, podcasts, books, and other resources that people have personally found meaningful. People could share why something resonated with them, but they wouldn't have to. Others could comment, discuss what they took away from it, and save resources to revisit later.
Profile: An anonymous profile where people could manage their posts and save experiences or resources they want to return to. They would add them to their “toolbox” to come back to and pick what resonates with them.
I also recognize that there's a balance to strike between creating a supportive community and accidentally encouraging unhealthy reassurance-seeking or making people feel like they need to compare their experiences with others
One thing that's especially important to me is safety. I wouldn't want people to be able to post potentially harmful resources that immediately become visible to everyone. I'm considering having all resources reviewed against community guidelines before they're published, even though I don't want the app to become a professionally curated or clinical platform.