The pandemic has exasperated an already challenging youth and young adult mental health crisis, but it has also spawned a proliferation of digital health solutions for teens. Below are some recommendations for teens to access emotional support online.
BeMe - BeMe is a mobile mental health platform — made for and With Teens In Mind™ — to improve teen well-being by bringing together the best aspects of social, gaming and streaming engagement along with human coaching and clinical care. Today's teens need and deserve more, and BeMe was created to make teens happier — to intervene early and prevent the need for more intensive levels of care while democratizing emotional health for those who don't always engage or have access to resources.
Hopebound - All children deserve to have hope for tomorrow. Hopebound partners with communities and mental health clinician interns to make one-on-one support accessible to adolescents. Hopebound leverages teletherapy, or secure video-based counseling, when service-related costs and transportation issues greatly limit our ability to support children.
OkaySo - OkaySo is a nonprofit that provides teens with barrier removing access to trained health experts they couldn’t reach any other way using innovative technology and human-centered design theory. They envision a world where all individuals know and love their bodies, identities, and selves so that they can live freely and authentically as who they truly are. They do this by pairing young adults with trained experts through a secure and confidential free app accessible on all smartphones, and connecting teens with partner agencies who can provide additional support where they live.
Project YES - Project YES (Youth Empowerment & Support) is an anonymous program evaluation project run by scientists at Stony Brook University, with partners at University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. Project YES offers free, anonymous, brief mental health tools for teens (ages 11-17). YES empowers teens to learn new ways of dealing with stress while helping others do the same.
selfsea by Peer Health Exchange - selfsea, powered by Peer Health Exchange and co-designed with young people, provides safe, inclusive, evidence-based, and identity-affirming health resources and information for youth everywhere. this app offers a place where young people can see themselves reflected within a supportive and inclusive community that prioritizes their identity and experiences about mental health, sexual health, and beyond.