My Therapy Buddy
My Therapy Buddy
Ellyssa, Seattle WA
About Ellyssa:
Upon moving from Seattle to Michigan to pursue her Masters in Health Management, Ellyssa experienced firsthand the lack of mental health support available.
Ellyssa built My Therapy Buddy as a tool to support herself and her friends during difficult times.
About My Therapy Buddy:
My Therapy Buddy is a forever-free online Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) tool that trains your brain to navigate every type of situation even if you don't know what "the real problem" is.
The project is now expanding to create a daily 60-second newsletter (called Spoonful of Optimism) and a line of beautiful, low-cost mental health (and mental illness) workbooks and softwares so that quality mental health resources and support can be accessible to as many people as possible.
What was your inspiration behind the project?
Ellyssa: "Desperation inspired my project. The helplessness I felt when I moved alone to a new state during the pandemic in order to study health management is something I never want anyone to experience. I had no one to lean on, minimal finances to live on, and low morale to draw from. As someone who never had any mental health support, this situation was dreadful to me.
I realized the immense need for affordable and accessible mental health tools that could be used for a wide range of life situations. As a result, I created the My Therapy Buddy tool which I used to safeguard my mental health until I had enough money to see a therapist. The success of the tool for myself and my friends really gave me the drive and inspiration to create even more tools and resources that can make mental health care as accessible as possible."
What is your message to the community?
Ellyssa: "Just a reminder that when you take care of your own mental health, you take care of everyone around you - even if that means trying and failing at it. Your efforts towards making yourself healthier and more comfortable with yourself go a very long way.
If you need some help with this process, reach out to me (Ellyssa) on our website and check out My Therapy Buddy every now and then! We might have a tool or resource that can make your life easier.
Vessi is helping us build more mental health tools and resources so that we can reach and help more people. So whether it's today or 10 years from now, I'm really excited to share everything I make with you!!"
Learn more about My Therapy Buddy.
