SF 2017 Site Plans

Sorry in advance for the very long post (3 posts actually) and I will tell you up front there is no need to read though all of it as much of it is simply lists, so read as much detail as you want to know. My idea of SF is that we are all members helping each other and that SF belongs to the members. My goal in running SF is to make sure all feel they have a voice and like they are a part of the site. I try very hard to prevent there from being any feelings that members and staff are different- we are all members, the staff are simply members that have volunteered extra time towards keeping th esite safe, just like others volunteer writing, art work , donations, or the most important thing of all- simply replying to posts or listening in chat when another member needs somebody to listen to them.

With the idea in mind that all members here have a stake in how things are done, I wanted to share the site plans (to this point for 2017). Any comments or suggestions or questions please feel free to ask. This is your site too, so I hope if you have thoughts about things you will share them.

SF 2017 Site Plan

Overview –

The focus of 2017 will be continuing to turn SF from just a forum and chat peer support site to a full-fledged resource site for people struggling with depression, suicidal thoughts, and other mental health issues as well as providing ideas for life coping strategies and how-to’s for changing life situations to make recovery both easier and more complete.

While much of the focus will be on the articles and resources, we will continue to look for ways to upgrade and improve our key strengths of the peer support available on the forum sections and live chat. Part of that we are hoping to accomplish through the guided self-study programs with a facilitator to help with studying topics of interest, as well as guided chats a facilitator at least 1x / month. An improved social media presence on Facebook and Twitter is needed to help reach more people in need of immediate help. Most of the additions and changes are based on member suggestions through-out 2016.


Physical Changes –

Improved Chat with a new upgrade and possible addition of push services available to decrease lag and “dropped messages” as well as making chat sync properly when multiple tabs are open.

Possible addition of a new theme as either the default theme or as an additional theme available based on user preferences.

Consideration of an improved cloud based server that is custom tailored to our XenForo platform. We are going to find some way to address the “20 minutes past the hour” slowdowns caused by Cron entries, particularly in morning and evening time periods (our busiest times).

Continue to explore the option of offering members their own blogs open to the internet if there is interest by members in having their own blog here that could be followed by the www audience.

During development time to enact other changes have the custom development needed to place arcade back in service.

Member Art Gallery and Poetry sections on front of web site (dependent on interest).

SF Mobile App-for members to read messages, get notifications, with options for self-tracking some of the downloadable type things. Perhaps an SF Mobile App and an SF Self Help App to separate out things. This would be very dependent on funds to develop or coding assistance but would also be very useful add on and allow members that do not have time to read SF daily to still interact and get support when needed.

We currently have about 1 month buffer of costs accumulated from monthly donations. Part of this will be used to update annual license fees, and we keep some in reserve to help defray unexpected costs or in case we do not have enough donations on some individual month. Any additional changes to the site such as mentioned above are paid out of this surplus as well, so all site changes depend on the amount of money available to make them and of having a surplus above monthly maintenance and hosting charges. Social media expansion relies on the additional funds as well do to the nature of the site, few people “share” posts for organic page growth, however for $20 we can a post shared an extra 5k times by Facebook…. Thank you to all that have donated and for enabling us to keep the site operational and also to continue to improve it.

Planned Content additions for 2017


There are a lot of plans for adding content to the site, to include additional articles, having a section to download resources from, and also collections of media that we feel deserves to be recommended for self-help and self-study. In addition to these categories, the addition of a “Member Spotlight” – which would be a chance for a member volunteer to discuss their issues, their beliefs, strategies, ways they use SF or other resources, etc.- in the front articles section of the website. It may range from weekly to monthly, depending on interest, and will be flexible in format. This is based on several requests for this type of thing, though the actual enactment has not been fully figured out and it will depend on number of interested as to whether there will need to be criteria added (for example member for at least 60 day or at least 1 year, if multiple volunteers random draw or other methods of choosing, etc.) This is in direct response to member requests so will allow latitude for members to decide how they want done.


Articles Concept / Summary

Friendship and social skills post summarizing key mistakes people make when attempting to maintaining relationships and make new ones.

Learned Helplessness (requested in chat)

The mental health taboo and whether or not it is still true that admitting to mental illness can be a problem for career etc. Discussion of how to help break down the taboo and the efforts being made to bring mental illness 'into the light'

How to get help with mental illness - what to say to doctors and what will happen if you go to the hospital etc. (may need to be country specific)

Veteran resource - how to find help and little known resources for assistance.

PMDD and cycle related depression.

Dealing with postpartum depression and new motherhood.

Talking about depression suicidal feelings and self-harm to friends and family - how to go about it and understanding what it is that you want them to say / what would be helpful - and how to get the support you want.

Do I have PTSD? Dealing with traumatic and difficult events in your life. What a flashback actually is and how it is unhelpful to buy into the media hype.

The dangers of self-diagnosis - why it is a bad idea and why the internet can't diagnose you (and why it makes it harder for people really suffering from these illnesses to get help and support when so many people self-diagnose mood swings as bipolar etc.)

What is self-harm and why do people do it? How self-harm isn't just about bleeding - how it can also be substance abuse, binge eating / food deprivation, not taking meds etc.

"I want to die" - how to talk to people about suicide - what is and is not helpful to say and how to support people you love/care about who may be experiencing suicidal feelings.

Self-care and mental illness - why it is important to stick to a routine and actually get up, get dressed, get showered etc. (and find something to do every day) why getting into a cycle of poor self-care can make us feel worse and mean we isolate more.

Depression and Sleep - the links between depression causing people to be tired / sleep too much as well as causing insomnia and poor sleep patterns. (Part 1)

Combatting insomnia - hints and tips for good sleep and what to avoid. Circadian rhythms and how to work with them (Part 2)

Am I depressed or does my life just suck? How crappy life situations can lead to clinical depression and the biology around how that actually happens.

Do Anti-Depressants make you into a zombie? The truth about how SSRIs actually work, why it may take several attempts to find the right one for you and how they are completely different from hardcore psych meds.

Self-soothing and DIY therapy - to include coloring and ASMR (requested by more than one person in chat) - what helps when we are in a slump and what really doesn't help.

I'm a failure and everyone hates me' - the lies that mental illness tell us and how they become a self-perpetuating reality over time.

Negative self-talk and self-sabotage - how we can be our own worst enemies etc.

The principles of DBT and how to apply them while waiting for therapy

Loving yourself and stepping away from self-hate and negative self-perception. Why loving ourselves is an important (and hard) step toward recovery and how to start the process

Toxic people and removing them from your life - emphasis on how you are not obligated to see family that upsets you and makes you feel crappy

Nothing changes unless something changes - how mental illness can trap us and how expecting medication to fix things will actually make things worse. The importance of setting yourself free and taking responsibility for your own life situation.

Nobody cares about me' - how to realistically look at your relationships and understand that people show love and caring in different ways (some discussion of love languages - requested in chat) and that practical advice and 'tough love' are not necessarily indications of abuse or lack of caring etc.

Practicing self-compassion

Self-Medicating - alcohol, drugs and depression - why self-medicating is a bad idea and how to get help that doesn't involve addiction

Financial Planning and Getting out of Debt (US / Canada/ UK /Australia povs)


(Any other ideas welcome- the goal is at least 1 article/week)

Downloadables:

Mood Diary Template

Food Diary Template

Weekly Self Care Checklist (requested in chat)

Self-Harm Distractions Printable

Daily schedule / goals Template (requested in chat)

Emotions and Reactions Template

Problem Perspective Analysis (needs a better name) but breaking down a problem how it cropped up, the key issues, how big a problem really is it, how does it affect my life etc.

Challenging unhelpful and negative thoughts Template

Self-Harm Reflection Template

Goal Planning Template

DBT Daily Diary Card Template

Personal Self Care Plan Template

Updated Safety Plan

Budget / personal spending tracker


(Samples others have found useful to review for comparison and other ideas welcome)


Member spotlight –

Choosing 1 member at regular intervals to discuss posts, their back ground, beliefs, viewpoints, things that inspire or trigger them, and let them discuss the things important to them. Any help they want writing or editing will be provided, or they may do all themselves (subject to only modest editing as needed for publication so long as meets SF safety rules and guidelines).



What is needed for the 2017 plan to go forward?


Volunteers of course to-

Help write articles

Select or recommend materials for the roundups

Do artwork for posts, social media, and art sections

Social Media Assistants to help expand the SF social media presence by posting as SF on our own pages and to help reply and engage other members and non-members in social media

Junior Staff volunteers (Pro’s) to help moderate forums and chat

Possible help with development/coding based on needs and expertise

Continued support through donations (only if you can afford without causing any difficulty in your own situations please)



We plan on holding an open chat “Town Hall Meeting” The first is Monday the 26th , at 3pm Eastern Standard US Time zone, 8PM GMT/UTC time zone (or perhaps a series of 2-3 chats to hit different time zones adequately) to discuss any plans for 2017, as well as to hear any suggestions or concerns about sf. Dates and times will be posted. We also welcome feedback here or in Letters to management, or by messaging any of the admin Team - NyJmpMaster, Freya, WildCherry or just passing on your thoughts to any of the Pro's or senior staff members so they can share them with the Admin team.

Hi Ben. I've been discussing an idea for a new thread with Freya. It is in relation to people of faiths connecting with each other. Mental illness is hard enough as it is but sometimes people need to find someone of the same faith to discuss their lives with. I've come across so many people reaching out for support from other Christians but there are so many threads they just get lost.

So the proposition is to have an easily accessible thread for people of ALL faiths to share with one another. To post open and honestly without the fear of being judged by those that don't believe. I honestly believe that there is a real need for this. I just didn't want to break any rules by starting a new thread without approval.

Thank you for your time and all the best - Kira

Thank you Kira I do think that this is a valid need and could give people we are not currently catering for much needed support. Give us a few days to discuss it and figure out logistics and how to enable this within the forum rules and with the least issues and we will get back to you.

Thanks for the suggestion Kira.

There has been discussion of this before and many people have asked about. There seems to be fairly equal numbers of people that want to be able to have faith based discussions and those that appreciate SF not having the religious over tones of many other support sites plus some people that are actually upset by faith based support. I do believe that it should be possible to set it up so that people that do want to have faith based issues and support can , while not impinging on those that do not- and if we are able to come up with an idea that allowed both to coexist without either group feeling overlooked I would be in favor of it and suspect most would. I have a couple ideas on ways we may be able to accomplish that and will look at the logistics and see if it is possible.

Sorry for the minor question, but will there ever be emotes for the forum? I know it was tried a few months back but is it in the plans for the future?

Thanks Ben! I do appreciate what you are doing. If it does however turn out to be too difficult to work, then that's fine too! I want all parties to feel safe and involved on this site! Thanks again for all the brilliant things that you and the other staff do. Both seen and behind the scenes. You are all very much appreciated! It's a wonderful privilege to be a part of this SF family! All the best - Kira ox

How about a nominated annual SF Happy Day and Member of Year Award in a thread? No extra cost but just posting on a threads.

The idea of promoting this forum as a "family-themed" support group where others can feel safe in a virtual world. The more we can reach out to others in these hard times, the most self-awareness of the forum will be marketed.

That's my input as an idea for the up coming year.

SF day I am definitely good with- I think choosing member of the year would prove impossible- too many great members to ever choose- maybe a member appreciation day for all members though

SF is probably eligible to get some free help from some business counseling resources, if SF is not getting this already.

My guess is that they would probably advise developing a bigger buffer, though SF may already be trying to do that against some hard limits.

Since we are 100% operating on donations, and in the last 5 years approx half the total costs have been paid by the previous and current site owners out of pocket, developing a larger buffer while would be nice , is also not really possible. Fortunately the total costs to run site are low enough that we are not going to become insolvent based on donations as between myself and a couple other long-term members that have committed to making up any shortfalls if ever needed to pay monthly operating costs. Sf is not a business and there is greater priority placed on improved resources available for members rather than on hand cash or surplus. We had considered registering as a non profit, however the idea of adding substantial extra cost - over doubling annual costs due to need of filing tax returns and independent accountant review while providing no additional services or resources seems a waste of member donations, and certainly of my own money which is what has kept the site going many times. Rather than looking for greater accrual, any additional donations will continue to be used for site improvements.

Ok. Getting some free business counseling may still be worthwhile though. In any organization, there's a "shit happens" factor, and well as a getting-the-most-for-your-dollar issue.

Business schools sometimes offer free business counseling to non-profits/not-for-profits.

They often (but not always) limit who they serve based on geographical proximity.

There's also organizations like SBA and SCORE (for the US, I'm guessing there are similar resources elsewhere).

I can try to look up some resources if you are interested.

I appreciate it but I have an MBA and ran a multi -million dollar company for years before getting congestive heart failure and taking early retirement disability. It has been 7 years but i still feel comfortable and I spend some of my spare time doing business mentorship.

I didn't know

I've been a staff member at another website and something that could be fun and potentially another small form of revenue would be to sell some merchandise, stuff like SF teddy bears. That other site did this with a $1 profit margin, as it was mostly meant for the users of the site rather than revenue generating.

That might be cute. I don't know how many people would be happy about giving an address to send one to though given the nature of the site. And you were staff on another site? Betrayal :'(

I've mentioned this to you before Lu, it was a different site and I was a different man back then. Now I'm all for the monogamous relationships.

I just looked up the website we used for it, it's https://www.spreadshirt.com/, but I'm sure there's other options out there as well that may suit SF better.

Could you perhaps add a more darker template, something thats easier on the eyes?