App created to help with mental health

Princeton psychology graduates have created a new app to help people who suffer from mental health issues get the help and comfort they need.

Jeremy Fischbach, founder and CEO of the app “Happy” and a Princeton graduate, started the project based on what he feels is a basic need for humans that isn’t being provided as prevalently as it should be.

“Humans require a certain amount of emotional comfort and support,” Fischbach said. “It is a basic need for humans as a species.

“Next to water, food and safety, I feel emotion support is the basic need that is next in line. The nation, and the world at large, doesn’t provide the level of comfort that many people are in need of.”

Fischbach said “Happy” originated from his own personal life experiences.

“It’s rather mundane, but it comes from my search of finding emotional support,” he said. “I was going through a divorce and having a rough time with my job at the time.

“My immediate solution was to seek help from the traditional source of mental comfort, my family and friends. I also sought out the help of a psychiatrist, whom I saw once a month and who charged me $100 per hour.”

Experts in the field of mental health in Lorain County welcome “Happy.”

Diana Santantonio, psychologist and director of Psych & Psych Services, a mental health and chemical dependency treatment center in Elyria, said it’s important for someone dealing with certain issues to have a sense of community.

“People benefit from having a connection with people,” Santantonio said. “It is important to have someone to talk to avoid feeling lonely.”

Santantonio said there are certain characteristics of those who are best at providing emotional support.

“The person has to be a good listener,” she said. “They have to be empathetic and able to connect with you emotionally.

“The person has to be focused on your specific situation and make it less about themselves.” Others agree. Eric Morse, executive director of The Nord Center in Lorain, said it’s important to have a support system.

“We are social beings,” Morse said. “We need a group of people we can talk to about our problems.

“People will be better off if they have a system around them of people who are able to provide them with emotional support.”

“Happy” currently is live on iOS and soon will be available in Google Play.

Searching for support

Fischbach said he was receiving what he thought was support, but eventually realized he wasn’t getting the emotional backing he needed.

“I soon found that family and friends aren’t necessarily the best places for people to go for emotional support,” he said. “First off, your family and friends, and most people fall into this category, are terrible at giving support.

“The problem compounds itself because you care about your friends and family. Often times, you end up providing the support as opposed to receiving, which was the original intent and only makes matters worse.”

Fischbach said he realized the best way to break the mold of relying on psychiatrists and family was to create an app.

“There was a theoretical version of support I knew I needed that I couldn’t access,” he said. “The beauty of the app is that it’s convenient and easily accessible via your smartphone.

“The goal and the solution that I found is that’s best to talk to normal, everyday people. These people are not family nor are they psychiatrists, but they listen and provide the right type of support that you need.

“I also would be, and I knew others who would be, willing to pay an affordable amount for this type of emotional support, so that’s what spawned the idea.”

Fischbach said he later realized the problem was more prevalent than he originally thought.

“When I got members of the psych group at Princeton onboard, I realized a lot of people suffer from chronic isolation,” he said. “It’s an epidemic because many people are not sharing what they are going through.

“Human beings need to be around other people and need a human connection as opposed to clinical support from a psychiatrist.”

Fischbach said once the epidemic was identified, his team then identified the best way to implement how the relief is provided.

“The delivery of the relief was key for us,” he said. “You’re dealing with a third of the nation who suffer from chronic isolation and many need the solution to be affordable.

“There are a lot of people that can provide this support, who are everyday people. They are teachers, parents and others from many different walks of life.

“They are good at providing the right kind of emotional support and ‘Happy’ essentially connects them with those who need them.”

Fischbach said the people providing the support go through a vetting process before offering support.

“We want to make sure these people are good at providing the necessary support,” he said. “That’s why we have our potential ‘givers’ go through a 30-60 minute interview.

“The interview is comprised of questions that cover five different metrics. Applicants who score in the 90th percentile move on to the phase of feedback sessions. This allows us to weed out or approve applicants to create a network of qualified ‘givers.’”

Fischbach said the app has had a successful start.

“‘Happy’ is very well reviewed,” he said. “The app is averaging a 4.85 out of 5 user rating, and nearly 90 percent of users have reported a decrease in their anxiety.

“The first call is free and that call can last up to three and half hours. So, I encourage anyone who is suffering with mental illness to give ‘Happy’ a try and start building a network of people that will provide you with the right kind of emotional support.”