BodiMojo Blog

By Kendall Stewart

We all remember Myspace, Facebook’s precursor in the world of social networking. Members set up profiles where they write information about themselves, list their interests, and post pictures of themselves. Well here’s a new twist on the average Myspace profile – it’s fictional!

It’s called the NYC Teen Mindspace, and it uses fictional characters and situations to help NYC area teens with their mental health problems and concerns: as the Web site says, “Growing up in NYC can be tough, getting help should be easy.” It’s the New York’s Health Department’s first effort to promote health through social networking, which, I don’t have to tell you, is a medium of great potential because of its popularity with young people.

In the “friends” section there are photos of teens, each with an issue labeled underneath their face, such as Anger, Dating Violence, Sexual Health, Peer Pressure and Suicidal thoughts. Teens on whichever one they feel they need help with.

After clicking on the picture, the viewer is given a small background on a character –because that’s what they are, characters. For example, after clicking on the “Sexual Health” link, the story of a character named Anaya comes up. Anaya and her boyfriend had sex but didn’t use a condom.

Clicking on the video connects to “Anaya’s” Myspace page, which is full of information on Sexual Health. There is a video streaming about her story and what she did, then afterwards, the actress who plays Anaya does a PSA (Public Service Announcement) about what to do if you are in her position. Teens can “friend” characters like Anaya and follow her story. There is also an E-mail Lifenet where you can privately email questions or concerns and receive a response within 24 hours.

I think this fictional medium seems to be a really good method for reaching teens. The fact that it’s fictional keeps the issue a safe distance from the viewer, meaning that if they aren’t ready to talk about the issue, they don’t have to, but if they are ready they can.  The actors in the videos are also convincing and believable. The PSA at the end is really the only indicator that the character is not a real person.

Hopefully teens will check this out. Mental health issues are so common among teens; in New York City, nearly 1/3 of high school students say they experience sadness that keeps them from doing daily activities, and a whooping 8 percent report attempting suicide during the past year.

The more people look at it, the more people it can help. check it out.

Kendall Stewart is a freshman at Emerson College majoring in writing, literature and publishing.