Chill Pill is an app aimed to get young people supporting one another

There is often a perception that focus groups are reserved for certain specific issues, such as those affected by grief or those struggling with addiction. A preconceived notion that Hayley Caddes hopes to eradicate with her new app, Chill Pill.

The idea is to create a safe and welcoming online community for teenage girls and young women to talk about their mental health and support each other.

Hayley Caddes drew on her own experience with Alcoholics Anonymous, whose meetings she attended between the ages of 16 and 22, to create Chill Pill.

"AA has been around for almost 100 years, is the most successful mental health community in the world, and is run by alcoholics, for alcoholics. There's a lot to learn from the AA model," she said in a statement.

The application she has designed follows the same pattern: Chill Pill members should only talk about their own experiences, not mock, not criticize and not judge.

Nor is there any question of giving advice to other users of the application.

"Being part of this community means feeling welcomed and safe no matter what walk of life you are from or what past traumas you've had," says a 16-year-old member.

In keeping with the times, Chill Pill offers its members the opportunity to participate in remote support groups. Participants are anonymous and speak through the microphone of their smartphone.

It is also possible to anonymously post one's daily thoughts and reflections on the app's news feed. "Our application was built by our community, for our community," summarizes Hayley Caddes.

The community in question is made up of adolescent girls and young women, as well as members of Generation Z who identify as non-binary or gender fluid.

These populations have seen their mental health deteriorate with the pandemic, much more than older generations. Twenty-five percent of Generation Z, young people born between 1997 and 2010, say they feel more emotionally distressed two years into the health crisis, according to consulting firm McKinsey.

Only 13% of millennials and Gen Xers say the same.

Chill Pill was launched last summer to specifically address the needs of these youth. The mobile application, available on iOS, now boasts nearly 500 active members.