Trill Project

This simple app, created by high school girls wanting to make a difference, gives people a place to discuss their concerns and employs anonymity in a way that's constructive rather than harmful. While there are plenty of apps that let people anonymously criticize each other, Trill Project encourages people to help each other and bond not through online identities, but through common problems and fears. Its developers' main concern is user safety (a welcome change among social networking apps) and as such, group discussions are moderated by Trill employees, and content is strictly monitored. The "Trigger" function is another example of the company's protective intent; turned on, it hides the text within posts if it might trigger destructive behaviors such as cutting or having suicidal thoughts. Even better is the tool that lets you report offensive or abusive content, or content that suggests the author might be thinking of hurting either themselves or others. An Emergency link supports this function by giving you quick and easy access to phone numbers and online links to police, shelters, hospitals, and other kinds of support. Of course, apps like this one aren't a substitute for professional help, and there's always a risk that teens won't find the support they're looking for, so it's important for parents to stay involved and intervene when necessary. The only small technical problems with the app are the sometimes sloppy text, the somewhat inexplicable Conversations function, and the fact that the app can randomly minimize while you're using it. It's also somewhat odd that you can anonymously invite someone to join, but you have to have that person's phone number to do so. Even with these things, though, Trill Project is a good, positive outlet for older teens to share their concerns and give support and receive it from people dealing with problems like their own.