Sometimes all you need is to be heard
I founded Besiide with the belief that anyone can share their feelings and be heard. We do not provide clinical mental health therapy. Instead, we offer pre-clinical mental health support by using a matching algorithm (i.e., based on race, age, gender, etc) to connect people who want to talk about whatever is on their mind with our trained, empathetic listeners. My experience as a US Army Ranger led me to become more and more aware of the importance of mental health support. I routinely sought mental health counseling to overcome my battles with depression and anxiety, believing it was the only way to manage my emotions and overcome my struggles. Following my time in the military, I sat next to an older gentleman on a flight from San Francisco to Los Angeles. A casual conversation slowly turned serious, and I ended up sharing my personal struggles, the same ones I had been sharing with therapists throughout my time in the military and after. As I stepped off that plane, I started thinking - maybe for all those years, I just needed someone who could listen to me, who understands what I’m going through and who can relate to my pain and traumas. That conversation led me to develop Besiide, a platform where anyone can share their feelings and be heard.
