Serious question.
Most people carry things they never tell anyone.
Not illegal things. Just thoughts that would damage relationships or reputations if they were said out loud.
Regret about past decisions. Things people hide from partners. Thoughts about friends or family they would never admit publicly.
Therapists exist for a reason, but most people never go to one.
So I was wondering something.
Would it actually be healthier if people had a place to post these thoughts completely anonymously?
No identity. No profile. Just the confession.
I’m building a small experiment called Backroom around this idea where people can post one-line anonymous secrets.
But I’m honestly curious if people would actually use something like that or if most secrets are better left unsaid.
It’s been done with real postcards. Not that you can’t try a different take.
This site has been around since 2004:
https://postsecret.com
Just don’t open it to comments. People don’t need that and it’ll get ugly.
Doesn’t it just not feel like confessing at that point? Maybe I’m just an attention whore?
Nah. The therapeutic effect is from the confession not from the shitty advice or even confirmation or absolution.
Everyone wants attention. It’s one of our basic needs. But, it’s better for you to get it from positive things. Getting it from negative things is like getting your calories from soft drinks.
Sometimes people just want to say something once without it becoming part of their identity.
That’s different from attention.