Mental Health Application by Axel

Mental Health Application by Axel - May 2025 Scholarship Essay

If I had unlimited time and money, I would use my knowledge of programming, math, and psychology to build an app designed to offer real-time help to people struggling with mental health. The app would use mathematical models to detect patterns in a person’s behavior and mood logs, and it can offer helpful tools like calming exercises or motivational messages. Users could log how they feel throughout the day by selecting mood icons and writing short journal entries, and based on that, it would track the mood changes over time and use text analysis to detect negative patterns. Also, with permission, it would track screen time or withdrawal behavior that could help the AI detect patterns of behavior. The AI would later compare a user’s patterns with anonymized data from others and predict risk levels or identify when someone may be struggling more than usual, which they would later be recommended to do something that could help them. Of course, I would try to keep it private, respectful, and the data algorithms will always be learning to get better over time. I’ve learned that mental health has often gone unspoken, mostly in places where there aren’t many support systems. Mental health is very important since it can dictate what a person does with their life, and having an extra option for support could help them out tremendously. This app would make individuals more likely to be comfortable speaking what they feel if they don’t feel comfortable with other people. With the skills I learned from school, I believe I could create something that makes people feel seen, heard, and helped. Thank you for your time and consideration for electing me for this scholarship.