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Logo of YoungShoulders that is displayed on IOS and Android devices' homescreen.
Inspiration
When I was young, I had a friend who was handling the responsibilities of an adult while juggling siblings, school work, and house work. At that time, I couldn't do much for her situation, however, with my developed programming skills, I was inspired to create an app for her and other teenagers struggling with parentification. I ensured I can personally include everything teenagers require while being parentified and had a goal to make them have the best experience with the right UI and UX.
What it does
YoungShoulders is a comprehensive mental wellness app that empowers teens to track and understand their emotions through mood logging, daily journaling, and reflective prompts. Teens can organize their daily responsibilities with an integrated task manager, set reminders, and maintain healthy routines, while an AI chat companion offers supportive conversations, coping strategies, and guidance for emotional regulation. Supporters, such as parents, mentors, or counselors, can monitor teen progress in real time, viewing detailed mood trends, journal highlights, and task completion, allowing them to detect patterns, analyze potential symptoms, and provide personalized support. The platform encourages communication, early intervention, and proactive care by combining data-driven insights with interactive tools to nurture both emotional awareness and overall mental wellbeing.
How we built it
YoungShoulders was built using Flutter to ensure a seamless and responsive experience across both iOS and Android devices. The app integrates custom state management and secure local storage to track moods, journals, and tasks efficiently while maintaining user privacy. I incorporated data visualization with interactive charts to display mood trends, enabling both teens and supporters to analyze patterns over time. The AI chat companion leverages natural language processing to provide empathetic, context-aware responses, and the entire platform was designed with an intuitive and colorful interface to make mental wellness engaging, accessible, and supportive for users of all ages.
Challenges we ran into
During development, I faced several challenges. Making sure mood and journal data updated in real time while keeping user information private and safe was tricky. Designing the app so it was fun and easy for teens but still helpful and clear for supporters took many tries. Adding the AI chat to give kind, helpful responses that felt natural but stayed safe for teens was also difficult. On top of that, creating clear mood trend charts and making the app work well on different devices tested how well I could keep it fast, smooth, and good-looking.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
I am proud of creating an app that truly helps teens express their feelings and connect with supportive adults. The app allows teens to track their moods, write in a journal, and use a friendly AI chat companion. Supporters can see trends, understand what teens are going through, and provide better guidance. Bringing all these features together in a safe, easy-to-use design is something I am really proud of.
What we learned
I learned how to work as a team to build a complete app from start to finish. I gained experience in coding, designing the user interface, and connecting features like mood tracking and AI chat. I also learned how to think about the needs of both teens and supporters and make the app safe and easy to use. Overall, I learned a lot about problem solving, planning, and bringing an idea to life.
What's next for YoungShoulders
Next, I want to make YoungShoulders even better by adding new features to support teens and their supporters. I plan to improve the AI chat with personalized advice, add more ways to track moods and triggers, include goal-setting tools, and offer reminders for self-care activities. I also want to make it easier for supporters to analyze teen symptoms and progress over time. My goal is to keep growing the app to make it a safe, helpful, and interactive space for everyone.
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