Growing up in New York City helped inspire Isabella’s project because she experienced firsthand how stressful and overwhelming life in the city can feel for teenagers. As a student at The Chapin School, she saw how many young people struggle with anxiety, pressure, and stress but do not always have healthy ways to cope with it. Everyday situations like crowded subways, loud streets, and constant movement often increased her anxiety and made it difficult to relax. Over time, crochet became an important coping skill for her because the repetitive motions helped calm her mind and gave her something positive to focus on. She also realized that not every teen has access to creative outlets, supportive communities, or affordable supplies to help manage stress.
“Crochet helped me slow down and feel calmer when everything around me felt overwhelming.” – Isabella Saenz
Because of this, Isabella decided to create a social media platform and website focused on crochet, mental health awareness, and stress relief for teens. Her goal is to create an online community where young people can learn crochet, share projects, connect with others, and discover healthier ways to cope with anxiety in a supportive and creative environment.
When Isabella first started working on her project, she quickly realized that creating a social media platform and website focused on crochet and mental health would take a lot of planning and organization. She spent time researching how websites and online communities are created while also thinking carefully about what type of content would make teens feel supported and included. In the beginning, one of the biggest challenges was figuring out how to spread awareness and reach teenagers who might benefit from the platform. She also had to balance schoolwork, extracurricular activities, and the time needed to develop ideas for the website and social media pages. Friends, classmates, and supportive adults helped by giving feedback on her ideas, suggesting content, and encouraging her throughout the process. Another challenge was learning how to make the platform feel welcoming and safe while still being creative and engaging for teens.
“At first, I didn’t realize how much work goes into building something that people can actually connect with online.” – Isabella Saenz
Even with these challenges, the early stages of the project helped Isabella better understand how important online communities can be for young people looking for support, creativity, and healthier ways to cope with stress and anxiety.
Although Isabella’s project is still unfinished, she has already made significant progress toward creating a social media platform and website focused on crochet, stress relief, and teen mental health awareness. So far, she has spent over 25 hours researching website design, planning content, creating ideas for posts, and organizing ways to make the platform welcoming and helpful for teenagers. She has also shared her ideas with classmates, friends, and adults who provided feedback and support during the process. Through conversations with peers and younger students, she realized that many teens relate to the stress and anxiety she hopes to address through her project. While the website is still being developed, the project has already helped spread awareness about healthier coping skills and the importance of creative outlets for mental health. One of the biggest accomplishments so far has been building a foundation for an online community where teens can eventually share crochet projects, connect with others, and learn stress management skills in a supportive environment. Isabella plans to continue expanding the website and social media pages so they can eventually reach and help even more young people.
Looking ahead, Isabella plans to continue developing her social media platform and website focused on crochet and teen mental health, even after the completion of her CLP. She intends to keep improving the site by adding more tutorials, student-made crochet projects, and mental health resources that can help teens manage stress in healthy ways. In the future, she also hopes to take on more leadership roles in school and community spaces, especially those related to mental health awareness, youth support, and creative expression. She is interested in continuing her education in a field that combines psychology, community work, or digital media so she can further expand projects like this one.
Isabella also plans to involve other students in helping run and grow the platform so it can eventually become something more collaborative and student-led. As the project grows, she hopes it will continue even if others take over different parts of it, allowing it to reach more people over time. Overall, her goal is for this CLP to be the beginning of a long-term effort to combine leadership, creativity, and mental health advocacy in a meaningful and lasting way.
“I want this to become something that can grow beyond me and still help people even when I’m not the one managing every part of it.” – Isabella Saenz
