For MHS students who feel that their personal and school life are becoming almost too much for them to bear, compassionpit.com may be the site they need to vent their frustrations. Compassionpit.com is a site for those who are feeling the pressures of life – whether from their significant other, friends, teacher, parents, work, or etc. The site can also double as a place for MHS students to visit if they feel the need to commit a good deed by helping someone out in need.
Zachary Burt, the creator of Compassion Pit, started the site in 2010 to allow others to vent in a safe environment without fear of what they are saying being used to ridicule them in the future. The rules and regulations created for the site also encourage a judgment-free environment and if there is cruelty or inappropriate behavior from anyone on the site, whoever is involved in the conversation is encouraged to report him or her.
There are two sections on Compassion Pit: the anonymous chat-room and the forums.
To get to the anonymous chat-rooms, go to the home page of Compassion Pit. One will see two large links. One link says “Vent” and the other says “Listen.” If someone clicks either button to be a venter or a listener, a private chat-room pops up. Depending if there is a listener available for one to vent to or a venter for one to listen to, one may have to wait for a conversation partner to become available. Once a conversation partner is available, the conversation almost starts immediately.
The conversations in the chatrooms linked to on the front page are under complete anonymity. No one will know anyone’s actual name (unless he or she chooses to say his or her name). In the past, a listener’s general location was displayed so the venter could tell whether or not they could be speaking to someone in their area and subsequently know. Now, a listener’s general location is no longer displayed.
If a venter or a listener wants to end the conversation, he or she will be asked why. There are a few options to click. Click whichever one applies and the conversation will end. There are two options solely for the venter to click during a conversation that describe the person he or she is talking to as a “good” or “bad” listener.
The forums are less anonymous than the chatrooms that are linked to on the homepage of Compassion Pit. Anyone who wants to vent or reply on forums must create a profile and post under that user-name. The forums are suggested for people if they want a broader range of advice. However, forums are less popular than the chat-rooms. If a venter is searching for immediate advice, he or she is better off going to the anonymous Compassion Pit Chat on the homepage of the site.
