Our software update is now concluded. You will need to reset your password to log in. In order to do this, you will have to click "Log in" in the top right corner and then "Forgot your password?".
Welcome to PokéCommunity! Register now and join one of the best fan communities on the 'net to talk Pokémon and more! We are not affiliated with The Pokémon Company or Nintendo.
Earlier this month, there was a bit of back in forth in #server-suggestions re: a potential mental-health, advice, or venting channel. It was originally suggested by Inky in #general, see the below logs:
Spoiler:
Inky Today at 3:32 PM
I'm never sure where this sorta conversation could fall cos serious seems more tailored to like world events / politics but general could be seen as not serious enough to carry some of these conversations
Idk
mikechuu Today at 3:33 PM
true
a mental health channel
Inky Today at 3:34 PM
or self care idk that could be fun
hop! Today at 3:34 PM
^
erik degeneres Today at 3:34 PM
#serious is for mental health stuff too yea
atm at least
hop! Today at 3:34 PM
Was thinking selfcare myself
erik degeneres Today at 3:34 PM
#serious - More serious subjects, including requesting advice, and discussing current, historical, or religious affairs/events.
Inky Today at 3:35 PM
Oh I get that's what the description says I just feel like especially at the moment it's p exclusively politics
Altho this wasn't me complaining it was more an observation
hop! Today at 3:35 PM
^
mikechuu Today at 3:35 PM
i agree i dont feel comfortable posting mental health stuff in there because its always politcs
hop! Today at 3:35 PM
I tend to avoid serious bc most of the time the topic is political of nature yeah
Pretty much what mike said
mikechuu Today at 3:36 PM
political can probably be its own channel tbh
Inky Today at 3:36 PM
I've posted in there and had it ignored which isn't to say everything would be but I think most people see it as a politics channel whether or not that's exactly its intent
Altho I'm not saying we need like a venting channel cos that could get out of hand
hop! Today at 3:38 PM
Pulling mental health out of serious and giving it its own space where people would be more comfortable talking about it mayy bc a good idea if the moderation rules stay the same as they are in serious. But shrug.
Bc trying to shift a topic from smth political/non-personal in nature to smth personal in nature is kinda awkward
Inky Today at 3:39 PM
And I don't think is what most who head in there expect to see/talk about
hop! Today at 3:39 PM
Yea
Inky Today at 3:40 PM
I've accidentally made a number of serious natured posts in a row
Dakota Today at 3:40 PM
time for u to be really silly to make up for it
hop! Today at 3:40 PM
Its ok inky is silly quite often
To balance it
erik degeneres Today at 3:40 PM
well we originally had serious as debates, i wouldn't mind changing it to politics-and-debates or smth and then having a srs channel...
Inky Today at 3:42 PM
That could work yeah
hop! Today at 3:42 PM
Yee
Inky Today at 3:42 PM
Or maybe even politics & current affairs
Tara put the above conversation into a formal suggestion in #server-suggestions, see the below:
Spoiler:
hop! Today at 3:49 PM
This was discussed in General a bit so throwing it here as an actual suggestion.
Discussing mental health issues is a little difficult with all the political/current affair talk (either changing it from politics to something personal being too uncomfortable or being ignored over political talk) so perhaps splitting serious into two different channels could help give people a space to come and speak to others about their mental health or other selfcare concerns?
Suggestion in General was to maybe change serious back to politics-and-debates (or politics-and-current-affairs if you wish to keep debates out of the channel name) and then maybe make a new serious channel (maybe name it something like selfcare so people know thats where to go for personal issues?)
Same rules for both in moderation to keep everything in check, of course.
The Moderoids discussed it quite a bit, and ultimately decided against a mental health/venting channel for a few different reasons - I'll go into that further below. Mind you, this wasn't formally communicated in #server-suggestions, and I apologize for that. I did mention the below the other day in #general:
that was something that was discussed, actually, wrt to a potential mental health channel/etc. i think the overall decision from the moderoid team was that it probably wouldn't be for the best at this moment in time. we might revisit it at a later time, but for now, i don't think it'll be happening
but to my knowledge, that's the extent of Official Moderoid Input beyond the below convo in #server-suggestions.
A venting / advice channel was again suggested by Kung Fu Ferret, which sparked a bit of discussion in #server-suggestions, see below:
Spoiler:
Kung Fu Ferret Yesterday at 11:09 AM
Maybe a channel for venting / getting help?
mike thee pichu Yesterday at 11:20 AM
To expand on this, it can be a bit annoying to have general fill up because of someone ranting about something repeatedly. A channel dedicated to that and a channel to ask for help with personal issues that you don't want brought up in general would be a good idea in my opinion. This has been brought up before.. and if we can have a general 2 I don't see why this would be an issue tbh. I know the purpose of general 2 is to be there when general 1 goes too fast or clogs up but I still don't see it as a place to rant or ask for help with serious personal issues.
it's riki Yesterday at 11:23 AM
We have discussed it before but we can touch on the topic again. In the meantime, if any user bothers you but isn't breaking any rules, you can always block them.
zach Yesterday at 11:25 AM
We have discussed it before but we can touch on the topic again. In the meantime, if any user bothers you but isn't breaking any rules, you can always block them.
Good advice, but it can be rather...awkward when the conversation in turn revolves around their topic at hand
it's riki Yesterday at 11:31 AM
If you feel that something is inappropriate, ping a moderoid and we will try to handle it!
rabiknight Yesterday at 12:16 PM
I mean...can't the channel be made when we've had one created because people find chat too fast? Like idk I feel "block people" isn't the answer here
starlights Yesterday at 1:11 PM
It's.... not. There are people here who i love to chat with who sometimes have personal issues that they bring to the table and I'm not going to block them because im not in a place myself where i can help. That said though moving on from such subjects can be awkward so having a dedicated place for such things would make it leff uncomfortable.
And again, as i pointed out last time this was suggested, its really awkward to begin with to even bring up personal issues in general because of the usual vibe of general.
Tldr personal issues change the vibe of general to where it kinda doesnt fit and blocking someone who is asking for help i have to agree with aaron
Fletch Yesterday at 5:49 PM
I do think there is space for a channel like the above in a community like this where many of us are probably experiencing the most difficult year of our lives.
I already suggested this when I was moderoid, but I think if you guys talk about this again you should think about making it an opt-in channel that is moderated in a similar vein to #politics-and-news — one strike you're out, which would be extremely manageable with making it an opt-in channel via a role!
Also I think covid-19 should come back. A lot, and like... I mean a lot, of local lockdowns are coming back, WW numbers are soaring and I don't feel like getting rid while it's still ongoing was a good idea but then again I'm not everyone! I just dont want to monopolise certain areas, general(s) or #politics-and-news as it is such an encompassing global issue!
thanks for making this such a cool place to chill as always :sloheart~1:
Zachie Yesterday at 6:47 PM
To play devils advocate here, I used to have something like this in a community discord I helped run and it kinda really devolved into toxicity at the end of the day. The same people all the time. we ended up having to have the option to hide it and in the end people voted to get rid of it.
inky Yesterday at 7:01 PM
Having a strike-based system would counter that, surely? Having it be an opt-in channel means that if you don't want to see it, you don't have to - the same way some channels are already opt-out here - and anyone who becomes toxic can be removed as and when.
I'd also probably +1 to bringing the covid channel back - it is still a major thing, and with the US election and other current affairs I'd say it makes sense to keep the topics separate for now.
Summer Waifu Bolt Yesterday at 9:06 PM
Devil's advocate #2, I'm on a server of 700-odd people that has a venting channel, and I honestly wish it didn't exist. It's usually people just venting about anything and everything (and multiple times at once, unless someone gives them attention...), and it's always the same group of people venting vs the same ones trying to give comfort advice. This would only be exacerbated by having it being opt-in, as only people who want to vent will opt-in, and the channel would just become a user each in their own corner venting, drowning out other users until it all disappears in the void and ultimately achieving nothing. As for just getting things off your chest, don't we already have a few threads on PC that accommodate that? I'd argue the forum format even helps people sort out their thoughts more and enable better self-reflection.
Disclaimer: I'm not saying it's a bad idea at all, just that it probably won't achieve the effects that you'd believe it would (and might make people feel even worse seeing so much negativity in one spot).
bayalexison Yesterday at 9:13 PM
This is from another server I'm in, but maybe have the vent channel be role based/reaction only? So like you get a role for the vent channel and then you type out whatever you want to vent. Other people then will respond through react emoji. Like one emoji will be for "I feel ya" another "You can DM me" etc. Might be a way for those that one to vent but not to clog too much the channel in case someone else's vent gets buried. I do think though Bolt's mention of using the forum might be a better medium for vents and such
BGMan Yesterday at 9:16 PM
also you can use slowmode to prevent channel flooding, similar to how this channel works
new mew uwu Yesterday at 9:28 PM
i'm actually all for a sort of vent channel. i do think that having such a long slowmode time would discourage actual conversations, such as a back and forth of someone getting legitimate help.
an opt-in/role is likely the best way of going about it, that way those who can give advice, and those in need of advice can receive it. concerning that, it shouldn't be you type in '!addrole rant channel' or whatever. the member should have to dm a moderoid to receive the role, similar to the fangame role. this way you can filter the people who have access to the channel.[/quote]
Ultimately, the reasons we opted to not go with a mental-health channel when we initially discussed it was due to the below reasons:
More oft than not, they turn into huge venting sessions. When others try to give advice, it's largely ignored because, you know, they came there to vent, not to be schooled. We're also not professionals, and people could make suggestions that are intended to be helpful but not actually the right thing to do.
It would be emotionally taxing to keep an eye on and many of us are not particularly keen on that, whereas members can just more easily mute the whole channel and never think about it.
Ultimately, we understand that this suggestion comes from a place of love, and that people just want to look out for their friends. We're down to discuss this further, which is why we created this thread instead of just posting an announcement in #server-suggestions.
I'd like to say, though - if your friend seems a little down one day, you could try shooting them a DM. Also - we have a Mental Health support club & the Dear Anonymous thread to get certain things off your chest.
Firstly, it seems very hypocritical to explain that "we aren't professionals" yet link up a forum thread where yet again, we aren't professionals. I do however understand that if the moderoids currently don't feel like they could effectively moderate it without feeling overwhelmed, then obviously it's a channel that needs delicate looking after, so it wouldn't be the best idea. However that also makes me wonder how the thread works, as the OP has really good and precise rules and regulations laid out, and I don't think I've seen an instance where it got hairy.
If moderation is such an issue, then I largely feel like I'm talking to a result of absolutely nothing, but I know I'd benefit from maybe having an area where I can personally and frankly talk about things going on in my life without killing vibes in either general. Just like the rules for other channels, it would not be hard to install a rule whereby people are forbade from monopolising, overturning and negatively impacting the environment of the chat, for example, excessive ranting. People came into the #server-suggestions "devils advocating" that other servers turn into toxic cess-pits, I would like to flip that on its head and say I've seen some incredibly supportive and helpful servers with these channels, and challenge those who think this channel would be anymore susceptible than #politics is too the odd loaded situation or troll who has to ruin it for others.
Possible ways a channel could work would be opt-in/out as discussed, probably more opt-in to ensure people who actually did want to use it and see it do. Although yes, more work, it would be directly gated by the mods or just botted. Would it be worth selecting some help from people who are really wanting this channel to come into fruition to ensure a safe and helpful environment? I really don't think that would be a poor idea.
Finally, bring #covid-19 back. It isn't a channel that should've had its existence dictated on activity. It's an ongoing, all encompassing global issue where many countries are now experiencing or have experienced another surge in infections.
I just want to clarify that, while some advice is given by members who have been through similar problems in the past, the function of that club is to be a positive support network for people who are struggling. Not to try to solve their struggles. Almost like a group therapy in the same vein as AA/NA, with no real doctor or leader present but a place allowing members to express themselves without judgement and know that they're being heard.
I just want to clarify that, while some advice is given by members who have been through similar problems in the past, the function of that club is to be a positive support network for people who are struggling. Not to try to solve their struggles. Almost like a group therapy in the same vein as AA/NA, with no real doctor or leader present but a place allowing members to express themselves without judgement and know that they're being heard.
I should probably say that I am by no means demeaning the club, I think it's a great step. I think what is happening with the club absolutely has room on the discord and also should be operated and ran in similar fashion. Talking to people having similar experiences is definitely valuable, and I agree with the sentiment.
I should probably say that I am by no means demeaning the club, I think it's a great step. I think what is happening with the club absolutely has room on the discord and also should be operated and ran in similar fashion. Talking to people having similar experiences is definitely valuable, and I agree with the sentiment.
Ah, okay, thank you for clarifying! I'm not in a position to suggest how such a channel would run, but I completely understand the apprehension in committing to a mental health and advice channel when none (or very few) of us are qualified to give professional help. In fact, that stance is very mature in my eyes. It's also good to recognize that the Discord staff may not be emotionally equipped to deal with a large number of people venting and it's not fair to burden them with the responsibility of a member in crisis.
I don't know.. I'd just love to see more mental health support on PC in some form. The members deserve it.
It is a heartwarming thought. However, I'm not sure I'd say that we "deserve" mental help or a space to vent about serious personal issues in public on PC. It is a public pokémon community where many minors are present. From the community leadership side, we've mostly taken the stance that we know we are not equipped to truly help in many cases, and try to not make any illusion of being. Our members themselves however have made spaces such as the mental health support club, and taken upon themselves to ensure that space is safe and doesn't go overboard. Any forum thread is also less "instant messaging" than Discord and relatively easy to moderate. On Discord, in many servers there have been misuse of "venting channels" elsewhere to the point that we really don't feel comfortable trying to moderate such a place nor think it would be the best solution for anyone who comes to our public server and really needs to lay things off their chest. We do wish for our members to be able to feel at home and supported on PC, and things that are fine and safe to vent about are probably fair to just put directly in #general if the time is right, while deeper or longer issues are better suited for smaller less public groups, or groups focused on helping (such as the mental health club). If you ever feel like someone is bringing up things that break rules anywhere on PC, report/ping staff.
In general, encouraging venting in public isn't something I personally vibe with. The DA thread, for example, is a grey area already, but arguably working fine.
I feel like if something like this is needed it should be a thread or even a sub section here on the forums where people can talk about things going on. Maybe have it to where only certain people or groups can see it. Its easier to monitor and people can only see it if they are in that group. Not only that but it really makes you think of a response and not just rapid replies to get lost in the mix and you're less likely to feel forgotten about like you would in a chat.
Could give the channel a try and if it doesn't work out, get rid of it. It's not like once it's made it's permanent and you can't undo it. Though honestly my expectations are not high for the channel.
And this is kind of unrelated, but it was both included in the logs and brought up again briefly in this thread so just to throw it out there: removal of the covid channel felt premature to me too.
To those that want this: I think you should start a private server or chat with your friends. The argument for having a channel on PC instead of going to a dedicated support community is that you've built rapport with people here, but it's not like you have that relationship with everyone. So invite the people you know and trust to have a private, safe space where you can express your thoughts and feelings to people who will respond with love and kindness.
Honestly, I have too many objections to list them all, and I'm afraid I'm not willing to debate them, but the one that I absolutely cannot budge on is: We don't know who's trustworthy, so it both won't be a place where people feel safe to share, and will be a place where people who do feel that safe can be exploited by malicious people (including, potentially, people on staff, if there are any such people). Please remember that we're a Pokémon community, and have many young people here. Puberty is a difficult time, and teenagers are literally compelled to seek groups where they fit in, so they're in the perfect state for someone more emotionally-developed to manipulate them; we don't need to have a directory of all the vulnerable people in our community. It's also important to realize that the logs will be easily searchable by anybody in the channel in the future, unless there's some process for deleting them (in which case they'll still be accessible to anyone malicious that was in the channel and bothered to write a bot or script to save all the logs, plus all the staff members).
My mother is a therapist who specializes in adolescents and young adults, and privacy is paramount to her work. There are also strict restrictions on physically where she can work, and of course legally-required background checks for her to be allowed to work at all. Even the information she keeps and how to store it is subject to both general data protection law, and a whole host of specific laws for dealing with vulnerable people. Random spaces on the internet cannot provide that sort of safety, and I think it's irresponsible of us to sanction a space where people could unwittingly expose themselves to harm.
If people need help, they absolutely should seek it. But from trained professionals who can give accurate advice, or at least from friends who have their best wishes at heart. Not whoever happens to be online at that time in a community that's primarily about a children's game.
EDIT: This is primarily why I think "why not give it a trial?" isn't a good option. Even if we tried to make rules to address my concerns, I don't think they could cover everything, and I don't believe for one second that we'd be callous enough to turn someone away if they were seeking help for a big problem that was against the rules.
I mean it to me just looks like the message is to essentially push away people looking for a space to air such issues.
"Make a group DM with your friends" and what if you're not in that situation? Be forced to find another community or even worse just bottle it up because you now don't have an outlet?
If it seems like someone is too overbearing, surely as a Moderoid team that's literally why you exist?
In regards of directing people here - not everyone uses the forums so again this just feels like shunning them away.
Also yes please bring back the covid channel. The reasons given are flimsy at best and for the love of god why was that channel scrapped and a second general made?
Just seems weird a channel was made because people found conversation too fast/overwhelming and yet these two, one which has been brought up more than once and the other a space for people to talk about covid and isolate it from others too, are facing such resistance.
"Make a group DM with your friends" and what if you're not in that situation? Be forced to find another community or even worse just bottle it up because you now don't have an outlet?
If it seems like someone is too overbearing, surely as a Moderoid team that's literally why you exist?
I mean this in the most sincere way, if you don't have any friends or family you can chat to about what's bothering you in your life then you should seek real help to address that situation, because it's unbelievably bad for your health to be so alone. If you're in the UK my mother recommended The Mix, a charity that provides both a community and individual support for young people.
There is no way that PokéCommunity as a whole is equipped to deal with that particular problem, nor the Moderoid team in particular. As far as I know I'm the only person on the team who can even ask a trained therapist for specialist advice. The Moderoid team does not, and can not be expected to rule on decisions about people's health. Taking the obvious extreme example, if someone's having a crisis but expresses themselves in a overbearing manner, gets banned from the channel, and then goes and harms or kills themselves; what would you say to the person or people involved in making the ban decision? There is a huge difference in how culpable I'd feel if someone harms themselves after being banned from a fangame channel, compared to being (implicitly) told they don't matter in a mental health one.
The solution to not having deep or meaningful connections is to make some. Yes, you could make those connections here, but no, I don't think we're the right place to look for them if things are getting bad.
There are only two people here who have expressed strong wish for the channel to exist, while there have been several concerns raised against it. All who voiced thoughts on Discord have been pinged but not all have bothered to comment here. I'm just not convinced it is a channel we need, on top of the worries we have about moderating it.
#covid can maybe return though, it seems like many think it is a good idea.
respectfully, there's been way more than 2 people overall with a desire to have such a channel, and in that entire time, I don't think anyone wanted it to be anything more than a place to not bring down general's mood. I'm honestly at a loss with the whole "we aren't professionals"/"we can't offer that advise" spiel, when literally no one was out here saying "hey, I want proper medical advise for this". Again, look at the thread; a really good supportive place to talk about and relate to other people's experiences. This entire conversation has been pretty forcefully handled, a mix of "I am not willing to debate this" and an injection of a narrative never spun by anyone is not a decent way to handle feedback, especially when it is specifically asked for.
I can see the pros and cons of this channel, and reasons as to why this would be a difficult channel to moderate. Overall, the server in my time has been pretty hard clamping on people who are perceived to be negative or "complain" a lot, which in turn is breeding a definite air of shyness, unwillingness to speak or even interact with channels at large. While I see that some of these people have been very overbearing, a lot of times people have been dealt the same cold, uncaring hand. I could go further, but the metrics of only "2 people want this channel" and it... clearly being hard stamped out really makes me want to not. If the general consensus of moderoids is that this channel is unneeded, damaging and dangerous, there wouldn't be a feedback thread, nor would you be redirecting to essentially the same thing on the forums.
If someone gets to a point of needing help beyond PC then...IDK as Moderoids direct them there? Just like you've done in this thread? Like I feel there are workarounds behind the "issues" highlighted in here. The main issue is yes if someone is around to potentially take advantage of people in that state, hmm.
Also dismissing it as "only two people have responded in this instance so you can't care that much" is REALLY bad, please just tell us straight if you don't want the feedback etc to continue, because this essentially makes me feel like that's the case anyway.
Several people have, between the instances of asking for it, wanted it to be a thing and mostly the reason Fletch highlighted: they don't want to come into a bustling general channel and drag it down. It's hard enough to air the problems anyway, let alone come into a group of somewhat unknown people and do so, at least with the channel there's somewhere people can feel they can post it with no qualms. So telling people to go to general is... not going to work.
I'm sorry, but I expressed my honest opinion, formed from talking with my mother who's literally an expert (relative to me, and probably everyone else here), and my unwillingness to debate it is simply me explaining that short of producing your own expert testimony there's nothing you could do to move my views.
To the second half of your sentence, I appreciate that the intention behind the channel doesn't necessarily run into my objections, and I don't think they apply to you or Aaron specifically, but the problem is that I don't believe the intention will match the reality. We're talking about emotions, there's no way to draw clear and specific lines; and consistently policing them would a) require heavy moderoid presence, and b) burn a ton of goodwill. There's no way people's opinion of me wouldn't change for the worse if I intervened in a conversation and ended it prematurely despite people still wanting to talk it out*. Does that matter? I guess in some sense not, but it does make moderating harder when you're faced with people that have a grudge against you. Again, we're talking about emotions; surely you can see from the strength of feeling in this very thread that interventions could be taken as if the moderoid is a cold and unfeeling monster?
* The same problem applies to discussing things here, imo. There's only downsides to letting my specific opinions be known vs hiding behind the anonymity and collective responsibility of the team as a whole.
I am personally very uncomfortable with the idea that moderoids would be forced to moderate a channel filled with nothing but negative experiences and vents and then internally debating among themselves if 'x' is too negative for 'y' reason and then going through the hoops to justify to themselves on why said person isn't allowed to vent in said channel or why they should seek medical attention instead. A channel like venting would need very heavy moderating to not spiral out of control, and I can personally vouch for how completely exhausting it is constantly reading the troubles that other people are going through.
I am in complete support of mgriffin's stance on the topic. Being a PC staff member is a voluntary, unpaid position that people do out of their own love for the franchise and the community. A moderoid's job is to ensure that PokeCommunity server remains a fun and safe environment for fans to talk about Pokemon, that's why they 'exist'. In no scenario should that include taking on any modicum of responsibility for the personal issues of users; moderoids are friendly, not friends. They cannot realistically be expected to make judgements on interactions of a personal nature.
I can see the concerns with branding something as a mental health-related channel, and think Griff makes some good points. I also think just seeing "mental health channel" immediately turns people off to the idea, so that's probably not a helpful label.
Perhaps keeping the serious channel alive, rather than rebranding it and limiting it solely to poltical discussion, would have served as a happy medium? Let people talk about more serious things, but don't encourage it solely as a space for venting or negativity?
I think the clear issue seems to be that different people want different things out of this community, and while some here would be happy to support others with issues, others would feel more comfortable if that was done elsewhere. And I'm not saying that to make anyone sound uncaring, but more to make an observation on what others are comfortable talking about in a public forum space.
Also bring back covid pls & thnks, love from ur friendly neighbourhood Inky
I can see the concerns with branding something as a mental health-related channel, and think Griff makes some good points. I also think just seeing "mental health channel" immediately turns people off to the idea, so that's probably not a helpful label.
Perhaps keeping the serious channel alive, rather than rebranding it and limiting it solely to poltical discussion, would have served as a happy medium? Let people talk about more serious things, but don't encourage it solely as a space for venting or negativity?
I think the clear issue seems to be that different people want different things out of this community, and while some here would be happy to support others with issues, others would feel more comfortable if that was done elsewhere. And I'm not saying that to make anyone sound uncaring, but more to make an observation on what others are comfortable talking about in a public forum space.
I think it'd be better to keep politics and mental health/venting/whatever we're calling it separate for two reasons:
1) When the idea (#serious channel) was tried before, nothing really changed. Rebrands have rarely caused significant change if I'm remembering things right.
2) Politics and mental health don't mix well together for some people, it can terribly depressing, especially with how the U.S. has been for some time.
I'm not gonna comment on the privacy / security aspect, even though it is definitely the most important consideration. Martin explained the issues well and he's 100% right in my opinion.
I do want to touch on the "why is there a thread if we're not allowed a channel" thing. I honestly don't believe that threads and channels are at all comparable, because the nature of conversation in them is very different. Channels are real time and support fast paced conversations that, when it comes to serious subjects like mental health, tend to need mod supervision and intervention when things get too hot. Threads, at least considering the current state of PC, are slow paced, usually contain longer, more considered posts, don't tend to be used for venting, and are easier to moderate without keeping a constant watch on them. The mental health thread is a great example of longform discussion being a much better way of handling this kind of subject, in a way that I believe a channel could never support.
It all comes down to what each staff team feels they're equipped to handle. The Clubhouse mods feel they can manage a slower forum experience while still removing rule-breaking posts and making sure personal info isn't exposed, so there's a mental health club. The discord mods don't feel the same way about a channel. To repeat some of what Firebolt said, I don't believe they should be forced to deal with any of that in a volunteer moderator role.
Ultimately, I would join the others in recommending a private server.
