HANNAH: When I was younger
I was definitely a really happy kid.
Super active.
Really energetic.
My life revolved around sports,
but it was sometimes extremely competitive.
Like I just remember they made little kids watch
all of these videos on mental toughness.
MAN: You channel your emotional energy into a direct attack.
HANNAH: And like telling us that mental toughness was just
sucking everything up and you're not allowed to have
emotions and so I had to appear so strong for everyone.
But sometime in high school I was at a volleyball tournament.
COACH: Hey, let's go guys, come on let's go.
HANNAH: And I was absolutely killing it.
And our team won and it was like we did it guys, woo!
But then at the end when we were shaking hands
with the opposite team,
I passed out.
GIRL: Oh my gosh, is she ok?
HANNAH: And then it just happened again.
GIRL: Did she pass out? What happened?
HANNAH: And again.
GIRL: Is she ok? Hannah?
HANNAH: And I couldn't stay conscious.
GIRL: Hannah, wake up.
HANNAH: The doctors didn't know what was going on,
I didn't know what was going on,
my parents were freaking out.
It was really, really terrifying.
I was finally diagnosed with a mysterious
chronic illness that no one really knows how to treat.
After this diagnosis I just felt so out of control of my life.
I went from an athlete to
someone who couldn't even walk some days.
And that made the perfect environment for me to spiral
into really bad depression and anxiety.
CHARLIE: When Hannah's health started to change
it was just really scary.
Watching her fall so fast.
I didn't really know what was happening because
we didn't talk about depression
especially as a family.
And I thought that when she was struggling I was helpless.
HANNAH: My depression got so bad that I just didn't feel
like participating in life.
So one night, I waited until everyone went to sleep.
Wrote a little letter, stuck it on my bed and yea.
My mom, she found me, handful of pills,
mouthful of pills and the horror in her eyes is the
reason I vowed never to let myself get that low ever again.
So that very night,
I had this random thought that was like,
I wish there was a button to press that would tell everyone
that I'm not ok.
And then a week later I told my brother about it.
CHARLIE: She just came up to me and she's like,
"I have this really cool idea for an app
and I think that you could help me.
I just want a button that I can press that sends a message
to people that I know."
And I was like, "Ok, let's go!"
So I taught myself how to develop
and create apps that summer.
It was really empowering knowing
that this was a way that I could help her.
I was making the app just for Hannah,
not really for anyone else,
we thought that we would get like five other downloads,
so I was so surprised when thousands of people
started downloading it.
HANNAH: So far we have over 100,000 users
and I never thought I'd say that.
There was one review where a mom said you
"saved my daughters life."
She pressed your button
instead of jumping out of her bedroom window.
And I was like, damn.
Struggling with mental illness has completely altered
the way I see mental toughness.
Now I see mental toughness more as knowing
it's ok to reach out for help.
I'm still fighting depression and anxiety,
but I'm getting better and better each battle.