Guest Support Update (Adults)
UPDATE: The Guest Support rooms will remain closed.
Hey! Quick update to let you all know that we have temporarily closed the Guest Support room for 24 hours. This is because the room was not functioning as the helpful, welcoming space for guests that it was intended to be.
Please post here if you have any issues/concerns. I will update you all tomorrow on GS plans moving forward!
Thank you :)
I'm really sad to hear this as I feel like 7cups has taken away many of our options.
When I first came here we could have multiple accounts. This allowed one to be more anonymous with an issue. Then one day that was taken away, so people who joined a while ago didn't even have the option of deciding what they would and would not share with their main account knowing that it would be there only option to seek out the support options that require an account here. For now, guests can't even get group support.
I've been to the GS room a few times recently though and I didn't see many seeking support. If that was my purpose as a guest I don't even think I would be all that comfortable doing so in that room.
I do think the rules regarding members in that room has been a problem. I have heard many complaints about warnings and mutes when it seemed like they were trying to be supportive.
I think our guests need more options. Perhaps one would be to continue with a guest room as random chat. Loosen up a little bit on the members.
Open up a few more rooms to guests. A general support would be good. Definitely allow members to be there. If they are to only support guests, have a badge similar to thinking space so it's clearly laid out before someone enters that room.
There are currently 3 depression rooms. I think opening up DS1 to guests might be a good idea, as it's a common issue here.
Also, with the current rule about members, I think it should be easier to distinguish those with an account. There have been times when in GS I was slow to pick up on someone being a member if they had no picture, just the 2 letters. At one point listeners had square pictures in the chat and members had circles. I think having a different shape for guests would really help with this.
@Heather what if we get 2 guest rooms? One community (lighthearted chat) and one support (for support only, then casual chat can be directed to the community room) or something like that?
@Nagisa
This site is not for casual chat as far as i know 
@gentleCircle9909
It might not be promoted as a 'General Chat Site', but it does not preclude 'General Chat', there are rooms dedicated to General Chat, 'Community Room', 'Thinking Space' and more. A part of empathy and understanding is lifting people spirits, that can be done through general chat, making people laugh, feel uplifted etc.
@rebel11
I can't find "Thinking Space"; does it still exist?
@coastalRedwood98
It does exist, you can gain access by posting on the following thread, it's all very 'James Bondish, hidden doors etc. Just watch out for the agents of 'DOOM'!!
https://www.7cups.com/forum/GroupSupportChatRooms_140/InformationUpdates_822/ThinkingSpaceChatRoom_39579/
@rebel11
The thing is Guest rooms are always more attentive and active, a general discussion guest room would be a great idea. Those who don't feel like supporting anyone and just want to engage in light "chit chatter" can be there.
@GrapeFruity
I'm seconding that, sounds like a marvelous idea!!
@GrapeFruity
This will work. A room with no mods and another one with mods.
@LunchTheRealKiwi No, that's crazy. Just because mods are sometimes heavy handed and interpret the rules differently doesn't mean that having no mods would be a good idea. Unless of course you support the idea of guests getting harrassed right when they come in. Wanting a casual or distracting chat doesn't mean they're tough enough to endure the type of attacks that can come from the ts people who sit around waiting for prey.
@Phthalo
Guests could be given a warning when they are entering the unmoderated room.
@LunchTheRealKiwi Rooms are already unmoderated most of the time, and we know how that goes..but to have a room officially unmoderated? That wouldn't fly for a site of this type. We don't need to officially allow people to gang up on people and harrass them and post porn gifs and all that shit.
@gentleCircle9909 casual chat is a distraction though, which is for many a way of coping. I mean we have depression community room for more lighthearted chats and then we have 2 depression support rooms, same for the LGBTQ rooms.
@gentleCircle9909
The guest support room was never intended for general chit chat, as it was a "support room". Community rooms (i.e. depression community room) that aren't specifically for support can be chatted in. You can also chit chat in the forums in the right places. But this site is generally made for support, so if you only want to chit chat, I'd recommend a chatroom website intended for just chit chat.
@SilentSerenityy Lol what the heck, you're gonna kick someone off the site just because they need distraction? Rude. Now this could easily be solved if they had their own community room like back a loooooooooong time ago. But of course we're all about closing rooms these days. Because that totally solves anything in the long run.
The people who need to be kicked off the site are the people who take pleasure in hurting people. I know this site sounds like a yummy target to them but come on. This isn't the place
@Phthalo that's very true, I agree. I know a lot of members who come here for general conversation to distract themself. It makes them feel supported, thus it is support. Support doesn't always mean only talking about problems and getting a "aww I'm so sorry" from others. Many in the community know each other and what they are going through and support them by trying to make them smile, laugh or just forget about the bad things for awhile. Those who set out to harm others or start drama ruin that balance.
@gentleCircle9909
Please let me know which room you are in. These people shut down the GS and now it's tough time tracking people who need support. Please reply to this with the room name.
@Nagisa
Nagi by other room did u meant to say (Edited for insulting language by Halliwellsister)" ?
Anyways nagi you are also doing very good as mod, some of your mod mate must learn how to mod room from mods like you
@gentleCircle9909 no that's not what I meant at all :(
@Nagisa
Two rooms for guests:
1)With mods
2)Without mods
Most of the abuse is towards the mods. If they are out, the abuse and the chaos will go down too. Now guests will choose the room they are willing to be in.
@LunchTheRealKiwi
The abuse rises without mods, it then directs towards mods when they arrive. People ask for mods to go into those rooms in the first place because it's out of order in there without a mod. Every room will be moderated, whether you agree or not.
@SilentSerenityy
It's not about me disagreeing. It's just a suggestion. [Unsupportive and unconstructive, edited by SilentSerenityy] No offence. (Edited by HalliwellSister for insulting language). I am an elected moderator on one of the Stack Exchange sites. Elected mod means elected by the members. Do you feel the difference? I should rather glorify my tone and boast about it.
@LunchTheRealKiwi Chaos rises when mods come because the people who like breaking rules throw a tantrum when they can no longer break the rules. As for the people who get harassed, I'm pretty sure they're glad to see someone come in who has the power to remove trolls from the room.
And yes I know there is also the case of nontrolling members who get punished for doing not-so-bad things and then THEY start to hate the mods too. Idk what to say to that other than, hey, chill, both of you, don't give a warning or mute to someone for saying hello just because you can say "rule 16" and don't bark at the mods like they are the worst thing to ever happen to you.
two rooms would mean extra moderation though I forgot about that :\ I am happy to moderate there whenever I can but none of us can be there 24/7 :(
@Nagisa That's just 7cups in general though. No room has ever been adequately moderated in the time I've been on this site. Except for a few brief times, and it was glorious. Trolls were removed quickly and cleanly without disturbing the overall tone of the room. And there were 2 or 3 mods so like...I think that helps keep any of them from abusing their powers, the older and newer ones can keep each other in check. This is why I keep saying proper moderation works!!
@Nagisa
I thought that but after moderating that room for months, the number of people who outright ignore the rules and moderator's instructions was beyond. They would never move to another room if they were told to so we'd effectively have two hostile rooms.
@Nagisa
Trolling is cancerous. Guest Support was the Chemotherapy which controlled it from spreading. Shut down GS, stop chemotherapy and let the cancer spread. Spread into member rooms and ruin everything.
@LunchTheRealKiwi
Trolls are less likely to bother making member accounts, but if they do, it's easier to track and keep controlled. This change could send trolls to other websites that aren't made for supportive purposes.
@SilentSerenityy
You are mistaken. Trolls were here today/night and had a good time. :) And creating member accounts here is not a tough tob. One guy was in here with 3 member accounts and targeted Depression Support (no mod ofc). I saw them do it and I didn't report because you guys called for it. Please spend the remaing hours moderating the member rooms for good.
@SilentSerenityy Nah that's not true, if that was true why did they have to badge lock a bunch of member rooms? And also I personally have seen people keep creating accounts over and over. If it deters them then it's only slightly.
@Phthalo
I know they make accounts over and over but it's easier to realise that it's another account of theirs so I can instantly mute them for avoiding a previous mute and get that account deleted within minutes. It's not so easy with loads of guest accounts.
@Nagisa I think thats a great idea casual chit chat helps a lot of people control their self harm urges , get distracted from their problems and deal with loneliness too.One of the main problems with GS is that some people get focused on the chit chat at times and people seeking support about other issues get ignored
@Nagisa
That would mean two hostile, abusive rooms to moderate and twice the abuse.
I hope a much more effective strategy gets implemented for that room. As from my experience I know that bullies, abusers, etc come on all sort of accounts. Be it that of a member, guest, listener or whatever. By encouraging those people to make an account if they want "group support" what you are doing is shifting the problem to the member side in the long run. Which means diverting the issue.
This is the time to ask questions about why did this happen and try to effectively come with a potentially good work around. Closing that room for a long time might not end up being the best solution in the long run; just a thought.
@Flourish I agree, we have always seen where a room is closed, they end up moving to another room. Closing the room is good for short term, but we really need to take a step back and look at the bigger/deeper problem in order to address the issue long term. I honestly have been saying this a long time, and have gotten to a point I have stopped caring and more often than not, avoid the rooms, both as a member as well as a listener because these problems might be washed away at the surface for a short time when a room gets closed, but then just relocate and build again which ultamately makes the rooms unsafe and unsupportive.
I personally see 3 MAIN issues (which I understand leave many complicating obsticles in being able to address them)
1) we tolerate behaviors that are breaking the basic rules of conduct regularly with the view of maybe they didin't know the rules or are just having a bad day (which I talked more about in a later post in this thread)
2) mods are often scared to moderate because if a report is made, often by someone who is upset about having a rule enforced (which most dont like rules being enforced and find it unfair), the mod has no voice, and feel unheard or ignored.
3) there are mods who misuse the mod tools and many members and guests often feel it is useless to report because they too, feel it is unheard or ignored.
@FaithG - You have raised some valid points there. @Laura said they have a potential solution to be implemented (hopefully not too far down the line)...let's see how that goes.
As a new member, if I'd have been guaranteed to not be added to any mailing lists at all, I would've been much more comfortable signing up.
I've had to remove myself from five in Settings, and then another one using an Unsubscribe in a message.
I suspect there will be more.
A new Member should not have to face the stress of receiving unsolicited communication.
@coastalRedwood98
I think you'll find you have to do that for every website you join. The emails 7 Cups sends you are all mainly notification emails so you know someone's messaged you etc.
@SilentSerenityy Nah not all sites are like that. But I do think having the option to not subscribe to any emails at the time of sign up would be a good idea.
@Heather maybe should be listener or moderater in there...or if not to much to ask somebody who works at 7cups...
@conscientiousPineapple1782
There were moderators/listeners in there but that didn't do much to stop the behaviour, it would often make it worse and we would then receive the most horrendous and relentless abuse. The abuse was so bad, most listeners/moderators didn't want to go in there for too long. I think you can see why they shut it, seeing as so many people were being horrendously abused in there which isn't supportive and damaging.
@SilentSerenityy
If you weren't seeing it, today/night most of the trolls were in the member rooms. Basically, what happened is trolls were forced to sign up and troll. And then they get muted and they create new accounts, eating up space in the database :P Nothing changed. You just didn't see it.
@LunchTheRealKiwi
It's easier to moderate and if need be, ban member accounts.
Hi everyone,
Again I'm not heather, but I understand as a moderator the impact that the room closing will have upon guests over the next 24hours. I can also understand the concerns that many of you have about the room being closed.
However from the point of view of the site there have been multiple compliants from the room, and I know some of you have already mentioned that moderators struggle to keep calm in the room. I have seen the issues in the room first hand as I spend most of my time there.
Please remember guests can join for free as a member and then will have access to the members room, also remember that this isn't permanent, this is a temporary messure to see if things improve.
I hope everyone will support the change for the next 24 hours and support other members, listeners, mods, mentors and community managers with this change. and direct guests to join the community as members if they need group support.
All the best <3
Always25
@Heather
[TRIGGER WARNING]
Ah, I'm so happy something's being done. I can focus on other rooms now without being insulted and attacked. I got told I would be violated, raped, killed etc in that room. That's how bad the abuse was and for a volunteer with anxiety and previous history with sexual abuse/rape, who just wants to make sure the rooms are safe and supportive, I didn't appreciate those things being said to me. That room upset me numerous times which no chatroom should here, and I've heard other listeners have received the same/similar abuse from people that we would prefer not to be using the site altogether. Some listeners had been put off from even coming here due to harassment and stalking. I think you all can see why 7 Cups shut it, seeing as so many people were being horrendously abused in there which isn't supportive and very damaging to people.
Guests can still get help here anonymously and they can make anonymous member accounts. That's all that matters - people getting genuine support throughout 7 Cups and not being talked over and ignored by unsupportive/harassing people in chatrooms.
It is truly saddening that people enjoy harassing/stalking/insulting/abusing people on a supportive website, who have chosen to give up their free time to simply help those who need support.
@SilentSerenityy
I think your post explains how most moderators feel about the room, and gives an insite into what we go through on a day to day basis in the room. thankyou for sharing this with the community serenityy :-)
@SilentSerenityy
And Go Ahead and make this permanent...and let them troll in member rooms.
@SilentSerenityy If you think harassment was only possible in the guest room then you've got another thing coming...believe me, those people are capable of doing that stuff anywhere.
@Phthalo
I've received abuse elsewhere, but it was the most severe there. I feel more comfortable amongst those with member accounts as it's easier to moderate and harder for them to hide their identity.
@Heather By badge locking and getting rid of so many Group Support rooms, you are killing 7cups. Guest Support was by far the most active chatroom. 7cups has been a ghost town lately, which is why I go to GS for support. I think you should unlock all of the chatrooms and tell people to simply use their mute button if someone is being unsupportive.
@passionateMoon5403
That chatroom was busy for the wrong reasons. The people who filled it up can spread across 7 cups and through the other chatrooms now to make 7 Cups busier. :)
@SilentSerenityy
Why don't you understand? They are going to fill up in other rooms to troll. This will ruin every room in here.
@LunchTheSignatureKiwi
So far, the chatrooms have been fairly relaxed and back to how they were before GS. :) We're more focused on removing trolls altogether and I wish forever, not if they can troll other rooms which are being moderated anyway.
@passionateMoon5403
Hi moon, I know it can be frustrating to have rooms locked or closed. Remember that other support rooms like depression support, compassion corner, members hangout, LGBTQ support ect are all open rooms for you to receive support. :-)
Trolling is cancerous. Guest Support was the Chemotherapy which controlled it from spreading. Shut down GS, stop chemotherapy and let the cancer spread. Spread into member rooms and ruin everything.
@LunchTheRealKiwi
Hey kiwi, I can understand your concern, certainly when it comes to trolls. however please remember this isn't permanent at the moment its only for 24hours.
@Always25
Well. I understand the situation pretty well and my posts were deleted too. I understand why my posts were deleted too;)
@LunchTheRealKiwi
Hey there,
I deleted few of your reply posts because they were repeat posts of the same thing. Please don't make repeat posts. I haven't deleted others since they had replies from other people. I hope you understand.
Take care
@Eunoia
Oh! I am sorry. Will be careful next time. :)
@Heather Yeah I get it, the Guest Support room has provided a safe space for trolling as well as for supportive guests/members.
However, what I don't understand is the following aspect of this story. This issue has been going on for a while now, the problem has been there for a while.
But why not discuss this issue with the affected members? There are plenty of members who regularly support guests there and suddenly get this thread as a cold shower to tell them they can't go there anymore.
Every room has regulars, wether it's wanted or not. So why not make the best of it?
So while I understand action has to be taken concerning the chatroom, it's not the first time 7Cups has been negligent to the members who visit the site regularly and that should have a saying in the wellbeing of the chatrooms. Not only for them, but also because it would (sorry, no offense) drastically favour the quality of 7Cups.
People have been complaining about not getting listened to for a while now, and situations like these are perfect to make people feel as though they can be a part of this. Even if it's just a thread to tell members what's going on, what the problems are and what solutions they are proposing.
My proposition is that you let members discuss along with the moderators. It's not like listening to members' opinions will undermine moderators' authority. I think it will only make the ratio stronger.
