The Adrenaline Rush Behind Postsecret
Do you know what a secret is? As defined by Dictionary.com, a secret is something done, made, or conducted without the knowledge of others. Have you ever had that feeling of being unique because nobody but yourself knows the secret? The thrill of doing something and not one person knows about it? Or even few people know about it. Postsecret is a way of letting loose and setting free those secrets namelessly to people all over the world. It’s like putting a note in a bottle and setting it free in the Atlantic Ocean. As if it is an addiction to freedom, postsecreters find themselves bowing down to Postsecret and releasing all of their secrets. Postsecret, a means of psychological healing and release has provided a universal gateway for people to express anonymously any of their hidden secrets.
When Frank Warren, 41, first started this project, he was no trained artist. He started it in 2004 by sending 3,000 self addressed post cards to random people asking to send him their deepest, darkest secrets anonymously (Beck). He actually began the project because he was going through a hard time in his life, about which he won’t elaborate much about, and turned to art as a way to cope. Postsecret was actually his 3rd art project attempted. It so happens that it turned out to be a success. Frank was shocked to receive hundreds of responses (Beck). This formed the basis of his community art project (Beck). Secrets came from people all over the country and the range in difference of secrets was astonishing. So what is it that makes PostSecret so popular? Why not just keep your secrets hidden?
Think of your most precious secret; the deepest darkest thing you have kept to yourself. It would be hard to let all of that go. Yes, it is a lot of work to confess. But releasing said secrets anonymously gives off some kind of adrenaline. Like jumping off of a cliff into the ocean, Postsecret is the same type of adrenaline release. When you release a secret for the world to see, you feel apart of something big. You feel a sense of relief. There is no worry of feeling judged by people you know. The thrill is also the fact that people you may know could read your secret but they wouldn’t know who posted it. These secrets are anything from admitting wrongs, rights, fetishes and everything in between (Boxer). There is no way of tracing back to who posted the secret. It is the best thrill ride in the theme park. Now where exactly does Frank Warren put these secrets?
Postsecret has a website and a couple published books. Every Sunday, Frank posts 20 new secrets he gets that week on the website. Usatoday.com says “The website is the 3rd most popular blog in the blogosphere of nearly 30 million blogs.” Postsecret.com has a visitor count of about 5 million up to date. This website won the top prize, Weblog of the Year, in the 6th annual weblog awards (Puente). There are also no ads on the website because Frank refuses them (Puente). There is one url that Frank posts on his website, in his books, his app commercial, and supports by volunteering too. That url is a suicide hotline, www.hopeline.com. When Frank was going through a very hard time in his life, he turned to helping in any way with the suicide hotline. Frank uses Post Secret to help others in any way possible.
Postsecret is a way of releasing your deepest darkest secrets namelessly. It is a very popular blogging site that gives off adrenaline and thrill. The actual website is among favorites on the web. Postsecreters don’t want to be rid of their secrets but tend to them. They treat their secrets like crazes; fetishes. They are so obsessed with the fact that they have a piece cryptic information. That is what makes Postsecret so enthralling. That is the true secret of PostSecret.
The Harry Potter Movies were my mothers favorite movies. She'd watch them over and over and over. I used to get so annoyed with them. She passed away a month ago from breast cancer. They are now my favorite movies. She escaped real life with them; I'm doing the same.