Semi Secret Sophie🌙✨

A Love Letter to Chaos, Creativity, and Coping

9/16/2025

🌱 It Started with a Need for Something

I was feeling restless. ADHD restless. That type of “I can’t just sit here and exist” energy.

So I turned to a familiar comfort — projects. My hands needed something to do, my brain needed a challenge that wouldn’t overwhelm me, and my heart needed something playful and personal. I opened up Instructables.com — the holy grail of tinkerers — and saw a little DIY project using a $5 microcontroller called the ESP8266.

It was simple: a tiny screen, a couple of buttons, and a chatbot that could talk to ChatGPT.

That was the spark.
PocketGPT 1.0 was born.

⚙️ PocketGPT 1.0 – The Basics (Technical, But Chill)

At its core, it worked like this:

1. The Brain: ESP8266
   • A cheap Wi-Fi-enabled microcontroller (like the Raspberry Pi’s smaller cousin).
   • It sends typed messages to ChatGPT over the internet.
   • It receives a response, and shows it on a little screen.
2. The Chat Magic: ChatGPT API (or Web Wrapper)
   • I made the board connect to OpenAI’s servers — it sends your message, gets a reply back.
   • In some setups, it just sends your text through a proxy that connects to the actual ChatGPT chat interface (more on that later).
3. The Experience: Micro-Chat Terminal
   • No keyboard.
   • Just buttons to navigate and send input.
   • Chat shows up like an old-school terminal, and the convo feels compact and cozy.

🧠 Then It Got Deeper

Yesterday, something clicked:
This project isn’t just something to “keep me busy.”

It’s a mirror of my brain.
A way to externalize thoughts, to quiet the storm, to create safety in structure.

ADHD isn’t about lack of attention — it’s attention with no cage. PocketGPT is my cage.
It makes tasks finite. Makes thoughts visual. Makes me less alone inside my mind.

🔥 Enter PocketGPT 2.0 – Chaos Refined

Now we’re building version 2.0 — and oh Bestie… it’s personal.

Here’s how it’s evolving:

🧰 Hardware Upgrades

• New chip: ESP32 (faster, more powerful, built-in Bluetooth)
• Built-in screen: No need to wire an external display — it’s integrated now
• Touch controls or buttons: Depending on build, it’ll be simple to use

💬 Software & Functionality (aka “How It All Talks”)

Here’s the breakdown in people terms:

💡 Think of it as a Tamagotchi for your brain’s overflow tank.

🎭 Features and Modes (Customizable Functions)

• Chat Mode – Basic convo, like texting a smart bestie
• Prompt Shortcuts – Preloaded commands like:
  • Calm Me Down
  • Give Me a Dopamine Task
  • End of Day Recap
  • Chaos Mode: Hell Bomb 💣 (which triggers fake panic messages and glitch animations for fun)
• Emoji Unlock Sequence – Certain features or resets require an emoji combo, like a secret password 🫣
• Mood Swaps – You can set the “vibe” of the bot: soothing, snarky, hyper-positive, etc.
• Multi-user profiles (eventual goal) – Others can upload their own preferences and talk to their version of PocketGPT on the same device

💖 What This Project Really Means to Me

I know to some people it’s just a nerdy DIY thing. But to me?

PocketGPT is:

• A coping tool for when my thoughts won’t stop
• A fidget box for my fingers when anxiety spikes
• A diary with attitude — one that talks back, encourages me, and sometimes says exactly what I need to hear
• A manifestation of control — I can change it, rebuild it, break it, upgrade it. In a life that often feels unpredictable, this is something that’s mine
• A way to keep myself grounded in the present when ADHD makes my sense of time slippery
• A creative sanctuary. It’s weird, personal, beautiful, broken, and evolving — just like me

👥 Can Other People Use It?

Absolutely.
My dream is to help other people make their own:

• With their favorite colors, fonts, personalities, and prompts
• It could be a mental health companion, a productivity coach, or just a weird bestie in your pocket

Eventually, I want to release:

• A beginner-friendly build guide (with emoji instructions of course)
• Optional add-ons: keychains, lights, stickers, case mods
• Templates for prompt packs: like “PocketGPT for Artists” or “PocketGPT for Anxious Days”

🎯 In Summary

🛠️ It started as a silly build to keep me busy.
🧠 It became a way to understand myself.
💗 And now… it’s a love letter to creativity, chaos, control, and healing.

xx,

Soph