Why I Built RE-BUILD-ME

Why I Built RE-BUILD-ME

By Justin Tee

If you'd told me a year ago that I'd be writing a blog post about building my own app, I wouldn't have believed you.

I was stuck. Inertia. Depression. Medicated. And I still am some days.

I'd been fit before. I'd been consistent. I had willpower. But after a car accident in 2024, I developed PTSD symptoms, insomnia, anxiety, depression and lots of physical pains. I was diagnosed with adjustment disorder and moderate depressive disorder. 

I was trying to pick myself up, but I didn't know where to start.

My goal was to lose the 12kg I'd gained on mirtazapine. Every time I set myself a target — go to the gym three times a week, stick to a plan, drink smoothies every day, try to lose a kilo a week — I'd fail and then kick myself. Relentlessly. The failure feeling would spiral, and I'd end up doing nothing.

I read an inspirational story in Men's Health about Paddy McGuinness and his Hard 75 transformation. Two workouts a day. A strict diet. A gallon of water. Daily reading. Discipline.

I wanted to try it. But I knew, deep down, I was setting myself up for failure. Because my body was still recovering from trauma. Because my all-or-nothing mindset was fuelling my self-criticism.

The cycle was exhausting: set a goal, miss a day, spiral into shame, stop trying. Then start again. Fail again. Stop again.

I was stuck.

My therapist -Dr K - got me doing daily reflections to try and break that cycle. It started with three things: 

  • one thing I did well:
  • one thing I felt grateful for:
  • one thing I took pride in: 
I added another prompt: 

  • what would I say to a friend in my position: 
That one changed something. It forced me to speak to myself the way I'd speak to someone I cared about.

I realised I didn't need another target. I needed routine. Consistency. Something I could actually Do.

So I set myself a daily goal: 

Do 20 minutes of exercise — no matter what. 

But then I failed that too. One day I couldn't get up. Couldn't move. And the negative spiral started again. 

I call these black holes — that's how they feel. No motivation. Continuously sinking.

That's when I added my failsafe: 

If you can't, just do child's pose and Breathe.

Suddenly, I wasn't failing anymore. I was showing up — even if it was just child's pose. A light day. A safety net. Something is always better than nothing.

All I wanted was to build trust in my own capability again.

I was behind on my assignments. The same pattern appeared: set a target to study every day, miss a day, kick myself, stop, find it too hard to start, frozen.

So I used the same method: 

Do 20 minutes of study — no matter what. 
If you can't, just watch a micro lecture.

It worked. I started catching up. Not perfectly. Not fast. But consistently. I was turning mountains into molehills.

I'd been using notes on my iPhone to track this — messy, scattered — but it's been helping me daily to build consistency and just get going.

I realised this system — the daily goal, the failsafe, the reflections — could help others too. People frozen, stuck in their own negative black hole cycles. People who are tired of punishing themselves for not being perfect.

So I built RE-BUILD-ME. A private, lockable app that helps you achieve your goals. No streaks. No punishment. Just showing up, in some form, every day.

It's currently in beta testing. Coming soon.

Breathe and Rebuild. Everyday.

— Justin Tee

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