The site was supposed to be a place to go and post your feelings, and everyone talks about it and shares their feelings, etc. And I mean, it kind of is.
When I think of SF, I think of a reality show. There's lots of personalities (some worse than others), cliques, fights, and drama in every flavor. The thing is too, if you're 18 (or younger) and female, your posts will get showered with replies, and if you're a guy or older, you don't quite get the same attention. There are folks who treat SF like a dating network, too. SF is what you make of it. I think for some people it's really difficult to get support and get better.
But SF for me is really 'familiar'. Everybody has a story, and there's a reason they ended up here. And anything you do, whether it's that you've attempted, abuse substances, SI or what have you, there's a likely chance whomever you meet does or has done it, too. We're all in a similar state of mind, and there's that little bit more empathy between each other.
I wish I could get a long more with people and make more friends, but with what support I receive, it definitely helps. Pouring crap into a journal, and just knowing other people are reading it and understand what you're going through helps.
Has it changed? Same place, different faces. I'm more likely to connect with people here than I am in the real world. Has it fixed my problems? No, but it does help.