5 Apps I Use To Support My Mental Health

We are a society all-consumed by technology; our screens barely leave our side. There are countless articles damning this over use of technology, calling for a return to a more 'switched off' lifestyle and noting all the potential harmful effects, but with the way society is evolving this seems unlikely to come any time soon.

Rather than 'switching off' completely I think it is important to alter how we use technology; to start to use technology in a positive way and harness our screen time to make our lives better.

We're lucky enough to have some pretty fantastic mental health and wellness resources in the palm of our hands - quite literally. There are apps which encourage healthy habits, support self-care, encourage productivity and just generally nurture your mental wellbeing. Although no app can fully replace genuine therapy and medication, they can support treatment and nurture you mental wellbeing on a day to day basis.

Today I thought I'd share just five of the apps I use on a regular basis to look after my mind, in the hope that you find something which you can download to support you and your mental wellbeing.

Headspace

Headspace is a meditation and mindfulness app which has become my new best friend as of late. It can provide a fantastic introduction to the world of meditation, if you're new to the meditation game, guiding you through the process and getting you used to clearing your mind and taking a few minutes out of the hustle and bustle of life.

They have a whole range of meditation courses available to you, starting with an introduction into medication and then branching out into lots of different categories of meditation focus such as  personal growth, student life, productivity and parenting. You can choose if you want your meditation to be lead by a female voice or a male voice and they also have a whole section dedicated to 'sleepcasts' which are fantastic if you're someone who struggles to fall asleep because they're mind is working overtime.

I was a little unsure of whether or not the cost of the subscription (£9.99 a month) would be worth it but I've been using Headspace daily and the benefits it has had on my mental wellbeing are worth way more than a tenner. I've also done by research and found out that if you have Spotify premium you can nab the Headspace subscription for half price!

Smiling Mind

Smiling Mind is another guided meditation app run by a non-for-profit organisation which aims to make mindfulness meditation accessible for all.

The app actually asks you how you feel (in terms of happiness, contentedness and alertness) before you start your guided meditation and after you finish it, which is a real positive element that I haven't seen before in guided meditation apps as it allows you to see how the meditation effects your mood in the moment.

My Water

My Water is a fantastic app for logging your water intake throughout the day. Whilst this may not seem like the most obvious mental-health app, I find that drinking lots of water is a really good self-care practise for me personally. Tracking my water in-take in this way helps to encourage me to drink water regularly as the app sends your phone regular notifications to encourage and remind you. I also like to use calming natural 'rescue remedy' drops in my water on particularly anxious days and logging my water helps me to make sure that I'm using these drops to their full potential.

MyTherapy

MyTherapy is a brilliant tool which is designed to remind you to take any daily medication you're on. I'm prescribed a couple of different medications to support my mental health and I won't lie I'm quote prone to forgetting whether or not I've taken my tablet for the day. This can turn into an unnecessary anxiety trigger so I like to have an app in which I can track when I have or haven't taken my tablets.

You can set the app to remind you at a set time each day to take your medication and you can then 'tick' it off when you've taken it. MyTherapy also allows you to log when you start a new packet of tablets so it can let you know when you're running low and need a new prescription.  

One of my favourite features of the MyTherapy app is the wellbeing tracker. You can set the app to ask you how you're feeling at certain intervals throughout the day and each time it'll ask you to rank your mood out of 5. This is then logged and it's a handy tool for recording 'bad days', especially if you want something to help you show the patterns in your mental health to a professional such a doctor.

Pixel Thoughts

Pixel Thoughts is one of my new favourite apps as it's just perfect for calming incessant mind chatter and persistent negative thoughts. You simply type your thoughts into a star, send it off and watch it slowly get smaller and smaller until it disappears completely into the night sky. This process takes place whilst calming music is played (you have a choice of five tracks, each with a different calming vibe) and you're encouraged to breathe deeply as you watch your worries melt away and read some supportive lines which help you feel calmer and more connected.


Do you have any apps you use to support your mental health?