Best Apps for Mental Health

Technology can be a double-edged sword when it comes to mental health. On one hand, social media has the ability to hurt your mental health by spreading negativity, but certain apps can also be very helpful for managing mental health. We’ve talked about apps once before on this blog. Part 4 of the self care series talked about apps for self care, like ThinkUp for daily affirmations. Please remember that these apps are not intended to replace treatment with a mental health care professional, only to help manage and improve mental wellness. For more information of mental health resources, please see our Resources page.

 

Anxiety Apps: SAM (Self-Help for Anxiety Management)

apps for mental healthSAM is a fantastic app for managing anxiety! It tackles anxiety on three fronts: in the moment help, anxiety tracking, and future anxiety control. When you’re feeling anxious or having an anxiety attack, soothing exercises like deep breathing and picture coloring help you calm down. As you go about your week, you can also track your thoughts and moods to find patterns. Looking ahead, you can also log your anxiety triggers to help you avoid them in the future. SAM also gives you the option of using the Social Cloud to connect with others and and get support. There is no pressure to manage your anxiety a certain way, you are free to use SAM in whatever ways work for you. SAM has got you covered with an intuitive design and easy to use features.

 

Calm Harm for Depression and Self-Harm

apps for mental healthCalm Harm is an app intended to help you resist the urge to self-harm. It can also be great for self care and to help motivate you to get up and get moving. The home screen offers different options for activities – all with very cute icons to accompany each activity. From there, you can select what you need in the moment, be it comfort, a distraction, or a release. When you select an activity, Calm Harm will provide prompts for things you can do to distract yourself. There is also a journal feature where you can log your activities and feelings. This is a great way to keep track of which distractions work for you. Overall, Calm Harm is a great app for resisting urges to self-harm.

 

Booster Buddy for Self Care

apps for mental healthBooster Buddy is a great self care app that goes beyond meditation and exercise. The app gives you a cute animal buddy to walk you through self care activities. Each activity you complete gives you virtual coins, which you can use to buy fun accessories for your animal buddy. Booster Buddy balances a friendly approach to self care while also addressing the less fun aspects. With the medication reminder, you can have the app remind you to take your meds at a certain time each day. You can also add appointments to your calendar and the app will send you reminders. If you find yourself in a crisis, Booster Buddy also allows you to set up a crisis plan or call 911. The best part about this app is that it’s easy to use! The animal buddy feature can be a little childish, but it is very effective for motivating you to take good care of yourself!

 

Grow Virtual Succulents to Help You Relax with Viridi

apps for mental healthViridi isn’t directly for mental wellness, but it can definitely help! With Viridi you can grow virtual succulents that you name, take care of, and get to enjoy. Much like real succulents, they are very hard to kill. Even if you forget to water them, that’s all okay and there is no need to be stressed about it. You get to pick out a pot and your first plant to start, then you can earn more seeds to plant as you go. Before you know it, you’ll have a whole virtual garden. Viridi can be great for dealing with anxiety or when you are stressed. The calming graphics and sound effects help you focus on your plants to distract from stressful or triggering situations. On a side note, all the succulents are very cute and they will make you smile very time you see them grow!

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