Mental health awareness has become a common topic of discussion in recent years. It may have been taboo a generation or so ago, but times have changed. Many people want support in navigating their mental health.
While therapy is becoming more accessible and less stigmatized, we are also seeing a rise in mental health tools such as apps to help with coping skills. These apps are not a replacement for therapy, but can help us gain insight into ourselves, our habits, our mood, and our lifestyle. Let’s explore some of the apps that can help support you outside of regular therapy.
What Are Mental Health Apps?
Mental health apps are designed to support your mental health and wellness via virtual therapy, resources, coping skills training, mindfulness tools, and other support. These apps are iOS and/or Android compatible and are designed to work on your smartphone or tablet, allowing easy access and use.
People all over the world are now using mental health apps to help them with their psychological concerns. Since the pandemic era, mental health has become a global topic of concern. The World Health Organization (WHO) has reported a 13% increase in worldwide mental health issues since 2017.
Researchers note that the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) and the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) have pointed to mental health apps as affordable and accessible tools for potentially addressing mental health care gaps. However, not all apps are created equal. It’s important to always seek evidence-based care and tools. Talk to your doctor or mental health provider if you need guidance or have concerns.
Who Are These Apps Best Suited For?
People of all ages use mental health apps. Interestingly, however, research indicates that even though men are less likely to seek therapy, they are more likely to utilize mental health apps. As far as age, adults are more likely to use mental health apps than teens or young adults.
“I believe that therapy apps may be offered an alternative to working on ‘homework’ from workbooks,” says Cynthia Martinez Mobley, MSW, LCSW, a provider with Grow Therapy. Like many experts, Mobley believes that these apps can be helpful. She reports that they “can be an immediate relief to the patient who may need help with centering or setting the intent for the day or to ground their thoughts and calm their symptoms.”
Both the mental health care market and the mental health app market have seen rising trends in the past few years. It can be confusing to consumers, since so many new apps are appearing. It’s important to determine the best apps for supporting your mental health outside of therapy.
What Are Some of the Benefits?
Mental health apps have many benefits. First off, they can let people explore the world of mental health and wellness privately if they are not quite ready for or open to therapy. They can also be used anonymously — this is helpful for people who feel a sense of stigma around seeking care, as well.
Secondly, they are often either free of cost or low cost tools. If you don’t have good mental health care coverage or can’t afford therapy, it’s important to know that while apps cannot replace a licensed, qualified therapist, they can help to some degree in the meantime.
Third, mental health apps can help you to learn stress reduction tools that can potentially improve your everyday quality of life. Meditation, sleep hygiene, mindfulness, and basic coping skills can be taught or enhanced through the use of mental health apps. These tools can even help with things like dealing with life transitions.
Why Does Accessible Mental Healthcare Matter?
The state of mental health in America is changing. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) report that around 12.5% of Americans experience regular anxiety, over 57 million visit doctors with primary diagnoses of mental health issues yearly, and Americans make over 6.2 million visits to emergency departments with mental health, behavioral, and neurodevelopmental disorders as primary diagnoses.
The good news, however, is that Americans are feeling more positive about mental health in general. Data gathered by the American Psychological Association from surveys suggests that 87% of American adults now feel that mental health disorders are not shameful, with 86% believing that mental health issues can get better. Many people know it’s time to break the stigma surrounding mental health and therapy.
Unfortunately, there is a shortage of mental health providers in America. This fact combined with insurance coverage and cost issues means that not everyone has the same access to care. The Association of American Medical Colleges estimated in 2021 that around 129.6 million Americans lived in areas with known mental health professional shortages.
In other words, less than a third of Americans live in areas where there aren’t enough mental health counselors and psychiatrists available to meet local needs. For this reason, mental health apps are being utilized more than ever, while people look for care, or to support their wellness in addition to care while waiting for their next appointment.
Thankfully, to help overcome the difficulties of accessing mental health care across the country, platforms like Grow Therapy offer online sessions with providers who accept insurance.
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Mental Health Apps to Consider Trying
It’s important to understand that mental health apps are an adjunct, and not a replacement for mental health counseling, psychiatric care, or medical care. Apps cannot replace years of clinical training or human professional skills. If you have concerns about your mental health or are feeling concerned, be sure to consult a licensed medical professional such as your primary care doctor or a licensed therapist for guidance.
That being said, these apps can be a valuable addition to your self-care routine, and can help you identify new skills for stress reduction and healthy habits. Let’s take a look at some of the key players our experts recommend for these purposes. Here are seven mental health apps to help support you outside of therapy:
1) Headspace
Headspace’s mission is “to improve the health and happiness of the world.” This simple mindfulness app is one of the most used mental health apps on the planet, boasting millions of downloads.
The app was co-founded by a former Buddhist monk, Andy Puddicombe, and uses mindfulness, guided meditations, breathwork, and calming techniques to reduce stress and promote improved sleep and moods. Headspace also features a special “focus” tab with tools for helping you work and study more effectively. This app can serve as a great adjunct to regular therapy. Headspace may be more costly than some other mindfulness apps but it does offer a free trial as well as family subscription.
2) Calm
Calm is another great mindfulness app that also focuses on improving meditation and sleep quality. These are important tools since lack of sleep may drastically impact mental health. Calm has options to allow you to focus on a variety of mindfulness skills, including: improving sleep quality, reducing stress or anxiety, improving focus, or general self-improvement.
Calm has a bright reputation as the top app for sleep, meditation, and mindfulness, over 100 million downloads, over 1.5 million five star reviews, and an award for the “world’s happiest app” from the Center for Humane Technology.
3) Happify
Happify is an app designed to help you overcome the challenges and stressors of life through fun activities, games, and the theory of neuroplasticity.
Happify has been featured in Forbes, The New York Times, The New Yorker, and on The TODAY Show. Its work is based on the idea that the human brain is wired with negativity bias, but can be rewired for improved mood and quality of life with the right stimulation. Using evidence-based theories from positive psychology, mindfulness, and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), users can experience shifts in mindset.
4) Bloom
Are you interested in CBT but don’t know where to start? Bloom may be a great option for you! The Bloom app is a leading self-therapy app which uses cognitive behavioral therapy concepts to guide you through self-guided therapeutic talks based on your individual needs and feelings for the day.
CBT can help people navigate their moods and behaviors more effectively with the goal of decreasing stress levels and improving relationship issues. Bloom has won many product review awards and has been featured on multiple major news outlets. The Bloom app can be paid for at a flat yearly fee or monthly.
5) Insight Timer
The Insight Timer app is recommend by many therapists because its free version offers numerous supportive mindfulness tools and features. This is a fantastic app for accessing guided meditations, mindfulness courses, and stress reduction tools. The paid version offers additional features for users. “I often recommend ‘Insight Timer’ to help patients who state they have benefited from meditation in the past, or who have a difficult time being present in the moment and who need coping skills to reduce symptoms of anxiety and/or depression,” explains Mobley.
“I suggest Insight Timer because the app is free of fees and allows for donations to be made at the client’s discretion. Insight Timer offers a variety of vocal and music meditations on confidence, self-love, relaxation, focus, peace, joy, gratitude and more. At night, Insight Timer offers a selection of longer quiet sounds/music to help promote sleep which is essential to mental health and overall well-being, as you know, if we fail to get restorative sleep, we are unable to handle stress and can not regulate our own emotions.”
6) Moodkit
Another one of the best apps to help you cope outside of therapy is MoodKit. This app utilizes evidence-based psychology and interactive exercises to help people enhance moods and promote self-regulation. The app has been featured in The New York Times, London Times, LA Times, and the Harvard Business Review. This is another app that utilizes CBT tools to promote emotional and behavioral modification.
The Thought Checker helps users manage negative feelings via identifying patterns of distorted thinking and how it can be reframed for wellness and health. The MoodKit journaling app is a special feature that aids with self-awareness tool development. At $4.99 a month, this app is affordable, as well.
7) iBreathe
If you struggle to relax and breathe, consider the iBreathe app. Subscribers can access guided breathing exercises for anxiety, stress-reduction, or insomnia, and the app will prompt you with breathing reminders throughout the day. Users can also integrate it with Apple Health. iBreathe is visually clean, easy to use., and color themes can be customized.
Mental Health Apps Are Not Meant to Replace Medical Care
The tools we’ve discussed can provide beneficial mental health support in your daily life, but if you are experiencing increasing symptoms or concerns, seek medical help. If you are feeling suicidal or are afraid for your safety or the safety of those around you, know that emergency support also exists. If you need immediate help, you can either call 911 or reach out to the National Suicide Prevention hotline by dialing 988, 24 hours a day.
Find a Therapist with Grow Therapy
Mental health apps can help you to prioritize your wellness, healthy habits, and stress reduction practices. Remember, though, that nothing can replace quality mental healthcare from a qualified professional. If you need help finding a therapist or guidance on where to begin your search, Grow Therapy is here. Use our filters to identify therapists in your area who accept your insurance. Whatever you do, remember that your mental health matters.
