Words: Vanessa Salvia
Photo: milan2099
Editor’s Note: In the second part of our Stress Management article we want to provide different smartphone apps that can help deal with stress. With the world being digital-heavy, what better way to help navigate us through stressful times than with an app that focuses solely on stress itself. Discover the vast options out there that can help to reduce and maintain stress in healthy ways!
There’s been a proliferation of apps and websites to deal with stress in recent years. There are so many now that it will be easy to find one that works for you. With smartphones there are so many different benefits for health, it’s only fitting that we can access applications that can help us deal with stress in a healthy manner. Take a look at the apps below and see if any of them fit your needs.
StressRemedy.com
StressRemedy is a website that you can look at when you don’t want to be on your phone. The website has 14 free guided meditations to help with letting go, breathing, or relaxation. You can also listen on SoundCloud, so you can listen to the walking meditation during your break from work. The blog has a lot of resources on understanding stress and stress management, and there are also several free videos on different topics such as dealing with panic and anxiety.
Platform: Website: StressRemedy.com
Cost: Free
Headspace
Headspace provides meditations to help with concentration, mood, stress, anxiety, and more. sessions and programs. The Headspace library includes single meditations, session packs, meditations for children, and animated meditations. Users can choose programs and experience through Headspace at their own pace. Additional features include meditation reminders, tracking your practice statistics, and inviting a buddy to join and meditate with.
Platform: iOS and Android
Cost: Users can complete a 10-session free trial before purchasing subscription access to a wider variety of programs.
Calm
Calm’s content focuses on stress, anxiety, insomnia, and depression. A popular feature is The Daily Calm, a 10-minute meditation that explores a new concept each day. Also useful is the introductory program the 7 Days of Calm. This offers the basics of meditation, which is a good place to start before moving on to the 21 Days of Calm. Calm also contains about 100 Sleep Stories (bed-time stories for grown-ups), plus sleep music, meditation lessons, nature sounds, Calm Masterclasses delivered by world experts, and more.
Platform: iOS and Android
Cost: Free to download with some free content; a paid subscription unlocks everything.
InsightTimer.com
Insight Timer is a meditation app with more than 6,000 available meditations which can be filtered based on various criteria. Personalized meditation tracks can be created by customizing the background ambient sound, bells, etc. Discussion forums can also be accessed via the app. Insight Timer yoga classes are also free and can cast to your smart TV.
Platform: iOS and Android, website: InsightTimer.com
Cost: Free with in-app purchases
iSleep Easy
iSleep Easy contains a range of guided meditations to help users fall asleep and sleep better. One special mediation is to be used for middle-of-the-night wakeups and another provides a custom mix of nature sounds and music. Users can create their own playlists using a combination of audio tracks, or use one of the preset playlists (‘relax into sleep’, ‘deep sleep’, and ‘letting go’). There are also sleep tips advising how to create a more relaxing sleeping environment.
Platform: iOS and Android
Cost: $3.99
Happify
Happify personalizes its approach based on users filling out a short questionnaire. Examples of content include “Cope Better with Stress” and “Conquer Your Negative Thinking.” Users can participate in the Happify community through forums and public posts and they can also read a digest of positive news through Happify Daily.
Platform: iOS and Android
Cost: Free with in-app purchases
SuperBetter.com
SuperBetter is an app that is intended to be like a video game. Users can create a fully customizable “Secret Identity” to tackle quests, use power-ups, and identify “Bad Guys” for users to defeat. Users can conquer a real-life “quest” by completing tasks that are shown to increase overall health and well-being. Examples of “Quests” and “Power-ups” include drinking water, reaching out to an old friend, walking around the block, and practicing self-care. Users can also download “PowerPacks” which are designed to help people with symptoms of conditions such as depression, chronic pain, and anxiety. Other features include goal-setting, tracking gratitude, and reviewing achievements. The purpose is to develop resilience and remain optimistic even in the face of difficult challenges.
Platform: iOS and Android, website: SuperBetter.com
Cost: Free
Serenita
Serenita is designed to help users track and manage their stress. The ‘Stress Check’ feature measures stress levels through the user’s phone camera. Exercises are provided to help reduce stress or increase focus. The app provides breathing exercises, which can be customized and tracked. A number of audio tracks can be downloaded; six breathing exercises (ranging from one to 15-minutes) and five meditation exercises (ranging from 12 to 30-minutes).
Platform: iOS and Android
Cost: Free to download with five sessions of each exercise included in the free app; a paid subscription unlocks everything.
Stress comes in many shapes and forms, but there’s only one way we can help to control it — it all starts with our mindset. With the help of the apps we’ve listed above, a positive mindset, and healthy outlets we can learn to manage the stressors that present themselves to us daily in healthy ways. Whether you’re just curious or are in need of a new way to deal with stress, these apps can be a stepping stone to a new stress-reduced day or week.