Lifestyle
These 5 apps will help soothe anxiety and stress in minutes
According to the World Health Organization1, the global pandemic led to a 25 per cent increase in anxiety across the globe. For those of us affected, there are a range of apps that can help us manage our wellbeing, ensuring we get the most out of life.
Calm
Cost: 7-day free trial, then $79.99 per year
For some of us, the storm – however it presents itself – will simply always be there. The key is to find the calm within the storm, because sometimes sustaining it is the only way forward. Calm, the aptly named app, is like a guiding light for stressed and anxiety-ridden minds. Based around mindfulness and meditation, the app is just as at home on a newcomer’s home screen as it is on an expert’s. Calming exercises, breath work, soothing sounds from nature, and stories for sleep, narrated by celebrities can all be found here. Best of all, you’re in the driver’s seat, dictating exactly how you utilise the app each day.
Headspace
Cost: 14-day free trial, then $91.99 per year
Headspace is rooted in mindfulness. Our brains can easily become wired to replay the past or forecast the future. Headspace’s strength lies in bolstering a mind that remains in the present moment. If you’re new to meditation, this app delivers a seamless introduction to the practice. Guided by co-founder and Buddhist monk Andy Puddicombe, the sessions are soothing and authentic.
Colorfy
Cost: Free with in-app purchases
Sometimes all we need is a reminder to relax and let our inner creative take control for a while. Colorfy is the perfect prompt, allowing for a mindful pause in the day where you can paint, colour and draw. Research2 shows colouring can have substantial positive effects on anxiety with significant reductions in symptoms reported, and some study participants acknowledging increased mindfulness when colouring in on an app compared to paper-based colouring. Having a tool like this at your fingertips allows you to tame anxious thoughts without even realising you’re doing it.
Moodnotes
Cost: Free with in-app purchases
Moodnotes is kind of like a best friend who checks in with you every day, and to whom you can confidently confess all your inner thoughts. It’s a contemporary way to journal for awareness, to turn thinking habits on their head. The idea is to break unhelpful thought patterns, replacing them with more productive ones. Moodnotes also provides cues to track your mood each day and makes suggestions around possible triggers and how to avoid them.
Happify
Cost: US$139.99 per year
Happify blends science and the psychology of happiness to deliver games and activities designed to relieve your mind of negative thoughts, manage stress and burnout, and help free you from worry. Using cognitive behavioural therapy, mindfulness, and the power of positive psychology, this app instils a little bit of happiness into each day. It also offers the opportunity to develop healthy habits based on science, so you can move forward with a clearer mind.
Love what you see? Head to the App Store to find these stress-reducing apps to download, and start your journey to a more balanced, holistic way of life.
Keeping your devices covered
Of course, you can’t run any of these apps without a device like a smartphone or tablet – and breaking one of those could really work against your relaxation goals.
Luckily, you can add optional cover for portable valuables with a GIO Home & Contents Insurance policy. This can help with repair or replacement of portable items like smartphones, if they’re lost or damaged anywhere in Australia or New Zealand.
Read more:
2 Adult colouring: the effect of app-based vs. pen-and-paper colouring on mindfulness and anxiety, via ResearchGate
Insurance issued by AAI Limited ABN 48 005 297 807 trading as GIO. Consider the Product Disclosure Statement before buying this insurance. The Target Market Determination is also available.
