FREE Mental Health Apps

GENERAL

What’s Up is an amazing free app that uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT) methods to help you cope with Depression, Anxiety, Stress, and more. Use the positive and negative habit tracker to maintain your good habits, and break those that are counterproductive. You’ll love the “Get Grounded” page, which contains over 100 different questions to pinpoint what you’re feeling, and the “Thinking Patterns” page, which teaches you how to stop negative internal monologues. (Free; iOS and Android)

Calm: Named by Apple as the 2017 iPhone App of the Year, Calm is quickly becoming regarded as one of the best mental health apps available. Calm provides people experiencing stress and anxiety with guided meditations, sleep stories, breathing programs, and relaxing music. This app is truly universal; whether you’ve never tried meditation before or regularly practice, you’ll find the perfect program for you. (Free; iOS and Android)

ANXIETY

 

Self-Help for Anxiety Management (SAM) might be perfect for you if you’re interested in self-help, but   meditation isn’t your thing. Users are prompted to build their own   24-hour anxiety toolkit that allows you to track anxious thoughts and behavior over time, and learn 25 different self-help techniques. You can also use SAM’s “Social Cloud” feature to confidentially connect with other users in an online community for additional support. (Free; iOS and Android)

CBT Thought Record Diary: The centerpiece of cognitive-behavioral therapy is changing your   emotions by identifying negative and distorted thinking patterns.   You can use CBT Thought Record Diary to document negative emotions, analyze flaws in your thinking, and reevaluate your thoughts. This is a great app for gradually changing your approach to anxiety-inducing situations and your thinking patterns for future situations. (Free; iOS and Android)

DEPRESSION

Happify: Need a happy fix? With its psychologist-approved mood-training   program, the Happify app is your fast-track to a good mood. Try   various engaging games, activity suggestions, gratitude prompts and more to train your brain as if it were a muscle, to overcome negative thoughts. (Free; iOS and Android)

MoodTools aims to support people with clinical depression by   aiding the path to recovery. Discover helpful videos that can   improve your mood and behavior, log and analyze your thoughts using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) principles, develop a suicide safety plan and more with this free app. (Free; iOS and Android)

POST TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER

PTSD Coach: Created by the VA’s National Center for Post-Traumatic Stress   Disorder (PTSD), PTSD Coach offers everything from a self-   assessment for PTSD, to opportunities to find support, positive self-talk, and anger management. What’s great about this app is that you can customize tools based on your own individual needs and preferences, and integrate your own contacts, photos, and music. (Free; iOS and Android)

Breathe2Relax: Sometimes you just need to breathe and remind yourself you are okay. Breathe2Relax is made for just that. Created by the National   Center for Telehealth and Technology, this app is a portable stress management tool that teaches users a skill called diaphragmatic breathing. Breathe2Relax works by decreasing the body’s ‘fight-or-flight’ stress response, making it a great option for people suffering from PTSD.  (Free; iOS and Android)

OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER

nOCD was designed with the help of OCD specialists and patients to incorporate two treatments: mindfulness and Exposure Response Prevention Treatment. You can receive immediate, clinically-supported guidance when an OCD episode strikes, take weekly tests to assess the severity of your OCD, and have motivational support along the way. One user calls nOCD “a free therapist in your pocket!” (Free; iOS)

BIPOLAR DISORDER

Bipolar Disorder Connect: Bipolar disorder can be frustrating, especially if you don’t have   anyone close to you that can identify with your struggles. Bipolar   Disorder Connect is a great app that connects people with bipolar disorder from around the world. This tool gives you access to a community of people living with the condition. The app also features tracking tools to help you monitor your moods and share those updates. (Free; iOS) 

Stigma: The journal component of Stigma is considered one of the best in a crowded field. The app’s word cloud technology recognizes which words you use the most when writing down your feelings allowing you to reflect on why these are your go-to emotions. We also love the app’s social network dimension, which allows users to connect with peers through messaging. You can share your journal too and get feedback if you’d like support from others. (Free; iOS)

EATING DISORDERS

Recovery Record is a great app for anyone recovering from an   eating disorder and wanting to develop a more positive body   image. Keep a record of the meals you eat and how they make you feel using the app and complete questionnaires that’ll help you track your progress over time. One user calls Recovery Record a “remarkable recovery tool”; “It helps me stick to my meal plan, provides an outlet to vent about my food concerns and helps me stay intact with my body to work with it rather than against.” (Free; iOS and Android)

Rise Up + Recover is a unique app as it not only allows you to track your meals and how you feel when you eat them, but you can also transcribe your progress into a PDF printout. Pull up the Rise + Recover app on your mobile when you feel the urge to binge or skip a meal, and need quick coping strategies. (Free; iOS and Android)

Lifesum: Unlike the other apps featured in this list, Lifesum is a broader  resource for all things healthy living. The app allows you to set   personal goals, from eating healthier, to building more muscle and getting in more steps each day. You can also enter your own personal data and let Lifesum generate a “Life Score” to get a personalized roadmap to better health. With reminders to drink water and eat regularly throughout the day, Lifesum is a great option for anyone trying to live healthier, but for people with eating disorders, this app can be used to help you redefine how you think about healthy body image. (Free; iOS and Android)

ADDICTION

Quit That!: A completely free app that helps users beat their habits or  addictions. Whether you’re looking to stop drinking alcohol, quit   smoking, or stop taking drugs, it’s the perfect recovery tool to track and monitor your progress. Track as many vices as you want and find out how many minutes, hours, days, weeks, or years it’s been since you quit. (Free; iOS)

SUICIDE PREVENTION

MY3 is aimed at people who are depressed and suicidal, and   trains users to recognize suicide warning signs in others. MY3   asks you to choose three close contacts that you feel comfortable reaching out to when you’re down and keeps you connected to this core network. This best part of this app is that it helps you create your own safety plan asking you to think through and list your own warning signs, coping strategies and support network, so that you can easily act when you recognize your warning signs. (Free; iOS and Android)

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