In a country with a population of approximately 25 million people, it’s clear to see that most of us have phones. According to Statista, the percentage of us who owned a mobile phone was 81% in 2017.
With these numbers, and the fact that Covid-19 has contributed to a growing mental health issue across the globe, it’s no wonder that healthcare has become increasingly digitalised. One of the ways people can access mental healthcare is via a mental health app that is specifically designed to help self-diagnose, offer advice and provide useful resources and activities to improve mental health.
These mobile tools are designed to help people better manage their emotions, control negative thoughts, express feelings, and even prevent self-harm and suicidal thoughts. Some mobile health apps teach people effective breathing techniques and provide relaxing music. People can even use mobile apps to implement cognitive behavioural therapy strategies to record and better control their anxieties.
With the release of Converge’s brand-new mental health app, let’s look at the number of benefits such an app can provide.
The benefits of a mental health app
There are multiple advantages in using mobile health apps to improve one’s mental wellbeing. These benefits include:
- Understanding: Once you have provided some basic information about how you’re feeling, a mental health app can quickly understand where you may be struggling. Whether it’s depression, anxiety or stress, the app can highlight the areas of mental health that is currently affecting you.
- Direct access to resources: When the app highlights mental health issues, the user can be provided with helpful resources and information about the topic so they can gain a better understanding of the issues they may be suffering from.
- Goal setting: Once you understand the issue it can be hard to know what to do about it. An app can help set targeted and tailored goals that work for you. Achieving set goals is a proven way to help improve various aspects of mental health.
- Reporting: To help keep track of your mental health goals, the app can input your daily, weekly or even monthly data and present your progress in easy-to-digest graphs or tables. Some apps connect directly to smartwatches or other devices and automatically upload data points such as running distance. Our new Converge App collects this confidential data and anonymously sends this data back to the employer. This aggregated reporting can help the employer understand the shifting health and wellbeing trends of their employees.
- Greater convenience: Since so much of the population uses a smartphone – and the average user checks their phone as often as 150 times a day – it can be beneficial to store your mental health progress in a device that is such a part of daily life. Whereas in-person therapy requires scheduling a block of time weekly or bi-weekly, you can schedule a session with your phone whenever you please.
- Engaging: A study conducted by Harvard University found that people have an intrinsic motivation to use a mental health app at regular intervals in order to progress in treatment. The reasons for this were assumed to be due to the fact that people using a mental health app felt in control of their activities and were responsible for their improvement. Another reason was the power of notifications to remind the user to complete their goals. Finally, it was assumed that the apps were appealing due to being considered technologically savvy. These technologies may be more appealing to certain participants over traditional therapy.
- Anonymity: Many people prefer not to share their personal and private information even with a professional and would rather manage their mental health more privately. While a mental health professional is obligated to keep your information private, mental health services on your smartphone are completely confidential. Furthermore, mental health apps don’t require directly communicating with another person, which can be a source of anxiety for some people.
Our Converge App — the future of health and wellbeing has arrived
Our brand new Converge app, which is included as part of our EAP program, uses award-winning technology to engage every employee and gives them the tools, autonomy, self-awareness and motivation to take control of their health and wellbeing.
The app not only harnesses the previously stated benefits, but rectifies some of the limitations of other mental health apps. For example, during the development of some mental health apps, clinicians aren’t often involved. The Converge App combines the latest digital technology with an evidence-based approach, with experts involved at every stage of the development. For our app’s development and launch, we teamed with HeadUp Labs, who are the global experts in evidence-based digital health and wellbeing.
Another common issue with mental health apps is language and engagement. Mental health can be a complex subject, and some apps use unnecessary jargon and ‘scientific talk’ in their language which can put people off. Our Converge App uses everyday language to best engage all users, so they can learn about mental health in a way that speaks to them. This is achieved via HeadUp Labs’ award-winning and highly engaging digital health platform that has been integrated into our Converge App.
Click here to learn more about our Converge App and how it can help both individuals improve their mental health, and businesses learn more about the mental wellness of their people.
