So Many Mental Health Apps But Which Are Evidence-Based?
If you spend much time looking around the Google or Apple App stores, you’re bound to see quite a few apps aimed at helping people deal with depression, anxiety, insomnia, and other mental health struggles. But, we know that just being in the store doesn’t mean anyone has done any research into whether they work or not. Thankfully, Dr. John Grohol has published a post based on research done by John Torous, MD, MBI, Director of the Digital Psychiatry Division at the Department of Psychiatry at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, where he identifies seven apps that are actually based on good research and evidence.
https://psychcentral.com/blog/top-7-evidence-based-mental-health-apps/
This is a good place to start with a mental health app, maybe one of these can help you with minor issues, or in connection with other treatments. Just understand as Dr. Grohol mentions:
Just because an app appears in the App Store or on Google Play doesn’t mean it’s been vetted in any manner whatsoever as being safe and effective for the condition or concern it targets.
Not every app is equal. As much as I believe technology can provide additional resources for mental healthcare (and we are in desperate needs for more resources), we need to also be careful to vet any apps before depending on them. It’s nice to have some experts out here doing the research.
