Install These 4 Apple Watch Apps If You Struggle With Anxiety
The stresses of work, having kids, or simply having a lot on your plate in life can all lead to feelings of anxiety. Whether you're worried about a friend or family member, stressed knowing you have a big project due at work, or maybe you're just dealing with the challenges of school, any of these can be reasons you start to feel overwhelmed. It's nothing to feel bad about — everyone gets anxious occasionally, and some people struggle more than others.
The important thing to do in these situations is to recognize what's making you feel anxious and take the time to center yourself. This can be achieved through several ways, be it breathing exercises, organizing your thoughts by writing them down, or even just talking to someone you trust to unburden yourself.
One great way to deal with anxiety is using apps designed for stress relief on your Apple Watch. (There are also apps for Android when you start to feel anxious.) They're great because it only takes a couple of taps on your watch screen, and you're on your way to calming yourself down and getting more centered. Check out these apps that are great for curbing your anxiety.
Welltory: Heart Rate Monitor
Welltory: Heart Rate Monitor works with your Apple Watch and the Health app to get comprehensive data about your heart rate and stress. It gives you daily health metrics on a wide variety of insights about your overall health. In all, Welltory tracks over 140 data sources to bring you detailed info about your health, exercise regimen, and recovery after your workouts. You can also monitor your progress over time, informing how much you get out of your various exercises. It supports several other devices, in case you use Garmin, Fitbit, Oura, or other trackers.
As far as relieving stress is concerned, Welltory has you covered with a breathing app for calming your mind in those instances when life and your day-to-day can feel overwhelming. It offers daily life hacks to improve your health and ensure you allow yourself time in the moment to heal. The app also has a subscription-based service to give you more info, but even without it, you get a lot of information, and it doesn't constantly bug you to upgrade.
Headspace: Sleep & Meditation
Health and breathing apps are great for keeping your stress level to a minimum, but there's nothing like meditation to calm the mind and body. Headspace: Sleep and Mediation offers tons of meditations you can relax and listen to using your Apple Watch so you can find your inner zen. The creators of Headspace contend you can become a happier person through guided meditation and mindfulness, and the app offers all the tools you need to get there.
Part of the trick to becoming more grounded with meditation is mapping out a time to do it every day. It offers three-minute meditations if you're a busy person who needs a quick fix, but you also have the option to do longer sessions to get some real relaxation in. With practice, it will help you build resilience, and there are several topics to meditate about if you want a more focused session. For better sleep, Headspace has narrated calming sessions with nature sound effects that will be the perfect ticket for getting some relaxing shuteye. You can learn breathwork to get relief from anxiety, improve your focus, and boost your overall concentration.
Headspace has a lot to offer, but it will cost you. It runs $12.99 a month, but a yearly subscription will bring it down to $6.99 a month.
Rootd
Rootd is an Apple Watch app for when you've gone into emergency mode because the stress has gotten too much. It's basically a button to press when you've gone into a panic attack so you can get some much-needed relief. What it does is help you understand what happens when you have a panic attack and how to handle it, and gives you the tools you need to get through it. Ideally, it will give you long-term strength to handle panic attacks and know what to do when the feelings start to overwhelm you.
The app comes with a bunch of tools for handling anxiety and panic attacks. There's a journal where you can record your thoughts throughout the day, a "VisualizR" to give you calming visuals with nature sounds, and you can even set up an emergency contact so you have easy access to a friend when you're in need. If you like the idea of a panic button when the feelings start to catch up to you, definitely download this app.
Spotify
Spotify is already well known as a streaming music and podcast app, but it also offers a wealth of meditation and mindfulness content. So, while it's not known for being a destination to help with your anxiety, you can find content quite easily with the right search terms. All you have to do is search for "guided meditation" or "mindfulness," and you'll be rewarded with tons of options for quieting your anxiety. Moreover, it works great on the Apple Watch.
What's great about using Spotify is the amount of curated playlists you can find from other users and experts in the field. In this way, it might even be better than apps dedicated to coping with anxiety because it's like a never-ending library of content. Even if you have no interest in guided meditation, you always have the option to search for calming ambient music or even nature sounds if that's your thing. Either way, you'll have a ton of content to listen to when you have a moment to center yourself and care for your mental health.