Can Technology Increase Behavioral Health Wellness?

Originally published in NYAPRS Note: The article below, developed by NYAPRS’ Molly Donahue, delves into the benefits and risks of relying on technology to assist in behavioral health wellness. The resources included are great places to start for consumers, providers, and policy makers to understand this technological capacity.

Can Technology Increase Behavioral Health Wellness?

NYAPRS; Maureen Donahue, 8/20/2014

At some point during a visit with my parents, one or both of them will express a sentiment along the lines of, “I wish there was a way for me to manage x, y, or z more efficiently.” And more often than not, my response is, “Actually, there’s an app for that.” It has become the tagline of the Millennial generation. Cell phones, once a marker of financial stature, are now remarkably cheap and accessible. In a startling study from March of 2013, the United Nations reported that more people on earth have access to cell phones than toilets. In the age of smartphones being a natural extension of our bodies, app developers are constantly finding new and unique ways to integrate our digital connectivity.

Technology is changing the way we experience health care, across the board. Physicians are integrating digital records and applications to streamline treatment and increase accountability. Recently, the coined ‘digital revolution’ intersected with behavior health recovery, and a boom of behavioral health apps hit the marketplace. Managing personal health and recovery goals through technology is not a new concept, but it is gaining momentum. When I was in college, you would have been hard pressed to find a woman who didn’t have a daily alarm set on her Nokia to remind her to take her oral contraceptive – now there are entire apps dedicated to maintaining consistent medication regimens, or easily refilling prescriptions at your favorite pharmacy. Clinical and academic applications allow us to carry unlimited medical resources in our pockets. Mood and feeling diaries are also popular apps for mobile devices.

Along with the increase in apps for behavioral health, criticism of an increasingly ‘app dependent’ generation of patients is on the rise. Attempts to streamline our lives, critics argue, may result in added anxiety or stress. I can understand the position: misplacing my iPhone is a stressful, sometimes panic-riddled monthly event. My entire life is on that phone, I often rationalize – my photos, contacts, calendar of events, etc. Consider then the added anxiety of losing not only your photos, but also a year of your mood diary, or your medication reminders, or your crisis lifeline.

Only you can decide if technology will assist with your overall behavioral health and recovery goals. If you do incorporate apps into your life, just keep in mind that technology, while amazing, is also fickle. Make sure you have backup copies of important information, and keep a hard copy of vital contact numbers or websites so that you can access help in a crisis situation. I think I’ve found a happy medium: I keep a digital mood diary to track potential swings because I have my phone with me at all times, but I also record a hand-written supplement (the physical writing is part of the therapy, for me). I use my phone to refill my prescriptions on the go, but still carry a hard-copy in my wallet just in case.

I’ve collected a list of apps across platforms that are geared toward behavioral health and wellness. Note that this list is not comprehensive and I have not tried/used the majority of these applications. The list is culled from online research, and friend recommendations. It is organized thematically.

Abuse/Violence/Safety

circleof6 – A discreet app for violence prevention in vulnerable populations through the use of mobile technology (iTunes/Android – free)

Guardly – The fastest way to connect to authorities, family & friends, when you need help (iTunes/Android/Blackberry – free)

Just In Case – Set automatic messages to contact friends if in a risky/dangerous situation (Android – free)

LifeLine Response - When the Distress Alert is activated and not disarmed within 20 seconds the Response Verification Center will call the user back and verify there is a real emergency (iTunes/Android - $9.99)

On Watch – A personal safety app developed specifically for college-aged users (iTunes – free)

Addiction recovery

12 Steps Companion (iTunes/Android - $2.99)

ImQuit – Track your progress (Android – free)

iPromises Recovery Companion - Add friends, see shared meetings, track your progress and challenges, and get a daily positive message one day at time (iTunes – free)

Meeting Finder – The most comprehensive 12 step program meeting search tool (iTunes/Android – free)

Recovery Box – A sobriety toolset that facilitates tracking of daily life activities (iTunes - $1.99)

Anxiety

Beat Panic – Interactive resource for before, during, and after a panic attack. (iTunes - $0.99)

Beat Social Phobia – A guided audio program geared toward assisting users with social phobias (iTunes/Android - $2.99)

iCounselor: Anxiety – Learn skills and behaviors to reduce daily anxiety (iTunes – $0.99)

iStress – A stress and anxiety management tool (iTunes - $0.99)

Bipolar/Mood Tracking

Bipol-app – A symptom and trigger monitoring app for users with bipolar disorder (iTunes/Android – free)

eMoods - Charting daily extremes of moods and other symptoms (Android – free)

iMoodJournal - Mood journal, personal diary and charting tool helping you recognize patterns and triggers of your mental state, including bipolar and OCD (iTunes - $1.99)

Mood & Anxiety Diary -  Track changes in mood and anxiety over time (iTunes - $2.99)

Mood Panda – A free and interactive mood tracking application that can also be accessed via browser (iTunes/Android/Web – free)

MyMoodTracker -  Track your moods and emotions, and everything else that can affect how you feel (iTunes - $4.99)

Crisis Intervention

ASK & Prevent Suicide – Educational and crisis resource (iTunes/Android – free)

HELP Prevent Suicide - easy access to crisis intervention resources, including a list of warning signs, steps on how to talk with someone in crisis, and information on national resources (iTunes – free)

Operation Reach Out - Provides activities to help people who are depressed stay connected to others (iTunes – free)

QPR Suicide Crisis Support - An electronic version of the booklet “The Tender Leaves of Hope, Helping Someone Survive a Suicide Crisis.” (Android – free)

Body/Eating/Health

Body Beautiful – An app to help cultivate positive self-image and health goals. (iTunes - $0.99)

Eating D – A skills and knowledge based application for those living with disordered eating. (Android - $0.99)

Project Toe – An app to facilitate connections between users who are intending to self-harm (iTunes/Android – free)

Recovery Record – Eating disorder management tool for all body image concerns (iTunes/Android – free)

Rise Up + Recover – An eating disorder monitoring and management app (iTunes – free)

Depression

iCounselor: Depression – Learn skills to reduce and manage depression (iTunes - $0.99)

DBT Diary – A DBT skills coach and life diary designed to track, assess and modify behaviors. (iTunes/Android - $4.99)

PTSD

PTSD Coach – Developed for Veterans and military Service Members who have, or may have, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (Android – free)