How COVID Has Improved Mental Health Apps for Teens

Unplanned, drastic, and consistent change is a challenge for anyone to face. The pandemic has turned lives upside down and forced everyone to adapt to unfamiliar circumstances. Young people are at the center of this vast life alteration; therefore, teen mental health is a serious concern.

Switching the classroom for online courses was the first obstacle. Imagine one day being surrounded by other students and support teachers and the next day having to pull yourself out of bed and find the motivation for a day of school work behind your computer screen. It can be an incredibly lonely place. Social interaction is lost, and there’s no familiar routine of focusing your mind for a day of learning — you feel like you’re tackling challenges alone. 

On top of the loss of class interaction, other losses include the social events, sports competitions, and extracurricular activities that are pivotal to the growth. As a result, teens must spend copious amounts of time with family, giving them little chance to find independence or socialize with friends.

However, if there’s something we’ve learned from the pandemic, it’s how to provide better mental health services for teens. Having been forced into a position where businesses and society must act, there has been a selection of good mental health apps developed that enable teens to access support 24/7. A phone is a device most of us can no longer live without, but sometimes demonized and said to cause many mental health issues. While that may be correct, they’re also the key to raising teen mental health awareness.

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Examples Of Teen Mental Health Experienced During The Pandemic

To put into perspective the drastic impact the last two years have had, when compared to pre-pandemic times, symptoms of depression and anxiety in children and adolescents increased. While these two diagnoses are common, there are many other issues to look out for. During your teenage years, your mind and body experience hormonal changes and chemical imbalances, and lifestyle alterations that can lead to personality disorders, behavioral disorders, eating disorders, OCD, bipolar, PTSD, ADHD, ADD, and many more. 

The rising impact of teen mental health across the globe and the availability of supportive services are dwindling because of the pandemic. So it is crucial to give teens access to the help they need from the comfort of their home, using familiar devices.

How Can Teens Combat Mental Health At Home

Like every other industry, remote working, lockdowns, and office closures upon mental health service providers. The big question was, how do we provide mental health services for teens during a time of crisis, where cases of mental illness are going to skyrocket. 

Aside from selecting generic mental health activities that are proven to have a positive impact, how does the industry help those with more specific requirements? The best mental health apps are the perfect way to provide services to teens at home.

     1. Mediations & Mindfulness Apps

A wide selection of meditation and mindfulness apps make it easy for you to learn how to practice these methods in your own home. So no matter what your mind is struggling with, whether you have insomnia caused by overthinking, worrying about things out of your control, or feeling a disconnect with your identity, you have easy access to tools that will help you. 

According to Forbes, during the early stages of the pandemic, Core reported a 400% increase in users interacting with their app at least five days a week, showing a drastic uptake in guided app-based meditation. With the demand for meditation and mindfulness skyrocketing, app developers and service providers acted by diversifying their work and broadening their offerings to meet the individual needs of more people. 

     2. Breaking Negative Habits & Creating Healthy Ones

Many applications are for people trying to combat specific habits such as negative thoughts, self-harm, suicidal thoughts, and many more. These apps are a fantastic aid to help people realize when they are showing symptoms of mental illness without needing to see a professional for an initial diagnosis. 

Too often, teens suffer in silence. They feel embarrassed and unable to talk to anyone. They think what they are experiencing isn’t out of the ordinary. Breaking the cycle of negative thoughts and replacing them are great first steps for tackling personal issues. You can now do this through your phone in your own space. 

     3. Professional Help

With the emergence of online meetings, webchats, and other forms of digital communication, many apps provide access to expert professional help through their platform. While these services are likely paid for and would usually supplement health insurance, it’s a drastic step in the right direction. 

Now, teens everywhere have access to the help they need, whenever they need it. In addition, many of these apps will provide recommendations of the best practitioners to reach out to based on the symptoms you are experiencing. 

     4. Make Time for Mindfulness

Adjusting your daily routine to make time for active mindfulness and acknowledging your thoughts and feelings is an excellent step in the right direction. There is an abundance of techniques and activities you can use to do this. Although, we’ll talk about the most popular and easier ones to get you started.

     5. Exercise

Exercising doesn’t have to be a lung-busting workout of a 10-mile jog – head out on a short walk, clear your head, release endorphins, and reduce stress levels. Inspiration is easy to find, with many free exercise scheduling and workout routine apps.

     6. Talk To Someone

A challenging step for many, but rewarding occurs for those who open up and talk to someone. If you feel friends and family may not be your best choice, you’ll find many forums and online communities of speaking freely and supporting people going through the same thing as you.

     7. Write Things Down

Journaling and writing down daily gratitudes is a fantastic method for altering your outlook on life and acknowledging the way you’re feeling and why. Consider adding this to your daily routine.

If you’re looking for expert healthcare app development, our team is ready and waiting to support you in new and existing projects. Digitizing healthcare and making it more accessible to everyone is essential for the industry.