Apps for spirituality and self-care

A mini-blog/reflective journal, from a self-confessed air-head.

Photo Fred Moon

This time: a list of (android) apps I've found useful for spirituality and self care, with mini-reviews.

My top picks:-

1) The Tapping Solution 💚

The Tapping Solution LLP

'Guided Tapping Meditations'

I love this app, it's just what I'd been looking for. It's free to download with a range of free meditations available. The full paid version is rather pricey, but I purchased it as there was a special half price offer on at the time (I'm pretty unlikely to renew it next year, however, due to the costly price tag so after that it'll be back to the free version).  You do, as you'd imagine, get quite a bit more content as a paid up subscriber but I seem to recall that the free content was pretty good, too. 

The app literally guides you through whichever tapping (Emotional Freedom Technique) meditation you select. It works especially well for me as my mind can wander uncontrollably with attempted solo meditation, and what I believe to be probable undiagnosed dyspraxia makes it difficult for me to learn and recall the sequence of EFT tapping without the app to follow along with.

I find the act of tapping, rather than just mindfulness or meditation, very useful to keep me focused on taking the time out for this self-care activity, and I also find it extremely helpful for those occasions when I'm excessively 'keyed up' and feel I wouldn't be able to sit still for other forms of relaxation or meditation.  

Photo: Brian Kelly

There's a section in the app where you can read about the science behind EFT.

The user interface is fairly simple and very easy to use.  I get the occasional 'crash' of the app, but nothing too frustrating.

I've been recommending this app to everyone who'll listen!

The Tapping Solution website

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

2) Feeling Good: positive mindset 🌱

Positive Rewards

'Lifting mood, creating calm & positive vision'
Audios for stress and depression

I like this app, as it has a cute logo of a blue sky with the sun shining and represents progress with imagery such as tufts of grass and a tree in leaf. And it's free, though there is a paid version you can purchase to access more content.

Also, it's developed in collaboration with doctors & psychologists.

The first meditation is a simple three minute mindfulness which begins and ends with what I imagine to be a single tone from a Tibetan singing bowl, which I like. It helps put me right in the most suitable frame of mind.

I also appreciate that this app is really simple, there's not tonnes of different sections or tabs to scroll or click around, you just open the app and do what you've set out to do.

Photo: Luke Richardson

The mini-review ends here, because I've yet to progress to the next meditation and the rest of the content, but I'm hopeful I'll get on with it just as well, and thoroughly enjoy seeing my tree in full leaf.

About the Feeling Good app

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Other apps I've tried (in alphabetical order):-

Calm - Meditate, Sleep, Relax ➰

Calm.com, Inc.

'Join millions discovering the life-changing benefits of meditation with Calm'

This one had been recommended in numerous places so I gave it a try but I've got to be honest I uninstalled it fairly soon.

There's a selection of meditations, music, sleep stories, nature sounds and possibly other stuff.  So, lots.  But much of it is locked to the free user and I wasn't confident enough that it was what I was looking for to buy the paid version.  Roaming around the app trying to find the free content was tedious and to be honest I think there was actually too much stuff in this app for me generally; I think I'm someone who prefers a fairly simple user interface and fairly focused app.  If I want nature sounds I'll go to Mynoise.net.  I don't need an app that does all these different things.

But if you do like a packed, multi function app or having lots of things all in one place then you may enjoy Calm.

⭐⭐½

Headspace: Meditation & Sleep 💭
Headspace for Meditation, Mindfulness and Sleep
'Just a few minutes can change your day'

This is another one I'd seen recommended in numerous places so I gave it a try too.

I found it a similar story with this app as with Calm.  The layout was a little better for me than Calm, slightly simpler and with free content nice and obvious at the beginning of sections. Some slightly different features too, such as the ability to add 'buddies'. But overall, it was still a little too full and as mentioned I tend to prefer something simpler, with less to navigate.

It almost certainly comes down to personal preference, and of the apps I've listed I can see a definite trend that the simpler ones work best for me, I can focus in on what I want to get out of it, not spend ages scrolling around.

But with Headspace there is nevertheless some free content so it almost certainly can't hurt most folks to give it a try and uninstall it again if it's not for you.

Ultimately, I uninstalled this app along with Calm, so I guess that's the bottom line of my review - not useful enough for me personally to incentivise keeping downloaded.

⭐⭐⭐

Insight Timer - Free Meditation App ⏲

Insight Network

'The most popular app in the world for Meditation, Sleep, Anxiety and Mindfulness'

A further app I'd seen recommended and gave a try.  I found it similar to both Calm and Headspace, but with a slightly better layout/user interface than either, for me - so a slightly higher rating.

There is a similar bunch of content available as with Headspace and Calm, but for me it was easier to navigate.  Content ranged from a simple timer for your own meditations to the usual sorts of guided meditations and 'coaching' in a range of stress relieving techniques.

I liked that there's a link for you to compare the free and premium content right there in the app when you open it up.  As with the previous two apps, though, I wasn't going to invest in it until I'd tried out the free version.

Ultimately this was another one which I uninstalled after a while, so once again, I guess not useful enough for me personally to keep it on my phone, but I feel I can recommend it - if someone were seeking opinions, I'd suggest that this be one of their first choices to try out, ahead of the above two.

⭐⭐⭐½

Let's Meditate: Sleep & Guided Meditation 🧘

Heal Me Team

'Powerful app for Guided Meditation'

A fairly simple app containing a selection of meditations of differing lengths and with different areas of focus.

It was free to download, and I seem to recall that it was usable offline which was a distinct advantage for me as it meant it was possible to use it during train travel.

If you're looking for something, again, fairly simple and easy to navigate without lots of extraneous features or difficult to fathom settings this may be the meditation app for you.

I personally tired of it after a little while, only because I was looking for something a bit more (but not in terms of complexity of the app - I very much liked the simplicity of this app, but the content just didn't really resonate with me).

⭐⭐⭐

Sleep Cycle: Sleep analysis & Smart alarm clock 💤

Sleep Cycle AB

'Want to sleep better? Let Sleep Cycle coach you.'

I read about this app and decided, as a long time insomnia sufferer, that it sounded well worth a try.

The app claims to use your movement overnight to track how well you're sleeping.  It also has a feature promising to wake you during a period of lighter sleep, enabling you to wake feeling more alert.

I can't really write a full review, unfortunately, as I felt I had to uninstall it after only a few nights.  This was because the instructions say to place your phone on the corner of your bed, plugged into a mains charger overnight.  It was the combination of having the phone physically there, and the fact it gets pretty warm charging overnight (and because we only have a standard sized double bed, my phone would be under my pillow, creating additional heat & fire risk) - I just couldn't relax enough to sleep.  So it obviously didn't help me.

Perhaps if you're lucky enough to have a super king bed with room to position your phone you might benefit from this app.

⭐⭐½

Water Reminder - Remind drink water 💧

recorder and smart apps

'Reminds you to drink water'

A good app if you're in need of this sort of a reminder, and it was free to download.  I had it installed for the first six weeks or so of the coronavirus lockdown of 2020, as the change in routine had disrupted my usual habits and I found that I needed the reminder, at least temporarily.

It asks you for a few details such as gender and weight to calculate how much water it thinks you should be drinking. And it's customisable in terms of your wake up and regular bedtimes, and the size of the glass/cup you're using for your water.

I didn't find the tips contained in the app helpful, but I'd downloaded it purely for the reminder so I just ignored them.

⭐⭐⭐

👎 The wooden spoon goes to: Self Care (ironically!)

Louis Hansel

Someone mentioned the app Self Care to me and I downloaded it, it appeared to be free so I thought worth a try.  But I couldn't even work out how to navigate around or get it to do anything so I almost immediately uninstalled it (of course I may have been missing something which might've become clear if I'd persevered, but frustration is most certainly not what I'm looking for in an app)

Bonus section: "brain training" 🧠 apps I've tried:-

Elevate Elevate Labs 'Sharpen mental skills with 35+ games'.

Lumosity: Brain Training Lumos Labs, Inc 'Lumosity is the world's most popular brain training program'. I've been using Lumosity for years & years, via the website before there were smart phones! www.lumosity.com

NeuroNation NeuroNation 'Brain Trainer + Memory Training & Brain Teasers to improve Focus, Logic, Memory'

The above brain training apps are all in a very similar vein - if you like one, you'll probably like the others.  The above will all have been free downloads (I'm a tightwad!)  I'm afraid I'm very inconsistent with them, so I can't really vouch for whether they actually work!

Photo: Grant

🎵 Finally, I just want to give a special mention (again, as it is mentioned above - the eagle eyed may have spotted it) to the MyNoise website.  It's just an awesome website.  There is an app by the same content creator, but I can't review it as I've not tried it - I've not needed to, the website is everything I need.  I really can't recommend it highly enough.              ☆☆☆☆☆

🗨️ Let me know in the comments if you've a favourite app (or apps) for spirituality &/or self care. 💬

Photo: Jr Korpa

Photo: Sarah Gualtieri

☯

All photos obtained from Unsplash: phone Fred Moon (with edits by PP); woodpecker Brian Kelly; tree Luke Richardson; wooden spoon Louis Hansel; harp Grant; rocks Jr Korpa; tea Sarah Gualtieri; 



Cookies/data
European Union laws require that EU visitors be given information about cookies used and data collected on this blog.  Google/Blogger have added a notice on this blog to explain Google's use of certain Blogger and Google cookies, including use of Google Analytics and AdSense cookies, and other data collected by Google.  If this notice does not display and you are in the EU, please will you notify me in the comments section.  Many thanks.