anxietyhelper Reviews

Amazing app

marvincatiscool

Great app! Clean, simple, and easy design. Although meditation should be added as a section! Meditation can help with so many different issues and help people better their problems. I love this app and use it all the time! Very, very helpful!

A therapist’s review

46hg4

I downloaded this app after reading about it on healthline; I wanted to see if it would be helpful for some of my clients who suffer from anxiety and depression. I love the “panic alert” component—brilliant! If you’re having a panic attack you simply access the panic alert and hand the phone to whomever you’re with and it talks them through helping you. It is a simple design and very well done. I have already shared it with several people and will continue to do so. I did not have any issues with swiping back and forth that has been mentioned by previous reviewers. Also, I thought the breathing app was well timed. It may seem that the pause is too long when you’re having a panic attack but working your way back to that breathing pace is ideal. Great job!

Love the app! One small thing

Junipir

In all honesty this is a beautiful app that has helped me through some really difficult times in more ways than I can count. I’m really grateful that it exists. I hope more people can find it and use it to help them, too. I did want to share with the developer(s) that some text input boxes get covered by the keyboard. If there is a way to implement a scroll so that doesn’t happen, or to simply move the text boxes up higher on the screen just a little, that would help immensely. Thank you for building this app.

Great App for Support

greenplantz

AnxietyHelper receives a 5/5. Its user-friendly and peaceful aura makes it an app that is functional, gentle and helpful to use. The app provides many resources for those struggling with mental health issues and even provides a tool to use during a panic attack. The plethora of resources is extremely helpful to those who may not have access to such resources. Not only does the app provide tools to cope and information on certain diagnoses, but it also provides service providers based on your location. This being the nearest police department, emergency room, or even chapel. Furthermore, the app’s tools utilize various techniques of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), as illustrated by allowing the user to write out and process their current state and emotion. Therefore, certain tools prompt self-reflection which may allow the person to relax and reframe the way they are perceiving and reacting to things. The one weakness of this app is some spelling errors and the minor unprofessional language throughout the tools. However, as this app is marketed as 12+, it seems appropriate for the population it is targeting. Learning about the background of the app developer really affirmed this rating. Amanda created something that she needed when she was struggling, and now she has given that to everyone today through her app, for free. Furthermore, the ability to utilize this app solo may be beneficial to adolescent girls. According to Laser and Nicotera (2010), adolescent females need higher levels and opportunity to beindependent for development of behavioral regulation. In addition, the app allows users to write out and question what may have triggered the emotional response. When adolescents can name and understand their emotions, they are able to control these emotions which can reduce impulsivity to act immediately on their emotions (Laser & Nicotera, 2010). Therefore, the app’s tools which allow someone to self-regulate and cope with their emotions may strengthen resilience and self-regulation in it’s users, specifically for adolescents. In addition, this app may provide users with the sense of connection with others, perhaps feel not alone in their struggles. Once you open the app, “here to help”, gently appears and fades. Social connectedness is an important aspect to adolescent development, and rather than this app fueling exclusion or victimizations (Barry, Sidoti, Briggs, Reiter & Lindsey, 2017), perhaps this app is a remedy to other apps or social media outlets that so many teens utilize daily. This app provides easy access to feeling supported and connected to others, ultimately feeling that they are not alone. This may be a deterrent to self-harm or worsening of mental illness symptoms.

Very helpful - lots of bugs

itsokaytoaskforhelp

Hi there, I am a mental health professional and I sought out this app to see if it could be a good resource for clients. I can really see a lot of potential in this app. I love the way it gives hands on tools right now if someone needs help with a panic attack or other forms of severe anxiety. I also love that this app gives people the opportunity to research things about mental health on their own. One of my complaints is about how well the app is updated. When I began to look through the educational information the app took me to several webpages that said “page not found”. I wonder if it would be simpler to write the information in the app and cite the website you got it from instead of having to update this often. Another issue I saw is that the app crashes at random moments. I was playing the bubble burst game and the app crashed after. I also answered a text message and the app crashed. Additionally, I wish there was an option to go back during the guided resources. It seemed like once you chose to engage in whatever exercise you could only end it by closing the app. I imagine it would be more helpful to give an exit option just in case that particular thing was not helpful. Otherwise you simply have to wait it out for the app to move on to something else. Finally I wish there were more resources for depression. The ones I saw were focused on anger or expressing emotion and I wish there were more resources for those feeling drained and hopeless. If I were using this app as a resource for my mental health I imagine the things above would be frustrating and not as supportive as it could be. Overall I LOVE the concept of this app and believe it could be incredibly helpful with a few small updates. I would still recommend it to clients even with the current issues. Thank you for developing this app.

bruh thanks

ur pal vageege

I wake up w panic attacks every day and have a very annoying anxiety disorder . This app isn’t a substitute for therapists or friends or medication , and it even claims it isn’t that , but it can feel a bit like being thrown a raft when you’re drowning . It can help steer your mind from careening to back under your own control . It could be that little change u need to start snapping u out of the attack . It gives u a change of gears and it’s Free . Thanks , dev , I love u Two concrits : the swipe back gesture doesn’t work when you’re in the middle of some exercises - a button may be better and wouldn’t clog the minimalist UI . And also , the pause after the “exhale” in guided breathing is like a second too long - the next inhale should start like immediately and it’s easy to fall outta sync Anyway thank u for this app , I owe u my life

important suggestions

WEKIV

amanda you’ve done an excellent job with this. reading the reviews. such a blsessing and helpful to many people in need. i trust you will stay with this development. a few imporatnt suggestions imho: guided breathing: CIRCLES instead of squares as default. (with an option to change to other shapes maybe- simplicity is good tho) also DARKER COLORS : A calming green background instead of the glaring white would be much more relaxing. I too noticed what another reviewer commented on which is THE PAUSE IS A TAD TOO LONG AT FIRST. When someone is panicked , its going to take them at least a few breaths before they can reach that slowed level of breathing. Try to implement a PROGRESSIVE SLOWING to the breathing. I have a few other suggestions. let me know if I can help. this is great work you’re doing. THANK YOU.

Every Day Help

Gigas2

There are so many helpful resources on this app - as you can keep tapping each new topic you find there is another gold nugget waiting there. I wouldn’t say I am majorly anxious but have plenty of stress so the tips and resources are very much appreciated. There are many ways I can help myself but there are additional resources in case I need more. It is always affirming to know that I am not the only one loosing it from time to time and that there are ways to help me get back to even balance.

I’m posting this for extra credit

fmleonard21

Based on my assessment, I would rate this app a 3.5. I think that the app is accessible, inclusive, applicable to a wide age range, and thorough. It features a simple, aesthetically pleasing design, is easy to use, and best of all, its free! The reasons for my deductions were both technical, and content-related. The technical issue is that the way to exit out, or return to the last window, is to swipe left. However, when you have clicked into some functions of the app, such as guided meditation or deep breathing, you are unable to swipe out. The only way to get out of that window is to close the app completely or wait for the function to complete. I find it ironic that during a guided meditation for the purposes of reducing anxiety, one is at risk of becoming incensed by the inability to swipe out of the meditation. Another technical issue I found with the app is that it is very clearly written by an adolescent. This may be beneficial for users on the younger end of the spectrum, because the language is familiar, but as an older adolescent I found myself incredibly distracted by grammar errors and poor sentence structure. I feel like it took away from the legitimacy of the app. In terms of content, I was impressed with the abundance of information, tools, and resources that this app offers for a variety of mental disorders. However, I did notice some issues. I was experimenting with the “panic attack guidance” tool, part of which involved me writing a story. The app offers prompts to guide your writing, but upon clicking this option I was given the following: “You’re watching a Netflix series about murderers who have been on the run for years, but when you get to the third episode you discover that it’s about your parents”. I understand that this is a distraction tool, but if someone is at risk of having a panic attack, a prompt involving the possibility of their parents being runaway murderers does not seem like the most calming distraction. According to a study analyzing characteristics of fearful spells and panic attacks in adolescents, the majority of participants named “frightening thought” as the trigger for their panic attack, thus supporting my concerns (Asselmann, Pane-Farre, Isensee, Wittchen, Lieb, Hofler, & Beesdo-Baum, 2014). My biggest issue with the content of the app was that none of the tools, resources, or information is necessarily reliable or effective. In the disclaimer, it explicitly states that “the creator is not a medical professional in any way…the advice included in this app is from experience mixed with research”. The sprinkle of research is encouraging, but besides the resource links there is no reference to such research. For me, that is a red flag. While I know that this app may not necessarily helpful, I at least want evidence that it wouldn’t be harmful. The app creator’s motivation was providing a resource that teens could access in a matter of fifteen minutes instead of combing the internet for information, yet the content of the app consists of many things pulled from the internet. How do we know that they pulled the right things? Despite my concerns regarding effectiveness, I believe that this app is appropriate due to the fact that it may offer adolescents resources or support that they would not otherwise access. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, only 41% of depressed adolescents in 2016 received treatment for reasons such as fear of stigma, cultural norms, racial disparities, socioeconomic inequality, and geographic barriers (“Center for Behavioral Health Statistics”, n.d.). With all of these barriers, and the fact that adolescents are glued to their phones anyways, there’s something to be said for managing mental health from their phone. Another reason for its appropriateness is the fact that it includes self-regulation strategies such as guided venting and guided breathing. According to Steinberg, self-regulation skills could be the key to closing the gap between advantaged and disadvantaged adolescents, so these interventions are incredibly relevant to all of the adolescent population, not just those experiencing mental illness (Steinberg, 2014). Steinberg also writes that the adolescent brain is more sensitive to stress, therefore the concept of an anxiety app for teens is ideal. In theory, since adolescence is a period of brain plasticity in which existing connections are being reorganized, the practice of self-regulation through the AnxietyHelper app could assist in beneficial reorganization of the brain (Steinberg, 2014).

Well-thought app for mental health

jordan.wright.1328.17

I appreciate this kind of app aimed at teens as well as anyone seeking to improve their mental health. The vast amount of resources, tools, and links provided are very helpful for those that might not know who to look up a certain resource or location to a facility to get help. The visuals are also nice. There are few broken links though: Anxiety —>resources—>dissociation—>nothing Anxiety—>resources—>OCD—>intrusive thoughts—>404 not found error Anxiety—>resources—>PTSD—>treatment metaphor—>404 not found error Area under eating disorder is completely left blank

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