In a world where all of our devices are in a struggle for our attention, with increased connectivity keeping us closer to our stresses such as work and relationships, it’s easy to see why technology is an active inhibitor of our mental health, rather than a boost.
After all, social media sites have been under investigation by governments for their role in seriously impacting the mental health of younger people, particularly girls who may grow up to have issues with their image and confidence due to the constant presence of perfectionism on their timelines.
While this is all true, it’s only one side of the story: like almost anything in life, there are forces for good and forces for evil, and technology can be utilized in an endless number of ways, including those that can help us re-establish control over our mental wellbeing.
Read on to find out more about the flipside to mental health and tech; that is, how it is being used to help mental health.
Artificial Intelligence
If you look into essentially any issue, you will find that artificial intelligence (AI) is touted as a potential solution. For many of us, AI has become a buzzword for technologies of the future that never seem to arrive, but particularly in the fields of algorithms and analysis, AI is coming into its own.
For examples, therapists and medical professionals can use AI to obtain relevant case data efficiently and effectively, helping to make mental health appointments quicker to arrange and produce more fruitful gains.
As well as this, mental health clinics have been using AI as a way to quality control and generally improve services such as CBT, as machine learning tools can evaluate therapist/patient conversations and make suggestions for improvement.
Planning and Scheduling
While our technology continues to improve in performance and compactness all the time, there is one area in which mobile devices have continued to excel, and that’s planning and scheduling. While it may seem like a moot point to bring up planning and scheduling when talking about mental health, it’s actually a proven way of re-establishing control over your day-to-day life.
Unlike a Lenovo Intel Arc graphics card for AI analysis, or a Headspace subscription, there isn’t any cost either, meaning you can arrange your upcoming assignments and challenges for free, and help to clear your head of the burden of remembering everything you’ve got to do.
Mindfulness Apps
As previously mentioned, social media apps have a huge potential for causing harm to users, which is why it’s great to see such an established platform of mindfulness meditation apps available on the market.
For those who find themselves overly stressed, or not able to switch off after high-intensity situations such as work or socializing, mindfulness apps provide a wholesome and effective way of calming down, bringing yourself back into the present moment, and learning how to be grateful and appreciative.
These apps are by no means one dimensional, with anything from guided meditations to helpful tips and positive affirmations available to suit the needs of all users.