So, if you’ve read my post here explaining a little (okay, a lot) on what’s been happening with me recently, you’ll know I’ve not had the best of times in the past few months.
However, things are getting better every day and although I’ve been trying to limit screen time, there are a few apps that have helped on the way. Of course, I’m not for a minute saying these will cure you of feeling anxious, but they are little things I find can give you a boost.
1 | H E A D S P A C E
Perfect for meditation first timers, Headspace is free to download, but you will need to pay for a subscription if you want to keep using. It is a really good way to introduce yourself to the world of meditation, mindfulness and giving yourself, well, a bit of head space.
2 | I N S I G H T T I M E R
Meditation is something I had never tried before and, as much as Headspace helped me during the early days, I was still struggling to sleep at night and feel rested. Insight Timer is amazing and is completely free with thousands of meditation recordings, from deep relaxation to have you in an undisturbed sleep to meditations to have you feeling motivated for the day ahead. Simply plug your headphones in and relax…
3 | 1 S E C O N D E V E R Y D A Y (1 S E)
It was actually Yasmin from The Girl with the Big Hair who told me about 1SE last year and I’ve been using it since the start of the year. It’s basically an app where you record one second every day, combining it into full video to look back on. I kind of lost the motivation to do the clips when I was first off work, but it’s actually become part of my routine – it really makes me see all the lovely yet simple things that happen each day that you might overlook. Admittedly about 90% of my clips are of my boyfriend’s dog!
4 | H O R M O N O L O G Y
I saw Roz from Sweet Rosie Jewellery tweet about Hormonology when I was feeling extra emosh (thanks so much, hormones) that I had to check it out. It’s actually helped me understand my cycle a lot more and gives me a bit of hope that actually sometimes your mood isn’t to do with grief and anxiety – it’s to do with being a woman at certain times of the month. It basically gives you a heads up on when you’re best doing certain things and when you might be feeling particularly rubbish. It also gives you a few lols with some of the predictions!
5 | M Y F I T N E S S P A L
When Leanne Conroy started me on My Fitness Pal for the Female Fitness Programme, I was a wee bit terrified. Tracking my food seemed so precise and scary, but I actually love it now! This free app allows you to set your calories and macro nutrition goals so it helps make sure you’re getting the right about of calories and protein each day and you can compare it day to day. It may seem odd to include this, but it truly gave me control over an aspect of my life when everything felt a bit scary and it makes me feel like I’m achieving something when I hit my goals.