New iPhone App to Help Manage Anxiety
25 October 2012 at 8:47 am
| SANE Australia says its new app will help people manage their anxiety. |
The national mental health charity, SANE Australia, has launched an app to help people to manage their anxiety.
SANE says the Talking Anxiety app aims to give people knowledge and confidence to manage the day-to-day challenges of living with an anxiety disorder, by providing access to the experiences of others.
“What makes the Talking Anxiety app pioneering is the storytelling. Users of the app gain understanding and support from the first-hand accounts of others who’ve ‘been there’ and share the techniques they’ve discovered to manage their symptoms,” SANE Australia CEO Jack Heath said.
Developed in partnership with RealTime Health, Talking Anxiety uses video, quizzes to test progress, and Daily Tips sent direct to your iPhone or iPad.
“People can carry the wisdom, knowledge and understanding of their peers in their pocket,” Real Time Health Managing Director Tina Campbell said.
"We also know that up to four in five Australians now turn to the web for health information, so we need to use online and mobile technologies so people can get support when and how they want to," Heath said.
The app has four modules, ‘Understanding anxiety’, ‘What helps’, ‘How to help yourself’ and ‘How family and friends can help’.
Users have described it as ‘innovative, informative and insightful’, and say ‘it’s great that it breaks things down simply and succinctly’.
The app it the latest addition to a suite of tools on anxiety disorders developed by SANE Australia including the SANE Guide to Anxiety Disorders, an eBook version of the Guide, a brochure with key information, and a DVD Kit.
"It's important people understand that the App provides information and support. It doesn’t provide specific advice, including diagnosis, which is usually made by a GP," Heath said.
Talking Anxiety is available from the iTunes AppStore for $2.99
Anxiety disorders are the most common type of mental illness, affecting more than two million adult Australians every year.
