With everything that’s going on with the world these days, it is normal to feel anxious and uneasy. This may be unfamiliar and if you don’t know what to do, there are meditation apps that can be instrumental in managing your conditions and emotions.
Meditation apps are the best way to get into relaxation and yoga. But, if you are one who doesn’t have the resources to be in an actual class just yet, there are meditation apps that you can surely use at your disposal.
The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health confirms that meditation is beneficial in reducing stress, blood pressure and chronic pain. It also helps people who want to quit smoking, and improve their mental health.
If you’ve been anxious with what is going on with the world, meditation might be all you need. Prioritize your self-care and ensure that you incorporate daily mindfulness practice whenever you can. There is convenience in relaxing at your own pace, and you can do this today with just the use of a cell phone. No matter how busy you are, you can meditate at a schedule that works for you, and that’s what these apps are for.
Why should you use meditation apps
There are many benefits to using meditation apps. Carnegie Mellon University shared in Psychoneuroendocrinology that using these programs regularly intervenes with stress and anxiety, most especially for people who are always under pressure because of work, school, and other external factors.
A study also suggests that meditation apps can be instrumental in controlling cortisol levels which is a stress-related response of the body. So, how do these apps work?
What to expect from meditation apps
Meditation apps are useful in channelling various tools that would allow you to develop different kinds of meditation skills. There are also mood timers and trackers that could be advantageous in maximizing your meditation. In some instances, these applications have expert support so that you are certain a professional guides you on your journey.
So, what are the best meditation apps that you can download for your practice?
Meditation apps for you
Headspace
User rating: 4.9 (Apple)
Price: $12.99 monthly or $69.99 annually
First in our list of meditation apps is Headspace. This program features the basics of meditation and mindfulness, and it comes with a 10-day free trial if you are new to the practice. This may serve as a foundation course which holds ten sessions, and ten minutes with six infographic videos to easily illustrate concepts.
The library of content has full access to 365 meditations which are constantly updated to suit the needs of its users. You can simply stream or download the content on your mobile or computer. Be ready for mindfulness workouts, themed meditations and sleep stories to restore that relaxation and peace your body deserves.
What can you get from Headspace? You can expect some lively animations and interesting designs. The website is informative enough that it shares articles on emotion management, sleep improvement and mood enhancement. The application highlights mental focus to calm the nerves and harmonize your mind with the surroundings.
Calm
User rating: 4.8
Price: $12.99 monthly or $59.99 annually
Calm is a mindfulness app that is suitable for both newcomers and meditation pros. This is the best way for users to look for their inner peace and navigate the stressors in your life. This award-winning program is compatible for desktop, Android, and iOS. It has over 100 million downloads, 700,000 of which are 5-star reviews from users.
This application comes with a simple interface that is friendly to all kinds of users. It includes a wide array of calming exercises, breathing techniques, and sleep stories. Celebrities such as Idris Elba and Matthew McConaughey.
How can Calm help you even more? You’ll have to start taking great deep breaths. Once you are done, a pop-up menu will show and that’s when you have to select the feature that best represents your goal. There are different categories you can pick from like Anxiety, Focus, Relationships, and Stress. Enjoy both the guided and unguided meditations that can go about three to 30 minutes.
Buddhify
User rating: 4.8
Price: $30 annually
Buddhify pioneers in urban meditation which offers 80 daily guided meditation for the benefit of your well-being. An expert in urban meditation created this app and it is available for Android and iOS users. The content is simple to understand and navigate. It is also affordable too.
Since mindfulness experts are responsible for creating the course of this program, you can be sure that you are learning from the best. The packages available are easily customizable as well. So, if you are not confident with your schedule, that’s okay. This app can adapt to your lifestyle.
This meditation app will free you from all the excuses you might have in the future for it ranges from two minutes to half an hour, depending upon your availability. Of course, it’s ideal that you squeeze in some routines as consistently as you can.
Aura
User rating: 4.7 (Apple)
Price: $7.92 monthly, $30 annually
If you are looking for peace, Aura is an award winning-program that may be the key to transforming your well-being and sleeping habits. This is a personalized, and all-in-one mental application that The New York Times, The Oprah Magazine, Women’s & Men’s Health and Forbes have featured.
There are times when getting into the idea of meditation takes a long adjustment. Don’t worry. Aura is free if you only have one to three minutes a day for this activity, and then you can give this a try. You can get into at least 200 meditations depending upon how you’re feeling for the day.
According to the co-founder of Aura Health, Daniel Lee, their goal is to customize their machine learning to the situation and needs of their users. In fact, this is beginner friendly, and the sessions are not dragging, but still effective. You can expect a gratitude journal towards the end of every meditation so you can provide feedback to the developers of the program for further improvement.
Sattva
User rating: 4
Price: $399.99 lifetime membership
Sattva stays true to the ancient roots of meditation – with the Vedic principles this time. Millions of people have been drawn to it for thousands of years now, and Sanskrit scholars have delivered them constantly and mastered the inner ways the mind works.
This popular meditation app is easy to navigate and understand. It introduces the basics of the Vedic principles, and provides mantras and chants that could help you relax daily. You won’t have to worry about your pace with this program. Even if you’re new, your body will not be surprised with the activity for you can embark on this journey six minutes at a time, per day.
As for seasoned meditators, they won’t get bored with the application because there are 100 plus guided meditations, music tracks and sacred sounds that they can practice. They can challenge themselves and achieve milestone trophies that would help you track your progress and inspire you to keep on going.
Ten Percent Happier
User rating: 4.8
Price: $99 annually
Ten Percent Happier is an app like no other. If you want to check what it has to offer, you can begin with the free version that usually includes basic skills and daily reminders to keep you disciplined in your regular meditation.
Once you register as a member, you’ll have full access to a wider range of meditative skills that can help you advance. You may also be entitled for a personal coaching to customize the service that you’ll get with the membership. The aim of this meditation app is to lower your stress, improve your focus, and pump up your serotonin.
This application doesn’t intend to provide therapy techniques for people who are going through mental health issues. Scheduling a one-on-one appointment with a licensed provider is still the best option to address the concern. What Ten Percent Happier does best is promote the benefits of meditation.
Breethe
User rating: 4.7
Price: $12.95 monthly, and $149.99 annually
Breethe offers a 14-day free trial to give you a glimpse of what it’s going to be like when you subscribe to this meditation app. According to reviews, people call Breethe “the friendliest wellness app” because you can customize the programs for your personal goals.
The app can help you sleep and relax better with its music, nature sounds, hypnotherapy, meditations, and masterclasses offering. It also veers away from giving more to-do lists. Instead, the app provides content to help you tune out and wind down to feel lighter and happier. You can easily organize your day with the app’s “Start Your Day,” “Take a Break,” and “Go to Sleep” sections. You can even create your own personalized toolkit through “My Life Kit” that intuitively gets to know you with your specific needs.
Breethe’s masterclasses contain talks from qualified professionals and bestselling authors, even kids and young adults can enjoy. You can use this app on your mobile phone or computer, and sync your progress across all your gadgets. You can have an effective and supportive experience with its relatable meditations to get you through the day.
InsightTimer
User Rating: 4.9 (Apple)
Price: Free (plus in-app purchases)
InsightTimer is an award-winning app with millions of meditators (and growing!) and thousands of teachers from all over the world. It’s the number 1 free meditation app with an ever-increasing library of guided meditations led by mindfulness experts. Psychologists, neuroscientists, and teachers from Ivy League schools like Stanford and Harvard provide talks on calming the mind and managing stress, for example.
This meditation app has a 30-day free trial but has an optional in-app subscription for $59.99 (annually) or $9.99 (monthly). That subscription unlocks thousands more Insight Courses plus other premium features.
Even without the paid subscription, you can practice different meditation types such as zen, advaita vedanta, kundalini yoga, MBSR, Buddhist mindfulness, etc. There are music tracks from world-renowned artists you can use either as ambient sounds or to help you focus and relax. You can also join discussion and community groups for beginners, poetry, Hinduism, Christianity, and others.
Unplug
User Rating: 4.9
Price: $12.99 monthly, and $69.99 annually
The creators of Unplug started opening the doors of the world’s first drop-in meditation studio in Los Angeles in 2014. From here developed the idea of creating this meditation app to help people overcome life’s battles and not just sit around all day. You can expect meditation guides and techniques filmed from the LA studio itself.
Unplug boasts of its diverse meditation instructors including stress managers, nutritionists, sleep scientists, aromatherapists, somologists, and mindfulness coaches. These are award-winning practitioners who have in-depth knowledge and understanding of the marvelously complex science of both body and mind. However, Unplug also emphasizes that they are real people in the real world. Hence, you can easily relate to them as mothers, fathers, business owners, and employees, among others.
If you want a meditation app with short, consumable tips and content (from podcasts to meditation guides), you can try this one. You can even build a meditation practice and join the 30-day challenge to help you feel good everyday.
The Mindfulness App
If you are looking for a healthier state of mind, The Mindfulness app may just be what you need. It has 250+ guided meditations from experts all over the world and you can decide the amount of time you spend in the app. You can learn about spiritual practices and lessons from the likes of Eckhart Tolle, Tara Brach, Catherine Orzech, and Jon Kabat-Zinn.
This meditation app has a 7-day free trial. You can test if this is the right companion for you to have more restful sleep and less stress. You will see your personalized user statistics, reminders to help you meditate, and tracked minutes which you can sync with Apple’s Health app.
It’s easy to follow, straightforward, and does not require you to share on social media unlike other apps. You can also save your favorite teachers and follow mindfulness lessons from them. With the premium subscription, you will have unlimited access to all the courses in various topics on meditation. Plus, you can save the sessions offline if you want to go back to them later.
The Benefits of Meditation
The ever increasing stress you feel in today’s world can easily wear you down if you are not careful. You need something – anything – that can help you relax and tune these noises out. You can select from these various meditation apps and find which one works for you.
Overall, these applications are only used to supplement your journey to better health. Hence, they are not the only and final answer to any underlying health problems you may have.
Nevertheless, you should gain from these apps as a result of actually doing the discipline of meditation. Here is a list of benefits you can experience with these applications:
- Increase self-awareness
- Promote emotional health and flexibility
- Enhance will-power and self-esteem
- Focus on the present
- Gain new perspective on stressful situations
- Build skills to manage stress
- Sharpen focus, concentration and attention span
- Increase patience, tolerance, and perseverance
- Elevate imagination and creativity
- Help fight addictions
- Reduce, control, and manage anxiety, depression and negative emotions
- Lower blood pressure
- Reduce age-related memory loss
- Control pain
- Improve sleep
- Generate kindness and compassion
Meditation to keep you in tip top shape!
Meditation, though it has been here for quite a while, hasn’t received a lot of attention in the past as it is now. Even celebrities and high profile names try meditation apps to help keep them mentally in shape.
You can start and end your day in meditation, even do a few minutes in between, whenever you need to calm down and relax. Find the meditation apps that match your personal needs so you can practice mindfulness techniques.
In another article, you can find mindfulness exercises that you may also do along with lessons you can learn from meditation apps. Cognitive Health and Wellness Institute is not only about better food but also a body in motion, with the best diagnostics and continued community support that will lead to a healthy life. Hence, these meditation apps should aid in the improvement of your overall health, quality of life, and cognitive function.
References:
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/best-meditation-apps
https://www.menshealth.com/health/g32127813/best-meditation-apps/
https://www.self.com/story/best-meditation-apps
https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-meditation-apps/
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/best-meditation-apps#list-of-apps
https://www.verywellmind.com/best-meditation-apps-4767322