The brain is such a powerful tool and one that we need to use every day! University students consistently have to juggle competing responsibilities and deadlines, so it’s important to keep your brain in a positive and productive headspace. These apps can help you do just that! From monitoring your sleeping patterns so you get a good night’s rest to helping you identify the factors that most effect your happiness, we’ve found the best 10 apps that will keep you feeling positive and productive so you can effectively tackle your daily routines. While these apps can help you manage your mental health independently, technology should never replace the advice of an expert. If you think it might be time to talk to a healthcare professional, have a conversation with your GP or contact the team at USQ Student Services to set up a free, confidential appointment with one of USQ’s counsellors.

1. Mind over matter
10 apps to keep you in a positive headspace
U N I V E R S I T Y O F S O U T H E R N Q U E E N S L A N D

2. The brain is such a powerful and
important tool, especially for students
who have to juggle competing
responsibilities and deadlines.
You need to be on the ball and in the right headspace to
knuckle down and focus on your study, but student life can
be stressful and some semesters will be harder than others.
Wouldn’t it be great to have tools to improve your mood
and attitude in your very own pocket?

3. The brain is such a powerful and
important tool, especially for students
who have to juggle competing
responsibilities and deadlines.
You need to be on the ball and in the right headspace to
knuckle down and focus on your study, but student life can
be stressful and some semesters will be harder than others.
Wouldn’t it be great to have tools to improve your mood
and attitude in your very own pocket?
We think so too, which is why we’ve found 10 awesome
apps to help you improve and monitor your wellbeing with
the touch of a button! You don’t need to be experiencing
a mental health condition to make use of these genius little
apps, they’re the perfect tools to help anyone interested
in maintaining a healthy, positive headspace… and who
wouldn’t want that?

4. iOS APP
STORE
GOOGLE
PLAY
FREE
01
Worried about a friend but not sure
how to start a conversation about
mental health?
This free app steps you through the process,
from planning when and where you’ll open
the conversation, to how to get things started,
and the best ways to voice your concerns.
You can even review your conversation
afterwards and figure out what to do next!
This app is packed with tips and tricks to help
you approach the subject of mental health
in a way that’s neutral and comfortable for
everyone involved.
THECHECKIN youthbeyondblue

5. iOS APP
STORE
GOOGLE
PLAY
FREE
02
smilingmind
Find a sense of calm, clarity and
contentment with this free app,
which is all about mastering the art
of mindfulness.
The trick to mindfulness is practice, practice,
practice and with this app, you can track your
progress and keep a record of each session
you complete. Fun, interactive and easy to
follow, this impressive app guides you through
a series of activities and techniques and allows
you to progress through the exercises at your
own pace. A favourite amongst mental health
professionals, this app is a must-have stress-
buster for every student.

6. Use these apps to help
you stay in a positive,
productive headspace.

7. iOS APP
STORE
$7.99
03
This app is great for anyone who’s
currently using professional advice
to manage their mental health and
wants a tool to help them monitor
their mood and thought patterns
at home.
It might seem a little hard to navigate at first,
but this is a feature-rich app that can suggest
mood improvement strategies and offer
guidance to modify distressing thoughts. One
of the best features of this app is the ability to
track your moods, feelings and thoughts over
time to see your progress. You can even show
your Moodkit chart to your health professional
at your next appointment.
MOODKIT

8. iOS APP
STORE
$1.99
04
Worrywatch
How much time do you spend
worrying about something that
either doesn’t happen, or doesn’t
turn out as bad as you thought?
Often just writing down your concerns can help
them feel less overwhelming, but this app also
helps you track the thought process behind
the things that you worry about. By adding
your worries into a logbook, noting what you
think might happen and then how the situation
actually turned out, this app helps you to monitor
trends and patterns in your thinking. In addition
to helping you visualise your thought patterns,
the process of writing down your expectations
and the actual outcome of situations helps
to demonstrate that often, our worries are
unnecessary and irrational.

9. iOS APP
STORE
$1.49
05
This app is designed to help
women and girls improve their self-
confidence and develop a positive
body image.
Packed with quotes, videos, tools and articles,
this app gives you a pocket-sized confidence
boost wherever and whenever you need it.
You can even stamp a photo of yourself or a
friend with a positive quote and then share it
on social media to spread the love. If you’re
spending a little too much time counting
calories or feeling helpless in the onslaught of
the beauty industry, this app is a great way
to remember the true value of beauty and to
love the skin you’re in.
bodybeautiful byhealjourney

10. Use these apps to help
you stay in a positive,
productive headspace.

11. iOS APP
STORE
GOOGLE
PLAY
FREE
06
This product is part mental health
app, part super-fun game, and is
all about building your resilience,
one of the most powerful tools for
strengthening your mental health!
Resilience helps you to stay strong, motivated
and positive, even when faced with challenging
situations. SuperBetter shows you how to take
on real-life challenges, boost your mood and
general health, recognise people in your life
who might be bringing you down, find and
connect with a support system, and access
expert-approved advice. This app is not only
powerful and effective for boosting your
mental health but is also a heap of fun.
superbetter

12. iOS APP
STORE
FREE
07
This app is all about helping you to
become mindful of the things that
influence your happiness the most.
With over 50 different aspects of life to
choose from, the app provides you with a
sliding scale to rate how you’re doing in each.
You can also enter personalised notes about
things you’ve done that make you feel happy.
Over time, you can track your responses to
find out what aspects of your life influence
your happiness the most and identify areas
that might be bringing you down or causing
negative emotions.
urwell

13. iOS APP
STORE
$4.49
GOOGLE
PLAY
$3.03
08
Sleep is SO important in every aspect
of our health and nothing is more
frustrating than not being able to
fall into a deep, restful sleep.
This app provides guided meditation
specifically designed to help you relax, switch
off and fall into a deep, undisturbed sleep.
You can choose the length of your meditation
sessions and even set yourself an alarm so you
can bounce out of bed on time, bright-eyed
and bushy-tailed, ready to take on the day.
deepsleep withandrewjohnson

14. Use these apps to help
you stay in a positive,
productive headspace.

15. iOS APP
STORE
$4.49
09
Cognitive Behaviour Therapy or
CBT is one of the most widely
recognised and accredited
treatment methods for mental
health conditions, including
depression and anxiety.
CBT is all about learning to re-train your
brain toward more positive and helpful
thought patterns and break down negative
or distorted thoughts. This intuitive, practical
app puts the power of CBT in your pocket.
By working through the various stages of the
app, you’ll eventually develop a new, more
positive thought perspective on what was
originally a distressing situation. This is a great
tool to help you logically assess your thought
patterns and identify things that might be
worrying you unnecessarily.
icouchcbt

16. iOS APP
STORE
GOOGLE
PLAY
FREE
10
This app helps users understand
and manage the symptoms of post-
traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
While it was originally designed for veterans
and serving Defence Force personnel, this
app can help anyone who thinks they may be
suffering from PTSD or have been diagnosed
with PTSD in the past. The app allows you
to tell it when you’re feeling distressed,
why you’re feeling that way and on what
scale you’re experiencing distress. It will
then respond with an appropriate coping
mechanism, or in cases of extreme distress,
provide you with the contact details of a crisis
hotline. Genius!
ptsdcoach

17. So there you have it,
10 brilliant resources that help keep
your thoughts and feelings healthy.
It’s important to remember that when it comes to mental health and
your general wellbeing, the best resource for advice and support
is a qualified healthcare professional, and while we suggest using
the apps listed here to help you manage your health independently,
technology should never replace the advice of an expert.
If you think it might be time to talk to a healthcare professional,
why not have a conversation with your GP or contact the team at
USQ Student Services to set up a free, confidential appointment
with one of USQ’s counsellors.
CRICOS: QLD00244B NSW02225M TEQSA: PRV12081 5.1.R 01.2017 Graphics © Shutterstock
social.usq.edu.au