5 stress busting apps

Sometimes life might leave you feeling a little worried, stressed or anxious. The good news is there are loads of apps out there to help manage your stress levels and ensure you keep your head above water.

Wunderlist

Often it's easy to forget about everything else going on around you. But rocking up to an important day late because you got too caught up in your own thoughts might not fare so well.

Wunderlist is the easiest way to make sure you don't forget the important stuff. Set handy reminders for everything from assignment due dates to meal times, add notes to make sure your ideas are captured and keep track of your days with to-do lists. Best of all, you get the satisfaction of ticking things off as they go.

Smiling Mind

Did you know spending just 10 minutes a day to practice mindfulness can work wonders in reducing feelings of anxiety and stress?

With a range of guided 10-minute programs, Aussie-made app Smiling Mind, can help you do just that. You'll learn techniques such as 'body scan' and 'exploring the breath' that can be used to clear your mind and get you back on track, anytime you need.

Daily Yoga

While you may find it hard to motivate yourself to exercise after a long day, getting up and stretching it out can actually be time well spent.

Yoga is a total mind-body workout that not only helps get the blood pumping, but also relieves stress, boosts your ability to focus, and increases those 'feel good' neurotransmitters which make us feel happy.

Daily Yoga includes a wide variety of guided classes and workout plans equipped with video and vocal instructions for beginner to advanced yogis.

StayFocusd

Finding yourself aimlessly scrolling through Facebook, then Instagram, then Facebook again? While catching up on your social feed is important, procrastination is unfortunately no friend to study.

StayFocusd is a great way to, well, stay focused. By allowing you to set a list of block sites, StayFocusd restricts the time you can spend on time-wasting websites and keep procrastination-induced stress at bay.

Sleep Cycle

Getting the recommended hours of sleep per night is easier said than done for the most of us, with the difficult balance of work, family and social life. While this app won't magically produce a quality eight-hour sleep, it will at least make waking up that little bit easier.

By tracking your sleep patterns, the Sleep Cycle alarm clock wakes you up during your lightest sleep phase, ensuring you wake up feeling rested and ready for another day of study. Just pop your smartphone under your pillow and get some sleep!

Words by Katelyn Yeo

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If you feel like stress is taking over, then it's really important to get some help.

If you need urgent support, call Lifeline on 131 114 or the ACT Mental Health Crisis and Assessment Team on 1800 629 354.