Drowning in stress? You're not alone – and this app could be your lifeline

I wonder if you would describe yourself as stressed.

Money is tight, and the bills are piling up. Family members are ill. The boiler has failed again, and the temperature is dropping fast. The children argue like it’s an Olympic sport. These are common problems that affect all of us, and oftentimes they can leave us stressed and anxious. It’s not just me, is it?

All of this stress can leave us seriously unbalanced. Joy, happiness, and peace become distant friends. Getting out of bed proves difficult as challenges appear insurmountable. In short, our mental health suffers, and finding a path forward feels impossible.

If that sounds like your experience of life, let me introduce you to an app that has begun to help me. It’s called Balance, and though it’s been around for a few years, I’ve only discovered it recently. I was impressed to learn that it’s backed by incredible results (at least according to the company that makes the app): 95% of committed Balance users report less stress, and well over half a million people have downloaded the app globally.

Balance is a meditation app that delivers a personalized program designed to help relieve stress and improve sleep, focus, and mood. It does this by providing an audio library of meditations that are curated based on how you answer the app’s daily questions. As a result, the meditations become more effective over time.

Breath focus for reduced stress

The first few meditations, labeled 'Foundations', center around breath focus, which is the art of, you guessed it, focusing on your breathing. The idea is to be present with your breathing, taking note of how your breath is moving in and out of your body. These guided breathing exercises are a gentle lead-in that orients you to the wider practice of meditation. This low-intensity approach is ideal for first-time users who have never meditated before.

All of the breathing meditations are easy to follow and incredibly beginner-friendly. I loved how the ‘guide’ explains that it’s totally normal for your mind to wander. She even said, “That’s what minds do.” I love that, and it made me feel understood and welcome.

From these initial experiences, I then moved on to specific meditations, called Singles, which quickly became my companion during different parts of my day, including eating, walking, stretching, and more. Having Balance with me helped me to remain grounded rather than catastrophising events in my life and becoming overwhelmed.

Two of my favorite types of meditations were the ones I used last thing at night and the moment I woke up. These helped to bookend my days and help me rest deeply and wake up refreshed. If you share a bed with someone, then it might feel a bit odd going through these, but you can always wear earbuds or share the meditation experience with them.

Incredibly effective immersive meditations

In addition to the more traditional guided meditations, the Balance app also offers iOS users the privilege of access to immersive content, which combines vibration and sound to aid sleep and stress reduction. These are an absolute game-changer and like nothing I’ve ever experienced before.

Before starting, you have to decide on whether you’re going to hold your phone in one hand, two hands, or even place it on your chest, leg, or somewhere else that feels comfortable. I hold a lot of tension in my chest, so I usually locate my phone there.

My personal favorite experience was called Immersive Forest, which was ideal for helping me feel relaxed before bed. It involves walking through a lush green forest with a friendly dog. Along the way, you meet other animals and interact with fireflies and even a stream. I was amazed at how realistic the feeling of ‘putting my hand in the steam’ felt. Everything about it was so authentic, that is apart from the fact that I didn’t get wet!

I set a daily nighttime reminder for this meditation, something that you can do with any experience contained within the app. I also regularly ‘checked in’ with the app, telling it how I was feeling. As a result, I received meditations tailored to me.

Get the premium experience

If you’d like to unlock complete access to all Balance features, then you’ll have to subscribe to a Premium plan. This will cost $69.99 / £39.99 per year, which isn’t too much at all when having good mental health is worth every penny.

Balance Premium provides unlimited access to the full library of personalized 10-day plans, on-the-go single meditations, sleep stories, color noises, animated breathing exercises, and immersive meditations.

If you’d like to give Balance a try, download the app on iOS or Android and take advantage of a free one-month trial with access to all premium features.

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