Apple recently released IOS 17, which includes a new mental health feature in the Health app. This update provides iPhone and iPad users with additional mental health tracking capabilities, making it a valuable resource for CCHS students and many others who use these devices.
The primary purpose of this new feature is to allow users to reflect on their mental state to “help build emotional awareness and resilience,” stated Apple. Apple describes the feature as “an engaging and intuitive way for users to reflect on their state of mind.”
Apple’s vice president of health stated that the reason for including this new feature in the update is because mental health “is important, but often overlooked, and we’re excited to introduce features that offer valuable new insights to provide users with an even better understanding of their health.”
Apple also hopes this feature will “help raise awareness and acceptance” for mental health by allowing users to care for their mental health and further normalizing the mental health discussion.
Having the capability to manage your mental health is also beneficial for your physical health. “Multiple studies by researchers have shown that identifying feelings reduces emotions like sadness and anger and positively impacts our body by slowing our heart rate,” stated Apple.
Even UCLA professor of psychology and psychiatry Dr. Michelle Craske stated, “Identifying our feelings has been shown to help us manage difficult emotions, appreciate positive moments, and improve well-being.”
Using Apple’s feature can be an excellent way for CCHS students to track their feelings, reflect on their moods, and manage their mental health.
To use the mental health feature, “Users can scroll through engaging, multidimensional shapes and choose how they are feeling in a range from Very Pleasant to Very Unpleasant,” Apple stated.
Users can then add emotions like “grateful” or “worried,” as well as factors that are affecting those feelings, such as “family” or “travel,” stated Healthline.
The new Journal app, set to be released later this year, can be a way for anyone, including CCHS students, to write about anything on their minds. The app will suggest moments related to your recent activity, such as photos, people, places, and more.
The Journal app “encourages you to jot down your thoughts on special moments by curating photos, videos, and other data stored on your iPhone into journal entries,” stated Tom’s Guide.
This new app will give users a space to “reflect and practice gratitude through writing about and remembering life’s moments,” stated Apple.
Mental health is equally as important as physical health, and both of these easily accessible resources can be very helpful for CCHS students to keep track of and improve their overall health.
