Insight
In this day and age, technology’s impact on our mental wellbeing is both feared and revered. It can’t do right for doing wrong, but it is a must in our everyday lives. Many of us don’t go less than an hour without using some form of technology to enhance our day in some way. We probe into the different ways technology can be used for a force of mental wellbeing good.
Technology (be it an app, or the internet in general) provides much easier access to signposting and care for those who live in areas with limited resources, or might have mobility issues themselves.
As well as that, asking a professional questions about your own mental health can sometimes for some be a little daunting. Technology enables people to ask these kinds of questions in a more anonymous, and informal way.
A great starting point is to provide high quality, clinically validated sources of information through easy-to-use, trusted websites and systems.
Analysing large groups of people through apps will provide valuable insights into various different health behaviours. It’s even possible that through specific keywords that are used some patterns can emerge in people more likely to have depression for example.
Once a large group start to engage with the app, or platform they start to build an understanding of their own mental wellbeing, and are able to monitor it themselves.
The likes of the 87% app does entirely this, it allows you to build daily mental health habits in a tailored way that entirely suits you and your needs.
By embracing the power and the level of communication that technology offers this can be used to help the majority of society.
Public health initiatives on social media networks can reach wider or targeted audiences for particular risk factors or messaging, such as online community groups that discuss depression or alcoholism, or particular age groups at risk for a whole range of different conditions.
Being able to share personal stories can help reduce stigma and enhance people’s understanding of what really happens within their own minds, and finding people that relate to them can be so powerful.
Originally posted here
87% are a finalist in the Business Transformation category of the DigitalAgenda Impact Awards.
