Mindfulness Apps for Stress Relief & Pain Management - Part 1 - Cross Platform

By Anna Hazard

View the Rest of the Series

Part 2 : iOS Exclusive
Part 3 : Android Exclusive

Introduction

Mindfulness is a catch-all term for a mental state of focus, calmness, and acceptance that is often used as therapeutic technique for stress relief, pain management, insomnia and a variety of other health concerns. Techniques used to cultivate mindfulness include meditation, breathing exercises, focused activities such as yoga, and short pauses to stop during your daily life to focus & center oneself.
 
Many people find it easier to begin & maintain mindfulness routines by using specifically tailored apps on their often ever present cell phones. These apps are an easy & portable way to remain connected with others in the mindfulness community, relax with guided mediations & calming music or ambient sounds, as well as act as reminders to pause & take a quick breather for oneself during the day.
 
Here are a selection of cross-platform apps for both Android & iOS that specifically focus on mindfulness and meditation. They are fully free or free to try, many with further premium content that can be later unlocked through subscription services.

Cross Platform Apps

Smiling Mind

• iOS | Android | Website (Free)
• Available both on the internet & as a cross platform app, this program was developed by psychologists & educators to help both children and adults deal with daily stress through mindfulness meditation. Guided meditations have a particular focus on children ages 7 - 18, adults, as well as specific programs for use with sports, in the classroom, or at work.

Breathe2Relax

• iOS | Android | Website (Free)
• This free app provides info on the physical and mental effects of stress as well as giving customizable instructions  for diaphragmatic breathing exercises for stress, mood, anger, and anxiety management. Can be used in conjunction with Healthkit & the user's Apple Watch  to measure pulse rate during relaxation exercises

Calm

• iOS | Android | Website (Free with in-app purchases)
• Mindfulness and meditation app for better sleep, relaxation, and to help bring more clarity & peace to the user's daily life. Includes sleep stories, breathing exercises, relaxing music & nature sounds, as well as guided 3 - 25 minute meditations on various subjects such as self esteem, mindfulness at work, and deep sleep. Can be used by beginners, intermediate, as well as advanced mindfulness gurus.

The Mindfullness App

• iOS | Android | Website (Free with in-app purchases)
• With a focus on creating a more relaxed and healthier state of mind through meditation, this app contains a five day introduction to mindfulness, guided, silent, or personalized meditations ranging from 3 to 30 minutes long, as well as daily mindfulness reminders and statistics. The premium subscription service has access to 200+ more guided meditation tracks.

Insight Timer

• iOS | Android | Website (Free with in-app purchases)
• This guided meditation app focuses on helping the user calm the mind, reduce anxiety, manage stress, sleep deeply and improve their overall happiness level. Includes thousands of guided meditations, lectures from mindfulness experts, neuroscientists, psychologists and meditation teachers, access to discussion groups & other community activities, as well as soothing ambient sounds & relaxing music tracks.

Stop, Breathe & Think

• iOS | Android | Website (Free with in-app purchases)
• A meditation & mindfulness app for better sleep, stress & anxiety relief, as well as keeping calm and inspired in daily life. Community focused meditations allow the user to describe their current emotions & receive recommendations for short, guided meditations as well as yoga & acupressure videos tailored to their current situation. Includes mood & progress trackers and daily feeds filled with tips, inspiration, and mini-exercises.

Headspace

• iOS | Android | Website (Free with in-app purchases)
• This app contains simple guided meditations suitable for all levels to help improve the user's focus & mindfulness, attain better sleep, relieve anxiety,  reduce stress, and bring better balance to the user's daily life. Includes free 10 minute meditations for beginners with personalized progress page, a buddy system, as well as reminders and rewards for regularly using the app. Access to the full meditation library requires a subscription to the premium service.

Breeth

• iOS | Android | Website (Free with in-app purchases)
• Relieve stress, learn to relax, sharpen your mind, and achieve better sleep within minutes by using simple mindfulness & meditation techniques. Included relaxing music as well as hundreds of short guided meditations that focus on a variety of topics such as weight loss, relationships, and work related anxiety. Access to full content requires a premium membership.

Aura

• iOS | Android | Website (Free with in-app purchases)
• This app focuses on reducing stress & anxiety, improving focus & positivity, and sleeping better by using short 3 minute daily personalized & guided mindfulness meditations, life coaching tools & stories, as well as soothing music & ambient natural sounds. Includes the ability to track the user's mood patterns, mindfulness & breathing reminders, access to the Aura community of teachers & users, as well as the ability to integrate with Apple Health for better tracking.

10% Happier: Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics

• iOS | Android | Website (Free with in-app purchases)
• Includes a quick 7 session introductory course to mindfulness from best selling author Dan Harris as well as other meditation experts, daily videos to simple meditations, guided audio meditations on such topics as stress, anxiety, and sleep, quick meditation rituals for on-the-go, as well as practical advice for applying mindfulness to daily life. New & on-going content requires a premium subscription.

Omvana

• iOS | Android | Website (Free with in-app purchases)
• This app contains narrated guided mediations from health, wellness and meditation teachers on a variety of subjects such as better sleep, anxiety & depression relief, and beginner's guide to meditation. Also included are relaxation audio, calming yoga music, relaxing ambient sounds, and other self improvement tracks. Meditations can be personalized by mixing in vocal tracks, music, famous speeches, and ambient sounds to a user's taste.