Smartphone app to support people with mental illness

A news smartphone app which aims to support children and young adults with mental health problems has been launched.

Rates of depression and anxiety in young people have risen by 70 percent in the past 25 years.

The smartphone app Yo help! is designed to play a crucial role in reversing this increase in mental health problems among young people by teaching them coping mechanisms and providing a constant support system.

     
Photos: My Time CIC; slider photo: Flickr/CAFNR

The app has been developed from research by a community interest company, My Time, based in Birmingham. The study looked at the emotional and mental health of 121 young people in Sandwell.

My Time found that many young people find the conventional routes of mental health support alien and uncomfortable.

Michael Lilley, founder of My Time CIC, said: “The young people told us they felt that counsellors who are much older can’t empathise with their issues. Instead they wanted access to mental health support through a route that was more natural to them.”

Research by the Association for University and College Counselling indicates that at least one in five students have a mental health issue but only 3 to 10 percent make use of the counselling services available. Yo help! will provide a more accessible mental health service to young people.

The app has five interactive features: Mood Metre, Sleep Assistant, Relationships, Bullying and Help me Now. In addition, the app contains many video testimonials of young people explaining their experiences with mental health problems and offering advice.

The Mood Meter allows users to express their emotions and track their own triggers for these emotions. This feature will therefore facilitate a greater self-awareness and provides information on howto manage their feelings.

Irregular or insufficient sleep is recognised as both a symptom and a trigger for mental illness. The Sleep Assistant is an important tool to track sleeping patterns and teach users a sleep hygiene plan which suggests how to arrange the room, dump ones thoughts before trying to sleep and even has a soothing soundtrack.

As bullying and problems in relationships are flagged as a major trigger for anxiety and depression in young people, the app includes a section to develop a range of coping strategies. Yo help! cultivates skills to help them build back damaged self esteem, navigate arguments and losing loved ones.

Help me Now connects users in immediate need of support, due to suicidal or self harming thoughts, to help lines including ChildLine and the Samaritans. There is an emergency location button on this screen which can alert emergency services.

Yo help! has been developed by RNF Digital Innovation Limited and funded by Big Issue Invest and NHS Creative England.

RNF Digital Innovation’s Managing Director, Rob Mannion, said “The app has a number of innovative features that provide targeted support to young people accessing it, while ensuring that everything is done in a completely confidential way.”

All of these services are completely confidential. The only information that the app requires is the age of the user and the postcode of their school. The data collected from the postal code of the users’ schools shows the prevalent issues in particular schools and neighbourhoods. The local schools, general practitioners, authorities,youth groups etc. Will be able to access the service and see which specific issues they need to address.