THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT

A few apps that are using mindfulness to offer mental health support.

Stress Relief

Based on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and mindfulness meditation, Sanvello offers personalized strategies to help you find relief from anxiety, stress, and depression

You can track your mood and choose exercises tailored to your result—including meditations, videos, articles, and prompts. Users can also connect with a coach or therapist via message, and with other users through discussion boards and chat groups.

The Anxiety Habit

Unwinding Anxiety offers short practices and lessons based on mindfulness training to help you “change the ‘habit loop’ that leads to anxiety.” Over the course of the program designed by neuroscientist Judson Brewer, you’ll map out behaviors of fear and anxiety and work to replace habitual patterns of worry. As you go through the modules, you can journal within the app to track your anxiety triggers and progress, and join weekly live calls with Brewer and other experts.

That Was Easy

When you’re having a panic attack, Rootd offers a literal “big red button” to press when you need help facing anxiety or finding comfort. When you press the button, the app offers prompts to help return you to a sense of calm. These are audio reminders about what a panic attack is, how long one may last, and how capable your body is of handling what you’re feel ing. You can also follow the short- and long-term lessons on anxiety at your own pace— which include deep breath ing instruction, mindfulness meditation, and other mindful tools like journaling.

Mindfulness Retreats

SPRING + SUMMER 2022 for teens + young adults

Come connect with others, express yourself, and learn tools to compassionately navigate through life’s challenges.

ibme.com/mindful

Retreat locations across the United States. No teen ever turned away for lack of funds. Visit our website for more details.

All pups deserve a fetch-worthy stick. When good sticks were lacking at his local park, a dad in Kaiapoi, New Zealand, started a “stick library,” a homemade box filled with quality sticks for the “borrowing”—an idea since taken up by other parks around the world.

MINDFUL OR MINDLESS?

Our take on who’s paying attention and who’s not

by AMBER TUCKER

A hiker in Colorado got lost and spent all night searching for the trail, only realizing later that a Search and Rescue team was searching for them. The hiker ignored repeated calls and texts from SAR… because they didn’t recognize the number. Sometimes, help is just a “spam call” away.

In 1957, the tidal Thames (a 95-mile-long estuary, part of the UK river) was declared biologically dead: so polluted that it could not support life. Now, conservation efforts have allowed species of seals, birds, and even sharks to thrive again as the habitat recovers.

“People are more than their jobs” is the basis for Ontario’s new Working for Workers Act. The Act encourages policies to help employees disconnect from their jobs outside work hours, and addresses other barriers to career success and well-being that workers may face.

A Danish museum loaned artist Jens Haaning 534,000 kroner ($84,000 USD) in cash, expecting him to affix it to a canvas—a new artwork he would have to spend his own money to create. To point out the hypocrisy, Haaning instead delivered two blank canvases, titled “Take the Money and Run.”

Farewell to a wayward wizard? Christchurch, New Zealand, recently removed one from payroll. Ian Brackenbury Channell held the title of Wizard of New Zealand for 31 years. His job? To “provide acts of wizardry and other wizard-like services” as tourism promotion. He’d also made not-so-charming comments about women. ●