By Cynthia Hovis, MSW, LCSW

Physical and mental health go hand in hand. In today’s world, technology, in one form or another, is rarely out of reach. Ways to put technology to work for you in helping maintain your own healthy balance are currently quite popular and diverse. With new gadgets constantly on the horizon, the possibilities are endless.

There are products ranging from activity trackers like Fitbits to pillows that monitor and enhance your sleep patterns to smartphone apps that provide stress management techniques and help you keep track of moods and behaviors. There are specific mental health applications for your phone that can target tracking symptoms of anxiety or depression and offer behavioral interventions. Several are available for free while some require purchase. They often include personal input and can incorporate data collected by your phone such as activity level to alert you to when you may be more stressed and suggest exercises like listening to calming music or deep breathing. Tracking symptoms and patterns for mental health have long been encouraged, but rarely have they been this accessible. Using these apps you can easily input and create data for your own personal awareness or even to share with your health care provider.

Currently, activity trackers are one of the most popular forms of technology health aids. Each activity tracker is different in what it does, but the capabilities include helping monitor your steps, activity, heart rate, breathing or remind you when you have been inactive for too long. One health/activity tracker for women includes a feature to track your menstrual cycle so that all the health information is collected in one place.

If you prefer competition or videogames, there are activity trackers that allow you to use your daily activity in the form of points for games or competing against others and even a new connecting role-playing game. These products can be wonderful tools to raise awareness or help us change behaviors to be healthier.

Even the idea of a family calendar may need to be updated to keep up with technology and the ever-active lifestyles of families. Have you thought about a shared calendar that all family members can access to keep track of who is doing what, when and where? Is there an app that offers an interactive grocery list family members can add to or cross off?  Are there interactive chore charts or apps to help you quiz your child on spelling words or geography?

There are countless technologies available at varying costs, but it may be a good time to think about your chores, goals and routines and see if there are any that may be of use to you and your family. Just remember to do your research before making your choice and weigh the pros and cons. Be sure the technology you adopt is easy to use and intuitive for all ages so you’re not actually adding stress to your life rather than relieving it.

This article is not intended to serve as a shopping guide or promote one product over another, but to say that, depending on your personal goals, these technologies can be viewed as potentially useful tools to enhance your health and mental health as opposed to simply dismissing them as current fads.

As always, if you are feeling out of balance in your life and you're not sure where to start, call BJC EAP at 314.747.7490.