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Like everyone in the universe, I am stressed & anxious these days! So I decided to take a look at the ~extremely~ lucrative meditation app biz, asking: Can an app save us from our own brains?
A thread (1/x): https://qz.com/1957338/how-headspace-and-calm-led-the-boom-in-meditation-apps/
A thread (1/x): https://qz.com/1957338/how-headspace-and-calm-led-the-boom-in-meditation-apps/
Meditation apps are booming—particularly post-Covid. Calm, valued at $2 billion, brought in more than $99 million in revenue in 2020. It’s part of the growth trend in mental wellness apps overall:
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(2/x)
There’s promise in the popularity of meditation apps. Research shows meditation helps with depression, stress, & anxiety, & can even retrain our brains to be less reactive.
HOWEVER: There’s no regulation of the more than 2,500 meditation apps on the market. And research on their impact is still in early stages. One prof said: “It’s a little bit of a Wild West out there.”
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(4/x)
The risk isn’t that meditation apps will *hurt* us. One researcher compared it to having a glass of wine to de-stress. But to reap the benefits of meditation, we need to seek more than calm.
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(5/x)
As @zindelsegal told me, meditation is a two-part process: “It’s getting to that place of calm which then allows them to investigate things like, What am I worried about? How do I deal with my worry?”
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(6/x)
So if you’re looking to rewire your brain, look for apps that go beyond basic breathing and delve into topics like cultivating kindness and self-compassion.
(7/x) https://qz.com/1958045/what-meditation-app-is-best-for-you/
(7/x) https://qz.com/1958045/what-meditation-app-is-best-for-you/
If you're among the 52% of employers that offer mindfulness training, make sure that you give employees other robust mental-health resources, too, so they can learn how to apply mindfulness skills further:
(8/x) https://qz.com/1957341/what-employers-get-wrong-about-mental-health-benefits/
(8/x) https://qz.com/1957341/what-employers-get-wrong-about-mental-health-benefits/
And if you're driving a Lincoln while listening to your Calm subscription, just take care not to get *toooo* relaxed behind the wheel
(9/9 FIN!) https://qz.com/1952715/how-car-companies-are-leaning-into-the-mindfulness-movement/
(9/9 FIN!) https://qz.com/1952715/how-car-companies-are-leaning-into-the-mindfulness-movement/
