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Headspace is an easy-to-use app that offers a variety of guided meditations and mindfulness exercises. It may be a suitable selection for those who are fond of or curious about meditation, as it has many short-form video features that make it easy to incorporate. in your day. It also includes complex meditations for more experienced users, as well as videos for young people and teenagers.
Headspace was created in 2010 through co-founders Andy Puddicombe, a former monk, and Richard Pierson, who met when Pierson was attending a meditation clinic Puddicombe ran. Known as one of the world’s first meditation apps, according to the company, Headspace was created to help as many people as possible realize the benefits of meditation.
“Our vision is global in which each and every one is kind to their minds, and our ultimate goal is to put meditation and mindfulness equipment in the hands of anyone and everyone, regardless of their background or experiences,” says Russell Glass. CEO of Headspace. ” Our goal is to help people reduce tension, sleep soundly, develop healthy habits, and feel better. »
To use Headspace, you must sign up for a paid plan and, depending on which plan you choose, get a seven-day or 14-day free trial. You can download the app from the Apple Store or Google Play and use all the features of the app as well as the Internet edition of Headspace.
When you first open the Headspace app, it takes you to the Today section, which shows your recommended daily routine. This includes videos for morning, afternoon, and evening. The morning is made up of a breathing exercise, Wake Up (a short video on an express topic) and your meditation of the day. The afternoon guide is usually an exercise video and the evening is usually a Sleepcast (essentially a bedtime story meant to help you fall asleep).
If you don’t need to keep up with your routine, you can switch to the Explore tab. There are 4 main categories you can explore:
You can also search for meditations to express themes or explore curated collections. Some examples of collections include Mindfulness at Work, Parents and Kids, and some themed features (such as Star Wars Find Your Force and the National Park Collection).
Once you’ve selected the meditation or video you need to follow, simply use it and start listening or watching.
There are two other payment plans to choose from. You can be billed $69. 99 per year (or $5. 83 per month) with a 14-day free trial, or you can pay $12. 99 per month with a 7-day free trial. To sign up for the free trial, you need to enter your billing details for any of the packages. These are automatically renewed, so keep this in mind if you plan to cancel or suspend service.
Headspace partners with other systems and is offered free of charge through employers and insurance companies.
You may also be able to get Headspace at a discounted price. Headspace for Students offers a discounted plan of $9. 99 billed for scholars living in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, India, Portugal, and Spain over the age of 18. The Headspace family plan also allows families to consolidate up to six accounts for $99. 99 each year.
Free access to Headspace can be obtained through Headspace for Educators (for K-12 teachers and staff in the U. S. ). Headspace for Teens (USA, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia) and Headspace for Teens (for 13-18 year olds) through two of Headspace’s partners: Peer Health Exchange and Bring Change 2 Mind.
On the Explore tab, locate 4 main categories to explore: Meditate, Sleep, Move, and Music. Each tab starts with the videos you recently watched in that category, the recommended videos in that category, and the featured video of the day.
The Meditate tab is where you can locate guided meditations organized into more than 20 more categories, adding features like Mental Health Questions, Student Basics, Quick Meditations, and Guided Breathing. Once you click on a category, search for a variety of other videos on that topic. , adding meditations, classes, and podcasts.
There is also a category called Courses and Singles. More than 60 more courses are featured in the app. Each elegance includes between five and 15 more guided meditations, and you should pay attention to one each day until the end. There are another 3 fundamental courses for beginners and another 8 professional courses for users. There are also topical courses on everything from sports motivation to miscarriage management and sleep health.
You can explore more than 20 other categories in this tab. They come with guided meditations designed to be used before bed, Sleepcasts, guided middle-of-the-night wake-up workouts, white noise, and a sleep radio.
The Move tab is where all of Headspace’s fitness videos are located. These range from low-impact activities like yoga and meditations on rest days to more intense workouts, like mindful cardio. Each category includes a collection of videos on specific topics, primarily exercise tutorials that last between 10 and forty-five minutes.
The Music tab is full of videos on how to learn to focus. Each category includes meditations, soundscapes, playlists, informational videos, and mindfulness activities on specific topics, such as breathing exercises. Category topics include general advice, music and learning for work, study and movement.
Headspace has relied heavily on clinical studies to make sure it delivers the most productive content possible, Glass says. “Headspace has the largest framework of peer-reviewed evidence in the virtual intellectual fitness sector, with more than 50 peer-reviewed studies and 65 collaborative studies,” says Glass.
Numerous studies have been carried out both inside and outside the company. A small study conducted by Northeastern University found that Headspace for three weeks improved compassion by 23% and reduced aggression by 57%. [1] Lim D, Condon P, DeSteno D. Mindfulness and Compassion: An Examination of Mechanism and Scalability. Plus one. The 2022 Array A review examined 14 other randomized controlled trials and found that Headspace advanced depression in 75% of studies and at least 40% of studies showed improvements in mindfulness, well-being, tension, and anxiety. [2] O’Daffer A , Colt S, Wasil A, Lau N. Efficacy and conflicts of interest in randomized controlled trials comparing Headspace and Calm apps: a systematic review. JMIR Mental Health. Training
The Headspace app is wonderful for beginners, says Sarah Reid, a licensed psychotherapist and intellectual fitness counselor, qualified yoga instructor, qualified eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapist, and trauma specialist founded in Massachusetts. “It’s educational. It provides a selection of meditation duration and allows the user to track their progress and set goals,” she says. “For those who cannot reduce tension or anxiety, the app is easy to use and produces results. “
In addition to its benefits for beginners, Headspace can also be a boon for more experienced users, adds Ann Robinson, a licensed clinical social worker and trauma surgeon in Fort Collins, Colorado. “The app offers a variety of guided meditations tailored to specific needs, such as managing anxiety or sleep, making it available to anyone to get started with meditation,” she says.
Reid also appreciates that Headspace has committed to making content available to everyone, highlighting the inclusive Shine collection, toddler systems, and meditation categories like Coping with Cancer and Support After Miscarriage.
However, as useful as meditation apps like Headspace can be, they update the therapy, Reid adds. “Headspace claims to improve intellectual health, such as reducing tension and anxiety,” Reid says. “It doesn’t update individual paintings that can be done with a therapist. “
As an exhausted and worried mother of two young children, I was excited to try Headspace. My goal was to work on how to reduce daily tension and anxiety, engage in a daily mindfulness practice, and my sleep.
When I downloaded the Headspace app and created an account, my first enjoyment was how simple it was to navigate, with its bright colors and concise, varied categories. With a wide diversity of content, I started with a foundational course for beginners.
As someone who only briefly tried meditating before Headspace, I discovered the easy-to-follow basic course, helping me understand meditation and its purpose. The meditation videos are short enough and allow you to choose a teacher, making the experience less painful.
One feature I really like is the Today tab, which provides tips on breathing exercises, informational videos, and meditations for other times of the day. I enjoyed that the Today tab made it easy for me to locate meditations to follow, so I didn’t have to spend too much time looking for the right ones. Breathing exercises are also relaxing and are anything you wouldn’t normally do alone. However, the informational videos for “Wake Up Call” were not my favorites and I skipped them.
After doing my morning meditation and breathing exercises, I felt calmer, awake, and positioned for the day. I started looking forward to starting my day with Headspace and appreciate that the videos are short because, as a mom, I don’t have time to finish a 45-minute meditation in the morning.
Another feature I enjoyed employing was the sleeping options. Although I have no trouble falling asleep, I regularly wake up in the middle of the night and at those times I have found it difficult to relax, calm down and fall asleep. time. I found the narration and sounds of Sleepcast to be soothing and comforting, and it wasn’t long before I fell asleep again. Since then, I’ve used it a few times and my only complaint is that if I ever stop it, the app will restart and I have to start from the beginning.
I used some videos of soundscapes and white noise to help me fall asleep while traveling and it worked perfectly. I love that you can decide the length of your meditations, which makes them very flexible and allows me to do longer functions if I have time.
The only thing I wasn’t impressed with was the Internet edition of Headspace, which I accessed from my desktop. While you can log in, access your daily routine, and explore other meditation videos, I didn’t find the site very easy to use on Todo. I feel like it’s not as easy to navigate as it is on the app, and I found that you can only search in the Meditate and Focus categories, so I feel like you can’t get the full user experience on the website. . In my opinion, the headspace is definitely larger in the application.
Additionally, some reviews have indicated that it is difficult to contact customer service if there is a problem, whether it is a subscription factor or a technical factor. Some users have also complained about technical issues in the app.
I tested the app for two weeks and had an overall positive experience. Although I don’t think 3 weeks is enough time to feel a very significant difference in my intellectual health, I have every intention of continuing to use the app. Although I think the value is a bit high, I think that if it really helps me decrease my anxiety, tension, and sleep, it will be valuable to me personally. I found the app transparent and easy to use and appreciate the features available for younger people and the many other topics to explore. I love how simple it is to locate my activity history and that I can also track my blood pressure in the app. This is something I will definitely continue to use.
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