Calm

Excellent, I like Jeff's daily meditation. And sleep stories if I need them at times. Totally worth the subscription fee for me.

The only good thing I can really say about this app is that the rain soundscapes are probably the best I've found on any app. The stories were weird for trying to sleep to, but maybe that's just me. The ability to browse all of their content is somewhat limited as well--hard to know where to navigate to sometimes. A lot of what I listened to, especially in the Daily Jay, seemed over-focused on productivity, being the best I can be, self-improvement, etc.--rather than learning to accept and love myself as I am. Self help content can often be subtly toxic this way, and I'd rather not get it from something selling itself as having psychological benefits. I told my therapist that I had gotten it, and she promptly told me to uninstall it--turns out she hates the app with a passion, and many of her colleagues feel likewise. My qualifications: I have practiced meditation for years--both silent, zen-style meditation with a local sangha and guided meditations a la Headspace. I struggle with depression, PTSD, and ADHD and have experienced many treatment modalities over the years--including extensive mindfulness practice. TLDR: some good, but plenty of toxic self help rather than evidence-based psychological content. Plenty of other apps that are cheaper or free.

Loving Calm. Just got it. Good to just make space in busy days.

The Calm app is for anyone like me who struggles with getting to sleep but wants to find creative solutions to solve this issue. Calm provides recordings of stories, nature sounds, meditations and much much more to help guide you to a restful sleep. As a longtime Calm app fan I have been astounded by the steps the app has taken to make its offerings more and more creative. To me this presents one of the major tenets of desirability the Calm App provides it has reached out to a wide variety of celebrities and personalities to record some of its sleep sounds and recordings. While I know some may be skeptical of the Calm app’s effectiveness, the app requires that the user engage with openness to the potential and possibility provided by the app’s offerings. The easy-to-use interface helps allow the user to explore the application’s massive library.