With 2019 coming to a close, it’s time to look back and reflect on what we’ve accomplished this year. Did you meet the goals that you set for yourself at the beginning of this year related to your career, education, finance, or solving long-running family issues? If you didn’t meet all of your goals in 2019, you’re definitely not the only one. Looking forward to next year, we’ve learned that the best ways to achieve the goals that you set for yourself are by having a positive mindset, a can-do attitude, and prioritizing and maintaining good mental health. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the mental health trends from 2019 for you to be aware of going into in 2020.
#1: Online Therapy Apps
Mental health awareness was one of the hottest topics of 2019. With hashtags for mental health awareness trending on popular social networks like Twitter, the world is finally taking notice of the importance of having better mental health and destigmatizing mental health issues like depression, anxiety, post traumatic stress disorder, and more. In response, leading therapy providers have developed or improved upon their apps for providing online therapy. Popular apps like BetterHelp saw millions of sessions completed for their clients this year.
#2: Couples Therapy Apps are Becoming Popular
Keeping in line with individual therapy apps, couples therapy apps also stood out this year. Leading couples therapy providers like ReGain.us became known as the best app for providing couples therapy online. Today’s couples are more serious about using different resources to help them thrive in their relationships, and using online couples therapy apps with face-to-face video options with licensed therapists is catching on with couples worldwide.
#3: Self-Help Resources are Readily Available
Managing your mental health is becoming easier as more self-help options and support resources are available online to guide you to free or affordable resources in your area. For non-emergency mental health issues, there are tons of available resources, downloads, exercises, and board-certified therapists available online. Peer-to-peer support services are also gaining in popularity as people with non-emergency issues often just need a listening ear, and they can find trained listeners for free on hotlines or certain sites online.
The cost of therapy is becoming more affordable as online therapy apps, employer insurance benefit plans, and peer-to-peer mental health counseling options are taking hold. One of the most important things that we learned this year is that our mental health is equally as important as our physical health. Even big businesses are taking notice and making an effort to encourage employees to take better care of their mental health. Coffee giant Starbucks made public announcements this year to improve its mental health programs for its employees.
With the growing trends and awareness around the importance of mental health, 2020 should bring many pleasant surprises.