Anxiety Coach

Description:

The Anxiety Coach app provides self-directed CBT based therapy for anxiety disorders, with the main component consisting of completing exposure tasks. The app contains educational materials under the "Learn" heading, covering the interactions between thoughts, feelings and behaviours in a range of anxiety disorders and how this is addressed in the app. Users can also complete assessments under the "Checkup" heading to determine which disorder best descrides their symptoms and to track changes in symptoms over time, including graphical representations. Under the "To-Do List" heading, users can develop a personalised fear hierarchy and use this to create a list of exposure tasks to complete. Automated feedback is provided through the "Inbox" page.

Service URL:

https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/anxietycoach/id565943257?mt=8

Agency Responsible:

Mayo Clinic.

Mobile Platform:

Apple.

Details

Format:

Smartphone Application.

Intervention Type:

Psychological – CBT. Including exposure therapy

Course Structure:

No Set Course.

Course Length:

Other. No set length

Support Option:

Automated only.

Target Audience

Primary Categories:

Obsessive compulsive disorder and Generalised anxiety disorder. and other anxiety disorders

Target Audience:

Adult. also suitable for children and adolescents

Language:

English.

Access

Mobile platforms:

Apple:

https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/anxietycoach/id565943257?mt=8

Fee:

Fee-based. $7.99

Access:

Closed: Fee required.

Contact Details:

contact through web page:

https://www.mayoclinic.org/forms/comments

Research evidence

Research Trials:

1

Research RCTs:

0

Outcome Summary:

A paper has been published detailing two case studies where Anxiety Coach was used in combincation with minimal therapist contact to treat OCD. In the first case, Anxiety Coach was used to treat OCD in an 11 year old girl who met the diagnostic criteria for OCD with symptoms in the moderate range. Following treatment with the Anxiety Coach app with minimal therapuist contact she no longer met criteria for OCD. The second case study was a 16 year old male with severe symptoms of OCD, with comorbid social anxiety and major depressive disorder. Over three months of treatment with Anxiety Coach and nine face to face sessions with a therapist, his OCD symptoms had reduced to fall within the mild range. These case studies provide preliminary but limited evidence that Anxiety Coach may be efficacious as an adjunct to in person therapy for OCD. 

Recommended rating, reviewer 1:

Recommended rating, reviewer 2:

Read more about Beacon's Smiley Rating System.

Research paper citations

(1) Whiteside, S. P., Ale, C. M., Vickers Douglas, K., Tiede, M. S., & Dammann, J. E. (2014). Case examples of enhancing pediatric OCD treatment with a smartphone application. Clinical Case Studies, 13(1), 80-94.

Carper, M. M. (2017). Multimedia Field Test Thinking About Exposures? There’s an App for That!. Cognitive and behavioral practice, 24(1), 121-127.