MIT Technology Review March 20, 2020
Regulatory changes and anxiety heightened by isolation are leading to a boom in use of mental health apps and teletherapy—but are they good enough?
The coronavirus outbreak has forced millions of us to isolate ourselves, sometimes even within the same house, from those we interact with every day: coworkers, friends, family, pets. Combine that with existential fear and a looming unknown future, and it’s understandable that anxiety is high.
No wonder, then, that, in the past month mental health apps—ranging from meditation and wellness helpers like Headspace and Sanvello to teletherapy platforms like Talkspace—have seen spikes in use.
Headspace’s chief science officer, Megan Jones Bell, says the number of users looking for specific content on stress has doubled. The company...