Mental Health. Some Useful Help Lines, Web Sites and Mobile Apps.
Provided below is a list of some useful Help Lines, Web Site and Mobile Applications that can help support you and/or someone you know with their mental health and well-being.
There are lots of great Help Lines, Web Sites and Mobile Apps that can assist with mental health. Many specialise different ages from the elderly to teenagers, cultural backgrounds, sexual orientation and issues such as anxiety, alcoholism or self-harm. Some are free whilst others are paid subscriptions. Some use paid professionals others are peer to peer. Some offer counselling, support or are things like mood tracking apps. They all vary and depending on your wants and needs some may be more suitable than others. Take you time to review this list and determine what is the best and most appropriate resource.
This list is by no means an exhaustive or complete list of various Mental Health resources. We will continually update the list as more resources become known and available. If you know of any that should be added to the list please contact the Australian Patients Association.
National Help Lines and Websites
1800RESPECT
Confidential information, counselling and support service open 24 hours to support people impacted by sexual assault, domestic or family violence and abuse.
Information on symptoms, treatment and prevention of depression and bipolar disorder.
Black Dog Institute | Science. Compassion. Action.
1800 242 636
Short-term counselling and emotional and psychological support services for carers and their families in each state and territory.
Counselling Online – free drug and alcohol counselling in Australia
Counselling Online is a free and confidential service that provides 24/7 support to people across Australia affected by alcohol or other drug use.
Embrace Multicultural Mental Health
Welcome | Embrace Multicultural Mental Health (embracementalhealth.org.au)
A national platform for multicultural communities and Australian mental health services to access resources, services and information in a culturally accessible format.
Gambler’s Help hotline
1800 858 858
A free and confidential hotline available 24/7 for those experiencing a gambling problem. Support includes counselling, information, referral and advice.
Gambling Help Online – Free gambling support in Australia
Gambling Help Online is a free, confidential service that operates 24/7 to provide online support and referral for anyone affected by gambling.
Welcome to Head to Health | Head to Health
An innovative website that can help you find free and low-cost, trusted online and phone mental health resources.
1800 650 890
Free online and telephone service that supports young people aged between 12 and 25 and their families going through a tough time.
1800 55 1800
A free, private and confidential, telephone and online counselling service specifically for young people aged between 5 and 25.
Lifeline
13 11 14
Lifeline provides free, 24-hour telephone crisis support and suicide prevention service across Australia. Volunteer crisis supporters provide suicide prevention services, mental health support and emotional assistance, not only via telephone but face-to-face and online. Lifeline exists so that no person in Australia has to face their darkest moments alone.
1300 78 99 78
A telephone and online support, information and referral service, helping men to deal with relationship problems in a practical and effective way.
1800 61 44 34
An online and telephone clinic providing free assessment and treatment services for Australian adults with anxiety or depression.
National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation (NACCHO)
Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services and Aboriginal Medical Services in each state and territory
.National Alcohol and Other Drug Hotline
1800 250 015
A 24/7 free and confidential hotline for anyone affected by alcohol or other drugs. Support includes counselling, advice and referral to local services.
1800 007 007
Financial counselling is available from the National Debt Helpline. Financial counsellors are qualified professionals who provide information, advice and advocacy to people in financial difficulty. Their services are free, confidential, independent and non-judgmental.
1800 184 527 3pm-12am
QLife is Australia’s first nationally-oriented counselling and referral service for LGBTI people. The project provides nation-wide, early intervention, peer supported telephone and web based services to diverse people of all ages experiencing poor mental health, psychological distress, social isolation, discrimination, experiences of being misgendered and/or other social determinants that impact on their health and wellbeing.
Mobile Applications
Mobile Application can be divided into a number of categories based on the type of support they provide. For convenience of searching the various Apps they have been allocated to the following categories:
- Peer Support & Community
- Supporting Others & Self-Help
- Self-Harm & Suicide Prevention
- Mindfulness & Meditation
- Mood Tracker & Journal
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
- Clinical Telehealth
- Artificial Intelligence (Chat Bots)
Peer Support & Community
Voice of Health – Accessible Online Peer Support
Voice of Health provides a safe place where you can share with your peers, talk one-on-one with someone that understands you and can help you develop strategies to self-manage your own mental well-being.
Voice of Health’s free app allows you to talk with trained Active Listeners, who can empathise, listen and relate to your lived experience. It combines accessibility to support with the importance of human connection when managing your mental well-being.
Cost: Free, Enterprise & Corporate (Custom)
Download on Apple: Voice of Health iOS App
Download on Android: (Coming Soon)
TalkLife
TalkLife is a peer-to-peer support app that’s a “place to share how you’re feeling on forums with like-minded people.” People can post messages about what they’re struggling with, and then others respond back with messages, or “support,” “hugs,” “OMG,” or “hearts.”
Cost: Free
Download From: https://www.talklife.co/
Wisdo
Wisdo is a community forum mobile app where you can join community forums, share your journey, find buddies and talk about life’s challenges.
Cost: Free Forums, Membership ($5.99 p/m to $39.99 p/y)
Download From: https://www.wisdo.com/
Hey Peers
Hey Peers is a video chat app that allows people to safely browse and join peer support conversations and meetings.
Cost: Free
Download From: https://www.heypeers.com/
Supporting Others & Self-Help
The Daybreak App
Daybreak is a supportive & non-judgemental community of people, all helping each other achieve their alcohol change goals. Get tips from people just like you.
Cost: Free Trial, Membership ($9.99 p/m)
Download From: https://hellosundaymorning.org/daybreak/
iBobbly
iBobbly is a social and emotional wellbeing self-help app for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians aged 15 years and over. Completely private and confidential, it helps by showing you ways to manage your thoughts and feelings, as well as how to decide what is important in your life.
Cost: Free
Download From: iBobbly Download
Unwinding Anxiety
Unwinding Anxiety is a mental wellness app that aims to help the user control their anxiety; The app features daily exercises that the user can complete across 30 different modules. Other features include video and audio recordings for each lesson and an online journal where users can collect; analyse and manage their progress.
Cost: Freemium, Premium ($29.99 p/m)
Download From: https://www.unwindinganxiety.com/
Beyond Blue – Check-In App
Anyone who wants to check in with a friend but is concerned about saying the wrong thing or making the situation worse. The app takes you through four steps, getting you to think about where you might check in, what you might say and how might you support your friend.
Cost: Free
Download From: https://www.beyondblue.org.au/
Self-Harm & Suicide Prevention
ReMinder Suicide Safety Plan
A suicide safety plan can help to keep you safe when you are feeling low or suicidal. ReMinder Suicide Safety Plan is a self-managed resource for users to adopt as part of their own coping strategy. It will remind you of reasons to live and connect you with the people and services who can help during the tough times
Cost: Free
Download From: Android (ReMinder Android App ) or iOS (ReMinder iOS App )
The BeyondNow App
BeyondNow allows the user to develop a list of warning signs, coping strategies, reasons for living and ways to make their environment safe via either free-text entry, or by selecting from a range of suggestions. In addition, BeyondNow has in built Australian crisis phone numbers and sections for social support and professional contacts, all of which can be dialed from within the app. The app also includes a “sharing” function in which a copy of the safety plan can be shared via email with important support people.
Cost: Free
Download From: Android (BeyondNow Android ) or iOS (BeyondNow iOS )
Calm Harm
Calm Harm provides tasks that help you resist or manage the urge to self harm. You can add your own tasks too and it’s completely private and password protected.
Cost: Free
Download From: https://calmharm.co.uk/
notOK
notOK is a free app developed for teenagers. The app features a large, red button that can be activated to let close friends, family and their support network know help is needed. Users can add up to five trusted contacts as part of their support group so when they hit the digital panic button, a message along with their current GPS location is sent to their contacts. The message reads: “Hey, I’m not OK! Please call, text, or come find me.”
Cost: Free
Download From: https://www.notokapp.com/
Mindfulness & Meditation
Calm
Calm is a guided meditation app to help reduce stress and enhance wellbeing. The 7-step program teaches you how to meditate, with adjustable nature scenes and relaxing music tracks. Sessions range from 2 to 30 minutes on the topics of focus, creativity, energy, confidence, sleep and more.
Cost: Freemium, Premium ($59.99 p/y)
Download From: https://www.calm.com/
Sanvello: Anxiety & Depression
Sanvello is a mindfulness app that can help you identify your feelings or troubles, then move toward acceptance and peace. You can expect to practice helpful techniques, such as visualization, mindfulness meditation, and muscle relaxation, all while nature soundscapes nudge you toward relaxation and calm. The mobile application also has the ability to receive telehealth services.
Cost: Freemium, Premium ($50 p/m)
Download From: https://www.sanvello.com/
Tide
Tide lets you get things done by breaking up individual events among discrete intervals, separated by short breaks. It helps you stay focused in work and study. With one tap, you can easily start a focus and peaceful time accompanied by sounds of the natural environment. Combining the most popular time management method with nature sounds.
Cost: Free
Download From: https://tide.fm/en_US/
Headspace
Headspace is meditation made simple. The app takes you through the basics of meditation, with progress pages to track your stats and reminders to help you with your practice.
Cost: Free Trial, Premium ($12.99 p/m or $69.99 p/y)
Download From: https://www.headspace.com/
ReachOut Breath
ReachOut Breathe helps you reduce the physical symptoms of stress and anxiety by slowing down your breathing and your heart rate with your iPhone or Apple Watch.
Cost: Free
Download From: https://au.reachout.com/
Smiling Mind
Smiling Mind is a meditation app. It has been developed by a team of psychologists and uses mindfulness to boost calmness, contentment and clarity. Mindfulness meditation has been shown to help manage stress, resilience, anxiety, depression and improve general health and wellbeing.
Cost: Free
Download From: https://www.smilingmind.com.au/
Mood Tracker & Journal
Daylio
Daylio is a diary app that allows for goal setting, mood tracking and routine notifications. The app uses this data to create personalised statistics and find what are the causes of individual moods.
Cost: Free, Premium ($4.49 p/m or $35.85 p/y)
Download From: https://daylio.net/
MoodPanda
This app works like a mood-tracking diary. You can update your mood swings as much as you like, and it will show you graphs of your mood to discover important patterns or changes over time. MoodPanda also gives you the opportunity to see your mood on a calendar.
Cost: Free
Download From: https://moodpanda.com/
Reflectly
Reflectly is a journal utilising artificial intelligence to help you structure and reflect upon your daily thoughts and problems.
Cost: Free, Premium ($47.99 p/y)
Download From: https://reflectly.app/
eMood Tracker
eMoods can help you better understand your symptoms related to Bipolar 1 Disorder, Bipolar 2 Disorder, Depression, PTSD, and Anxiety Disorders. eMoods is a free Mood Tracking app that lets you easily chart your daily highs and lows, sleep, medications, and other symptoms related to Bipolar and other common mood disorders. Send printable reports to your doctor or therapist and receive valuable insights about your triggers and mood patterns.
Cost: Free, Enhanced ($50 p/y), Pro ($100 p.y), Enterprise (Custom)
Download From: https://emoodtracker.com/
Moodpath – Depression & Anxiety Test
If you are struggling with emotional problems or simply want to be more aware of your mood and wellbeing, Moodpath accompanies you with daily questions. Moodpath is a written mood journal that uses progress reports and health assessments for reflection and guidance on how to improve wellbeing.
Cost: Free
Download From: https://mymoodpath.com/en/
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
MoodMission
MoodMission is an evidence-based app designed to empower you to overcome feelings of depression and anxiety by discovering new and better ways of coping. When you tell MoodMission how you’re feeling, it gives you a tailored list of 5 simple, quick, effective, evidence-based Missions to improve your mood. All Missions are taken from scientific research, made accessible to you through the app, so you can learn exactly how what you’re doing is helping.
Cost: Free
Download From: http://moodmission.com/
Happify
Happify brings you effective tools and programs to help you take control of your feelings and thoughts.
Cost: Freemium, Premium ($11.99 p/m)
Download From: https://www.happify.com/
MindShift CBT
Is anxiety getting in the way of your life? MindShift CBT uses scientifically proven strategies based on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) to help you learn to relax and be mindful, develop more effective ways of thinking, and use active steps to take charge of your anxiety.
Cost: Free
Download From: MindShift CBT App
Clinical Telehealth
Connect My Mind
Connect My Mind is an Australian premium telehealth service provided by professional therapists to support individuals’ challenges and provide appropriate skill sets to connect them back to ‘happy’. We make professional counselling accessible and convenient to all individuals – so anyone who struggles with managing the challenges of life can get help, anytime, anywhere.
Connect My MInd offers access to experienced and accredited psychologists, mental health social workers, counsellors and psychotherapists. Our friendly therapists come from a diverse background of knowledge and experience, and utilise an array of techniques to help individuals gain controls of their lives in the comfort of their own environment.
Cost: Varying prices and health insurance, health care plans available
Download From: https://connectmymind.online/
Cyber Clinic
Cyber Clinic is an online mental health clinic providing face-to-face consultations. It uses a data driven algorithm to match you to the right mental health practitioner with the tap of a button and is the simplest, fastest and most convenient way to get the right professional help.
Cost: Varying prices and health insurance, health care plans available
Download From: https://cyberclinic.com.au/
Talkspace Online Therapy
Can’t afford to visit a therapist but still wish you had one to talk to? Talkspace makes that possible. Starting at $65 per week, you can text message a trained professional as often as you need and receive responses daily. They also offer services for individuals and couples, so if your significant other want to learn how to support you through your depression, they can download the app too.
Cost: Plans from $65 to $99 p/w
Download From: https://www.talkspace.com/
Artificial Intelligence (Chat Bots)
Youper
Talk with your artificial intelligence assistant to help you manage your depression. Here’s how it works: Chat back and forth with your assistant, who asks prompts that encourage you to think about your thought patterns and behaviors. The app walks you through techniques you may need in the moment based on your responses. It then summarises your conversations and interactions into insights to help you understand more about your emotional well-being.
Cost: Freemium, Premium ($44.99 p/y)
Download From: https://www.youper.ai/
Tess
Built by clinical psychologists, Tess is a Mental Health Chatbot that coaches people through tough times to build resilience, by having text message conversations – similar to texting with a friend or coach.
Cost: Free Trial, Premium ($10.00 p/m)
Download From: https://www.x2ai.com/
Woebot Health
Woebot, our chat-based tool, is the delivery mechanism for a suite of clinically-validated therapy programs that address many of today’s mental health challenges, from generalized anxiety and depression to specific conditions like postpartum depression, adult and adolescent depression, and substance abuse.
Cost: Free
Download From: https://woebothealth.com/
Wysa
AI Chat that makes you feel heard. Sometimes you need to talk things through – and everyone seems to have an opinion or analysis of your situation. All you need is someone who will listen and ask the right questions to help you figure things out. That’s Wysa.
Cost: Free
Download From: https://www.wysa.io/
Replica
The AI companion who cares.Always here to listen and talk. Always on your side. Join the millions growing with their AI friends now!
Cost: Free, Pro ($4.17 p/m)
Download From: https://replika.ai/
Authorised by Stephen Mason, CEO, APA.