We hear a lot about how the iPhone and iPad are useful productivity tools, but they can also come to the rescue when all that work and study starts getting you down. Whatever your relaxation method of choice, this list of relaxation apps for iPhone and iPad will help you de-stress and take care of your mental and physical wellbeing.
Pzizz Energizer – getting enough sleep is crucial for combatting the physical tension and fatigue that can go hand-in-hand with stress. The Pzizz Energizer iPhone and iPad app is designed to help you power nap your way back to physical and emotional health. Set a timer stating how long you want to relax or sleep, then let the Pzizz meditation app do its work. Once the time is up, the app will gently wake you up again, refreshed and ready to get on with your day. Pzizz is perfect for taking a lunch-time nap, and gives you full control over your relaxation experience. This mindfulness app creates a different soundtrack whenever you press “Start” so you don’t have to listen to the same audio every time you use it. You can choose whether you want a spoken mediation, background music, and select the volume levels of each.
Yoga Relax – yoga helps your mind to relax, while building strength and flexibility in your body, but you might not have time to attend regular classes. The Yoga Relax iPad and iPhone app lets you practice in the comfort of your own home, providing up to 35 postures in a session. Using this yoga app, you can specify how long you want each “class” to last, which can be anything from sixty seconds up to 36 minutes. During each session, you can turn on audio instruction for extra help with postures, and can choose whether to have background music too. With detailed information about each pose, as well as its health benefits, Yoga Relax isn’t just an exercise app, but also teaches you more about yoga as an art form.
iZenGarden for iPhone and iPad – if you’re someone that finds trying to relax stressful and feels more at peace when you’re concentrating on something, iZenGarden might be the antidote. This zen app provides you with a visual garden. You choose from hundreds of plants, objects and creatures to place in the garden, and rake the sand in traditional zen patterns. The app uses the traditional concept of Japanese zen gardens and turns this into a meditative exercise. iZenGarden contains nine different meditation soundtracks to choose from while you create a beautiful virtual haven. Originally for iPhone, a separate redesigned version of the app is now available for iPad.
Ambience – is a music app that plays soundtracks designed to help you focus or relax. With over 2,500 free sound effects to choose from, you can create your ideal audio environment. The app enables you to create sound playlists so you can cycle through different stages of relaxation. As you are in control of which sounds the app plays, you can use the app for a variety of purposes depending on your needs, including traditional relaxation and meditation, and as a sleep aid. Other features include an alarm function, which you can set in place of your usual alarm, enabling you to wake up gently. In addition to Ambience’s sound library, you can import tracks from iTunes or use the app to record your own sounds.
White Noise – is a sleep app that provides “environmental” sounds, for example those of a fan or air conditioner, to help you relax. The app is useful if you find it hard to relax in silence, or if you are in a noisy environment and need to drown out the background noise with something less intrusive. It loops noises including crashing waves and rain, and you can mix different noises together at different volumes to create new sounds. If you use the app to sleep, you can set a time limit to prevent the soundtrack playing all night. In addition, White Noise has an alarm feature, so you can also start your day in a relaxed way.