AccountHonest expectations
What can a psychologist-designed wellbeing app do, and not do?
Useful daily support, not a replacement for care.
By the My Easy Therapy team · Published
My Easy Therapy was founded by Dr Michaela Dunbar, Clinical Psychologist. About Dr Michaela and the approach behind the app
The short answer
A psychologist-designed wellbeing app can give you structured, everyday practice: short guided exercises, ways to notice how you feel, tools for difficult moments and a routine that is easy to keep. Clinical expertise shapes what is included and how it is explained. What it cannot do is assess you, diagnose a condition, provide treatment, or respond to an emergency the way a professional can. It works best as daily support, on its own for everyday stress or alongside professional care when you need more.
An app is a good fit when you want
- A few minutes of guided practice each day.
- Tools you can use in the moment, without booking anything.
- A way to notice patterns in how you feel.
- Support between therapy sessions, or before you are ready for therapy.
What "psychologist-designed" means, and does not mean
It means a clinical psychologist decided what goes in, wrote or shaped the content, and drew on approaches used in psychological practice. It does not mean you are receiving therapy, or that a clinician is reviewing your individual use.
It also does not mean the app as a whole has been clinically validated. Evidence for a technique, such as slow breathing, is not evidence that a particular app produces a particular result.
How digital health tools are judged
In the UK, NICE publishes an evidence standards framework for digital health technologies. It sets out what kind of evidence is expected depending on what a tool claims to do: the more a tool claims to treat or diagnose, the stronger the evidence it needs.
A wellbeing app that supports everyday practice, and says so plainly, sits at the lower-risk end. That is why honest descriptions matter.
Source: NICE: evidence standards framework for digital health technologies
When to look for more than an app
If low mood, anxiety or stress are affecting your daily life, if things are getting worse, or if you are thinking about harming yourself, speak to a GP or a mental health professional. In England you can also refer yourself to NHS Talking Therapies.
An app can sit alongside that care. It should never be the reason you delay getting it.
What tends to backfire
- Expecting an app to fix something that needs professional care.
- Stopping therapy or medication because an app feels helpful.
- Choosing an app that promises to cure or treat a condition.
- Using an app as a reason to put off asking for help.
When to seek professional support
If your anxiety, mood or exhaustion is interfering with daily life, or you are having thoughts of harming yourself, please speak to a GP, a qualified therapist, or a crisis line in your country. Reaching for professional support is strength, not failure, and everything here works alongside it, never instead of it.
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My Easy Therapy is a psychologist-designed emotional wellbeing app. It is everyday support, not therapy.
- Daily Calm sessions are written and recorded by Dr Michaela Dunbar, Clinical Psychologist.
- Regulate and Iris support the moments in between; Iris is AI and not a therapist.
- It does not diagnose or treat any condition, and many members use it alongside therapy.
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